My son’s dream lives on despite the odds
I HAVE lived all my life in the Lake District and have seen the expansion of the National Trust and Lake District National Park, and the tightening of powers and legislation. Now it is almost impossible for young Cumbrians to set up a business. In order to acquire the land, small farms have been bought at auction by the National Trust with an opening bid far in excess of what a local could match. The Trust then sells or rents the farmhouse, splitting up a perfectly good farm that could have been an excellent business for a young family. My son, Mark, was born and brought up in Borrowdale on a farm. He bought the 600-year-old derelict Honister slate mine in 1996 when he was 29, despite the fact he had no mining experience. He wanted to save a local asset and create a viable business, but due to a planning dispute he struggled to get funding. He couldn’t even get his brochures in the tourist office. Undeterred, he developed a Via Ferrata — a system of ladders and rope bridges — to attract visitors, and suddenly the national park decided this previously derelict area was a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Mark thought he would be supported in bringing the mine back to life, creating 40 jobs for local people and reviving sales of the iconic Westmoorland green slate that adorns the roofs of historic buildings around Britain including Buckingham Palace. Despite having to fight the Lake District National Park to re-start slate production, he won award after award, including Entrepreneur of the Year and British Small Business Champion. The Duke of Edinburgh visited and Mark took him deep into the mountain to show him how the slate is extracted. Tragically, Mark lost his life just outside the mine on a cold, windy night in 2011 when his helicopter crashed. Within days, the slate mine was fined £50,000 and the Lake District National Park was starting to close in on the business. However, it’s earned its nickname of ‘the mine that would not die’. Despite the lack of support from any organisation that could have helped, the last slate mine in Britain is still open and the thrilling Via Ferrata is a major tourist attraction. CELIA TAYLOR WEIR, Borrowdale, Cumbria.