Fears voiced over future of Pollok House

QUEEN Victoria’s husband Prince A l b e r t s t ay e d overnight, while the lush parklands and garden maze provided the backdrop for the timetravelling drama Outlander.

However, there are fears that one of Glasgow’s most prized buildings, Pollok House, which has been the ancestral seat of the StirlingMaxwell family for centuries, could be at risk due to a slump in visitor numbers caused by the pandemic.

An online campaign titled # savepollokhouse aimed at encouraging the Scottish public to visit the Edwardian stately home in the city’s South Side has been supported by more than 3000 people and is said to have been prompted by concerns raised by its own staff.

Pollok House re- opened last month after tour guides were initially told it might remain closed for the rest of the year.

However, the building is only able to admit a certain number of visitors to bookable slots, which are not all being filled, and some of the uppermost parts of the house remain sealed off due to Covid restrictions. There is concern that bookings could worsen over winter, in the absence of the usual tourist coach trade and with continuing uncertainty over the virus.

While the National Trust for Scotland – which manages Pollok House, – says there are “absolutely no plans” to close the building, a spokeswoman said that in common with other visitor attractions it has been hard hit by the pandemic. The Trust said it had been forced to make some redundancies – although it said no permanent staff were affected.

The Edwardian kitchen cafe and gift shop is said to be “ticking over” fuelled by visits to Pollok Park while paid visits are struggling.

Anne Marie Pacitti launched an online campaign to help rally public support for Pollok House after speaking to a member of staff on a recent visit.

She said: “She told me it was a last- minute decision to open up the place after lockdown.

“She said there’s no coachloads of tourists coming these days and promoting the house on social media was about the only thing they can do.

“It’s the upper part of the house, where you pay an entrance fee, that is suffering.

“Maybe they could reduce the cost. Something is better than nothing.”

Grant funding of around £ 1 million was approved by Glasgow City Council for refurbishment works to the exterior of the building in 2016.

The council said the budget for this has not been affected by the pandemic.

Built in 1752, Pollok House was gifted to the City of Glasgow in 1966 by Dame Anne Maxwell Macdonald, whose family had owned the estate for almost 700 years. She died in 2011 at the age of 104.

The family continues to own two flats at the top of the house and stay there when in Glasgow, while the attic is still laid out as it was for servants.

A spokeswoman for the National Trust said: “We are really pleased that Pollok House is now open once again to be enjoyed.

“There are absolutely plans to close the house.

“We are seeing fewer visitors and that is understandable in the current climate. We would like to reassure the public that we have a range of measures in place to ensure their safety and enjoyment and we have signed up to the Good to Go scheme too.

“We have a programme of activities on during the October holidays that make Pollok House a great visit for families.” no