National Trust volunteers told they must wear gay pride badge
Controversy over outing gay squire takes new turn as country hall staff are given LGBTQ ultimatum
THE National Trust has become embroiled in a new row about political correctness after it demanded volunteers at a Norfolk mansion wear the gay pride rainbow symbol.
More than 300 volunteers at Felbrigg Hall were told that if they did not wear badges and lanyards emblazoned with the flag motif, they would be barred from meeting visitors and be forced to do backroom chores.
The move is part of the trust’s Prejudice and Pride campaign that celebrates 50 years since the decriminalisation of homosexuality.
Last month, the trust faced a backlash when it “outed” Robert Wyndham Ketton-cremer, the country squire who gave them the hall after his death in 1969. The trust produced a short film narrated by Stephen Fry that claimed the historian and poet was widely known to have been homosexual, both locally and during his time at Oxford University.
Three godchildren complained that the “intensely private” academic would not have wanted his sexuality revealed, adding that the trust was simply seeking cheap publicity.
Many volunteers at the hall are now said to be angry that if they do not wear the badge they will not be able to work as room guides or garden stewards, where they meet the public.
The trust insisted that it was an “organisation for everyone” that was “committed to equality” and that volunteers were expected to uphold its values.
FOR NEARLY 40 years, the vibrant rainbow flag of the gay pride movement has come to represent diversity and tolerance.
However, a decision by the National Trust to demand 350 of its volunteers at a Jacobean mansion wear the banner or be banished to backroom duties has triggered a backlash.
Senior staff at Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk wrote to their unpaid assistants asking them to wear a lanyard or badge displaying the rainbow flag to welcome the LGBTQ community.
The email, seen by The Daily Telegraph, says that those who refused would not be allowed to meet and greet guests at the 17th-century hall.
The move was part of the trust’s Prejudice and Pride campaign marking 50 years since the decriminalisation of homosexuality.
The trust caused controversy in “outing” Robert Wyndham Ketton-cremer, the late owner of the hall, last month in a short film narrated by Stephen Fry.
Relatives and godchildren of the country squire wrote to The Daily Telegraph complaining that the “intensely private” historian and poet who died in 1969 should not have been exposed as having been gay.
It is understood that at least 10 volunteers have refused to wear the rainbow emblem in protest at the trust’s decision to publicise his sexuality.
Mike Holmes, who has volunteered for 13 years, said those in revolt were not homophobic, but simply annoyed that the trust had strayed beyond its role as guardian of the country’s heritage.
“Wyndham would have turned in his grave to know what’s happening,” Mr Holmes, 72, said. “He was an intensely private man. He was never open about his sexuality.
“The National Trust looks after grounds and buildings. They do not have the right to research their benefactors’ private lives to suit the needs of a marketing campaign. It’s abhorrent.
“This is not about the squire’s sexuality. I am not homophobic and that’s not what this is about. I love Felbrigg Hall, and I think nobody could say the volunteers aren’t the greatest advocates for the place. There’s a group of about 10 of us who have volunteered for more than 10 years and we’ve now been told that if we don’t toe the line, we can’t do our jobs. People are getting ill over this. They’re losing sleep because they’re missing out on a part of their daily lives doing something they love.”
Ella Akinlade, the general manager at the hall, said use of the lanyard and badge was an attempt to “send a very clear and visible sign to visitors” that they support the LGBTQ community who “shaped” many of the trust’s properties. But she added: “We respect people’s decisions to opt out of wearing the lanyard. If this is the case, please come and talk with us and we will ask you not to be on duty in a visitor-facing role.”
Annabel Smith, the trust’s head of volunteering, said: “We do recognise that some volunteers may have conflicting, personal opinions. However whilst volunteering for the National Trust we do request and expect individuals to uphold the values of the organisation.”
‘They do not have the right to research their benefactors’ private lives to suit the needs of a marketing campaign. It’s abhorrent’