National Trust ‘vandalising’ Cotswolds lake

Angry residents accuse charity of destroying beauty spot by allowing it to fill with silt and weeds

FOR 250 years, the residents of a small Cotswolds village enjoyed views over the carefully designed serpentine lake as they watched herons, kingfishers and osprey. That was until the National Trust was bequeathed the country estate upon which it sits and engaged in what residents describe as acts of “passive vandalism”.

The Sherborne Brook – known as the Broadwaters – is now full of silt, and weeds run rampant, transforming the lake into “a bog”. The boat house and turbine house, once used to power the village, sit derelict.

Relations between the charity and residents have reached an “all-time low”. In a village with a population of little more than 300, a campaign group calling for the trust to act has 140 members. Many more who live in Sherborne, Gloucs, rent their homes or farms from the trust and are said to be “too afraid” to publicly criticise their landlords.

“Tempers are beginning to fray,” said Victor Edelstein, who is among those who have offered their time to help the trust as part of a plea for it to act.

“It has been destroyed,” he said. “Part of the magic of the Broadwaters was that we had masses of different waterfowl coming here, it was like watching a ballet. But that is all gone because there is no water. There used to be a sign by the gate describing which birds you could see, but it was quietly taken away.” When Mr Edelstein moved to the village he thought he could depend on the National Trust to preserve the Grade II listed landscape. But he has had to watch as he says “passive vandalism” means the lake has slowly filled with silt and weeds. The once 10ft deep water is now only a fraction of that.

Villagers believe that many of the issues would have been simple to fix if they had been addressed immediately, but left to fester, they deteriorated and ended up costing thousands.

The community has tried to maintain the Broadwaters with residents trying to clear the water themselves. But their offers have fallen on deaf ears, they say.

After years of dispute the trust says it is engaging with residents. But it was accused of being “condescending” after refusing pleas to clear the waters.

Roger Davies, who founded the Sherborne Brook Support Group, said relations “can only be described as pretty poor” and the “community would like the heritage significance of this landscape to be strengthened rather than discounted as unimportant”.

The trust last night said it “worked hard” alongside volunteers and partners “to ensure it remains a special place for future generations”, adding: “There is no question of abandonment.”

It “recognises there are strong views but we need to be mindful of the fact that we are managing a long-term plan for a sensitive area for history, nature and people”, it said.

A spokesman added that its work was “being informed by detailed research and careful planning – and regular discussions with local communities and partner bodies” including the Environment Agency and Historic England.