Belton House near Grantham could be 'jewel in the crown' if plans for new entrance and car park are approved

Plans to open up a new entrance to Belton House and make vital improvements to the car park will be designed to increase visitor numbers over winter and make the mansion the centrepiece of any visit.

Belton House general manager Ian Cooper hopes plans recently submitted to South Kesteven District Council will be approved and when completed attract many more visitors over the colder months.

Mr Cooper says the car park is a muddy mess in winter and puts many people off visiting the site.

He said a new layout at the attraction and improvements to the house could make it a 'jewel in the crown'.

The plans include making the Lion Gates off Belton Lane the new entrance for vehicles which will drive down the one mile long driveway towards Belton House, providing a magnificent view of the mansion as visitors head to the car park.

Mr Cooper says: "If we get planning permission, people will now drive up, they will see it as they arrive and go 'wow'. It will be a wow moment because it does look magnificent when you drive up towards it."

A one-way system will be introduced with visitors leaving at Belton village where the current entry/exit is located.

Local residents who use the entrance to the side of the Lion Gates to walk and take their dogs into the parkland will still have free entry.

The new all-weather car park will fit the same footprint as the current one and will be made of mesh and gravel to avoid the mud and water which prove such a problem at the moment.

Mr Cooper said: "As it stands we can't cope with it now. It's just a mess. It's been the number one project for me since I started (five years ago) and it's still number one because we can't manage with the way it is. Our visitors tell us that and we have to address it.

"If we are going to do it, let's do it right so it is there for the next x amount of decades and so it's able to cope with the demands we put upon it."

The plan for the entrance off Belton Lane has prompted some local residents to raise concerns over traffic.

The National Trust will aim to allay those concerns when it holds a drop-in information day on Wednesday, February 8, from noon to 8pm in Belton Old School Village Hall.

Mr Cooper said: "There will lots of questions from residents. I understand that. Hopefully they will understand what we are trying to do and that the impact won't be that significant for them."

He added that any increase in visitors will be a 'planned, structured growth'. "We don't suddenly want to see another 1,000 people coming on the Friday/Saturday. That's not comfortable for us. We don't suddenly want to get 8,000 people in. We can't cope with that. We don't want those numbers. That's why we put the booking system in place."

The new car park will be designed for more than 800 cars with a number of EV charging points. There will be manned kiosks as people enter the car park where they can pay for entry and show membership cards. There will be purpose-made footpaths with signs leading visitors to the house, retail area and play area, keeping them away from the roads and making it much safer for pedestrians.

The narrow road leading to the car park will be removed and grassed over. The current exit lane from the car park will remain the exit for vehicles.

The existing visitor reception building will be turned into an information point with access to mobility aids and a 'changing place' toilet.

Improvements are also being made to Belton House itself over the next five years which could run into the millions of pounds. Mr Cooper said: "If we want it to be an international destination and something that people must see, like a Chatsworth House or a Blenheim Palace, we need to spend that sort of money because at the moment we have to look after the collection, yes, but there are a lot of things we could do, if we had the money, to make it brighter in there, to make it more attractive, to highlight the collection we have got. We have some stuff in there which is absolutely priceless."

If the plans are approved, work on the car park will start this year and could be completed by October in time for next winter.

The work will be phased so that people can still visit the house and grounds while the work is completed.

The 17th century mansion is a fine example of Restoration architecture with a world-renowned library and collections of art, silver, and ceramics, set in 1,300 acres of parkland, including a deer park, and formal gardens of Dutch and Italian design, including an orangery.

The grade 1 listed house was built between 1685 and 1688 by Sir John Brownlow.

It was donated by its owners to the National Trust in 1984.