Our Vision / Ein Gweledigaeth
for Pool Park Estate
Our
Mission /
Ein Cenhadaeth
Our unwavering mission for Pool Park Estate is to meticulously reinstate the Grade II* listed mansion and its accompanying outbuildings to as close to the original as possible, concordantly blending heritage preservation with environmental responsibility. We are dedicated to restoring the once-renowned beauty of the grounds while minimizing any detrimental impact on the environment. Through our commitment to this vision, we aim to revive the splendor of this historic estate and ensure its sustainable legacy for future generations.
The Manor House
The Main House at Pool Park Estate will undergo a thorough restoration, with a focus on preserving its original appearance. Externally, the house will be renovated while maintaining its historical integrity. Internally, we are committed to recreating original features using matching materials when feasible and suitable. Our deep love for this property drives our dedication to restoring it to its authentic heritage. We still have original oak bookshelves and paneling from inside the building that we intend to restore and put back into place. We want to keep the original layout of the manor house, resorting all 20 bedrooms and all downstairs leisure rooms!
We plan to use the Manor House for events and Weddings, eventually being able to hire out the entire building for holidays or events. Therefore, the period ‘finish’ of the house will be very important to us.
The complete restoration of the Manor House will form Phase 3 of the project, although we will not wait until this Phase to carry out essential protective works to this building. In order to fund this restoration project we would need to develop areas of the site under ‘enabling development’ so that we may generate enough income to successfully restore and maintain the Manor House and its gardens.
The Entrance Hall
The image above on the right is the sole interior photograph we possess of Pool Park during the time it was owned by the Bagot Family (captured in 1928). Our objective is to rejuvenate the Entrance Hall by refurbishing the oak panelling and flooring, as well as reinstating significant elements like the absent fireplace. The coats of arms around the top of the entrance hall, shown in the right-hand picture, are now displayed in the library at Blithfield Hall, and we were able to see them whilst visiting the Bagot Family. During the restoration process, we will be creating replicas and placing them back where they belong.
We also want to restore the famous oak staircase within Pool Park mansion, we still have the original carved oaked angels (locked away, in safe keeping), that we plan on reinstalling back onto the bottom of the staircase.
The Coach House, Old Boiler House and Lodge
We plan to make the Coach House into a ten-bedroomed holiday let which will help fund the restoration and maintenance of the Manor House. We will do this whilst preserving the history of its original use as the Coach House for the horses of the Manor House. There are some original features, such as the stalls and the hay shoot, which will be kept and incorporated into the dining room of the Coach House.
To enable us to work out of this site and keep the site secure, it is imperative that we create office space on site. We plan to convert the old boiler house into a suite of offices with staff toilets and kitchen facilities. This building will have a rendered finish so that it will be ‘in keeping’ with the Manor House.
The Lodge, situated next to the Manor House, has been condemned by a structural engineer and therefore needs to be demolished as it is unsafe. We plan to re-build a three-bedroomed holiday let on the foundations of this building.
Rebuild the former Farmhouse
Previously there was a farmhouse situated to the southwest of the Manor House. Although no photographs of the original farmhouse exist, its presence is evident on Pool Park's 1912 site map (depicted in the left-hand image above) and can also be discerned in the background of the right-hand photograph above. Following CADW's recommendation, our plan is to construct a Farmhouse holiday accommodation to replicate the footprint of the previous building. We are currently looking at putting a 10-bedroomed holiday let on the site of the original farmhouse, with the exterior nearly replicating the mansion, to be in-keeping with the site.
The Mount
The mount, which can be viewed in the photographs above, is an extremely important feature of the formal gardens. It is of great historic and archaeological significance. The photographs above show it as it should look, with a tiered lawn that spiralled around to the top. The first photograph is c.1940 and the Mount can be seen to the left of the photograph, facing the Manor House. The second photograph was 1979 and the Mount can be seen to the right of the photograph in the background.
The Mount is also the site of two historic monuments, one dating back to 1661. Our aim is to restore the Mount to how it would have looked originally. We plan to install signage that will identify these monuments and significant historical pieces, so that we ‘tell the story’ of Pool Park to future generations of both local people and visitors to the area.
The Grounds & Walled Garden
We have carried out a lot of research around the history of the Manor House and gardens. We have acquired many photographs depicting the gardens and the mount, in their original state. Currently, Pool Park's Grounds and Walled Garden are heavily overgrown; We aim to restore the historic grounds and gardens, including reinstating court yard and east driveway.
Within the Walled Garden we plan to preserve the walls by allowing for a protected space around the walls which will be fenced and made into a footpath. It is very important to us, as a family, that we preserve the historical significance of this garden. The wall would be a focal point, protected and celebrated. We propose to install protection for the wall and a historic ‘walk’ for visitors and holiday makers, which would take them around the wall and into the wooded area, where there will be a nature trail, telling the ‘story’ of Pool Park with its historic trees and gardens.
We want to be able to share the history of Pool Park Estate, therefore, we plan to develop a country retreat on the land within the walled gardens, south of the walled gardens and within the woodland area to the northwest and west of the Manor House. Pool Park Retreat will be made up of bespoke pods, lodges and treehouses that will be designed to be sympathetic to the beautiful surrounding countryside and the historic site.