St. Modwen 30 Years : A Generation of Regeneration 1 | Page 56

The Capability Brown tercentenary commemorative wild flower meadow, by Nigel Dunnett famous for the 2012 Olympic Park

ST. MODWEN | A GENERATION OF REGENERATION | THE TRENTHAM ESTATE

“

We never stand still, we
are in the middle of a five
to seven year programme
restoring the woodlands,
park and lake whilst
enhancing the ecology.

With advice like that how could one do anything
but embrace what the gardens have to offer.
But there’s more; not least the barefoot walk that
invites people to ‘get naked from the knees down
and tantalise [their] toes with an array of testing
textures including mud, bark, babbling streams,
grass and pebbles’. Trentham is not afraid of the
bizarre; it is home to 15 ethereal fairy sculptures
around the gardens and lake and giant dandelion
sculptures, all designed by a local artist, Robin
Wight, diving otters carved into a storm damaged
oak by renowned sculptor,
Andy Burgess, and much more.
Perhaps the most unusual is the 60 acre Trentham
Monkey Forest, home to over 140 barbary
macaques, introduced by the French family that
run it from their sanctuaries in Europe. It is unique
with no fence between the human visitors and the
monkeys, a truly enthralling experience.
An extensive events programme is run throughout
the year from summer concerts by the lake, to
Christmas carols in the gardens which alone attract
over 50,000 annually. No wonder it’s popularity has
grown significantly since St. Modwen’s ownership,
attracting well over 3.25m visits annually as a
whole, including close to 550,000 to the beautifully
restored Gardens and Park.

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But in St. Modwen’s 30th year and the
tercentenary of Capability Brown what is next
for Trentham? Mike continues: “We never stand
still, we are in the middle of a five to seven year
programme restoring the woodlands, park and
lake whilst enhancing the ecol