The National Trust are pleased to announce that their membership numbers have now soared to a whopping four million. This also comes at a time when figures show that some 90 million people visit National Trust properties each year in the UK. That’s a lot of visitors!
First founded in 1895, the cost of a membership was 10 shillings, with an initial 100 members. The National Trust first broke the million members barrier in 1981, and by 2002 had reached three million.
National Trust Director, Dame Fiona Reynolds, said –
In England you are never more than 40 minutes away from somewhere looked after by the National Trust. The trust is leading a campaign against the government’s proposed changes to the planning laws. From the smallest sculleries and garden grottoes to towering castle turrets and the wild expanses of Lake District countryside, the National Trust enables everyone to enjoy these beautiful, intriguing and exciting places forever. We were set up 116 years ago to look after special places so that they could be enjoyed by all. Clearly that founding aim remains as relevant today as it was then.
The National Trust now looks after an amazing 300 historic houses across the UK, aongside more than 600,000 acres of land and 700 miles of coastline. To finance the care of these amazing pieces of heritage, £120 million has been raised through memberships in the last financial year.
It’s great to see this worthwhile charity going from strength to strength as it protects some of the UK’s most unique and historic landmarks and countryside.
