Arley Hall Re-opens to the Public

One of my favourite venues for taking photographs is Arley Hall which is about a twenty minute drive from where I live and just off the M56 motorway. For the last ten weeks it has been closed to the public because of the Corona 19 virus which has been doing the rounds here in the UK. However, last Wednesday I received an e-mail to say they were re-opening the grounds to the public on Friday 29 may 2020 at 10.00am, but obviously with certain safety measure put in place.

We arrived just after 10.00am on a beautiful spring day, clear blue sky and sunshine to be greeted and welcomed by staff . The cafe was open for take away coffee and cakes and we were able to sit outside on the lawn to enjoy our early morning refreshment.

I noticed that many of the spring blooms were past their best but even this could not detract from the colours on display from the flowers still in bloom. We came across the Head gardener James who we have got to know quite well from previous visits and he told us that just him and a full time colleague had been in every day during the “lock down” to tend to the flowers, shrubs and gardens, and they have done a magnificent job. No wonder it is rated one of the “Ten Best Gardens in Europe.”

The lawns looked quite parched but then again we have had virtually no rain for a month, but even so they still looked stunning. We wandered around the various gardens and the colours of some of the flowers was breath taking.

Our membership of Arley Hall expired on the 24 may 2020 so we asked if we could renew our membership for another year. The Lady in the office said we are extending everyone membership for a further 3 months as we have been shut for that period and members have not been able to visit. We both said this was an incredibly generous gesture as the Hall had no control about closing to the public and I certainly did not expect such a gesture.

I would suggest that some large organisations and bodies which have membership schemes take note of this. This thoughtful little bit of generosity by Arley Hall has generated such good will and the Marketing / PR implications will pay rich dividends in the long term.

Below are some of the photographs I took yesterday.