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Explora: Environment
and Resource Conservation, recreation, or both?

Culzean was formally designated on 19 December of the adjacent mountain of Goat Fell and other wild land
1969, becoming Scotland’s first country park. A private amounting to a further 3,042 ha. 58
exchange of correspondence between Stormonth Darling Brodick had many similarities to Culzean. It too
and his English counterpart, John Winnifrith, reveals consisted of an A-listed castle, with extensive formal
the underlying rationale. The key priority was financial: gardens, and a wider estate that might qualify under the
Securing capital to develop facilities, allowing NTS funds legislation. Like Culzean, it was a property of considerable
to be transferred to building repairs, and increasing visitor importance in terms of both heritage and natural beauty,
revenue to offset the annual deficits. Stormonth Darling and its benefactor (Lady Jane Fforde, heir of the Duchess of
also claimed that the partnership with local authorities Montrose) was similarly concerned to preserve its essential
gave democratic legitimacy to the project and helped dispel character and tranquillity. Moreover, as Culzean had
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any notion of elitism. He later described this agreement been, it was a drain on NTS’s financial resources; although
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as ‘a fantastic coup.’ 51 it had come with an endowment, this had been seriously
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The issue of visitor management was dealt with eroded by inflation. By 1975, the custodians at Brodick
separately. The NTS had discovered the landscape architect were pressing the NTS for an £80,000 injection of funds
Elisabeth Beazley in 1967, through an article in which (equivalent to around £1 million in 2024) to enable them
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she discussed the threats countryside motorists posed to to carry out necessary repairs and capital works, while the
site character and ambience, an issue clearly pertinent at annual revenue deficit had reached £14,000 by 1976 – 1977
Culzean. Stormonth Darling invited her to visit Culzean (around £200,000 in 2024), in spite of support from the
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and later credited her with the initial idea of seeking local council and other sources. 62
country park designation. Beazley ended up advising There were, however, two contextual differences that
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NTS at Culzean on visitor management and related affected Brodick’s country park application. One was
matters for 14 years from 1970, visiting around 80 times. the reorganisation of local government in 1975, which
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She was very much in tune with Stormonth Darling’s abolished the county and burgh councils that had funded
thinking on reconciling increased visitor numbers with Culzean and replaced them with a regional strategic
conservation objectives and saw the importance not only authority (the enormous Strathclyde Regional Council
of the acquisition but also of the financial dimension. 55 [SRC]), and a district authority, Cunninghame District
Stormonth Darling was also clear from the outset Council, covering north Ayrshire and Arran. The second
that an increase in visitor numbers was something to be change came about in CCS’s policy as regards eligibility
welcomed, rather than feared. His business case for the for funding. Whereas Culzean had benefitted from a total
country park reasserted the founders’ principle that the absence of ground rules on country park funding, CCS had
NTS should make its assets accessible to the widest possible since established criteria for designation that might have
audience, reminding his Executive Committee of the NTS’s excluded Brodick as too remote and inaccessible – factors
commitment to public enjoyment and recreation as an actually emphasised by CCS’s officer when assessing the
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essential part of its remit. As a country park, Culzean project’s suitability. The site was a long way from any
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would continue to offer visitors a chance to experience population centre (breaching what was now a formal
the historic castle, enjoy its gardens, and explore its wider requirement), and reachable from the mainland only by
countryside, without compromising its essential quality as ferry. It was however an important destination for holiday
a landscape of peace and tranquillity. While he recognised visitors to the island, around 40% of whom visited the castle
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the innate inconsistency in the Culzean project as being ‘a every year, and the NTS’s view was that ‘the property is
country park of a very different nature to that conceived by eminently suitable for a country park based on the Culzean
those who thought up… the Countryside (Scotland) Act,’ formula.’ 65
57
he nevertheless also saw it as a prototype, an example to be CCS was also aware that it had not been as successful
followed by others. 57 as its English counterpart in stimulating the creation of
country parks, and wanted to add to its portfolio to avoid
3.2. Brodick
drawing attention to this failure. There was therefore a
It was, however, a further ten years before the Culzean considerable imperative by 1980 to accept applications,
model resurfaced, this time at the NTS property at Brodick, and during the course of that year, no fewer than 11 parks
on the Isle of Arran off the Ayrshire coast. Brodick Castle were designated. Despite the eligibility question-mark,
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and its surrounding 292-ha estate, including magnificent CCS found it could accept Brodick as a country park, a
planned gardens, had been acquired by the NTS in 1958, decision undoubtedly motivated by its need to increase its
and was supplemented by the gift (again by Percy Unna) portfolio, but which was nevertheless clearly inconsistent

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 6 doi: 10.36922/eer.5890