When I was writing about my visit to Mascalls, it dawned on me that it had taken two years to get to the very beginning. Contrast this with the exciting developments at Sissinghurst. I visited this property on Friday, to advise on access to the new vegetable garden they are creating which will supply the restaurant. It feels as though this project has taken no time at all. I wasn’t in on the beginning of of, but it doesn’t feel long ago that people were saying “we’re thinking about this” and already on Friday the restaurant was serving home-frown salad with a pea and cheese tart. A TV company are filming the process for a fly-on-the wall documentary to be broadcast next year,and the camera was hovering over our table as my colleague, the vegetable gardener was tucking into her plateful.
But the challenge of making the garden accessible is quite difficult. Not that there aren’t all sorts of things that Sissinghurst could do to improve access, but rather, because even after my visit, I’m struggling to understand what the end result should be. When I think about access and the Disability Discrimination Act, I’m always looking to offer equality of experience to people who might face barriers to enjoying the full experience. It seems to me that this project has progressed so fast that no-one has yet identified what the end result, in terms of visitor experience, should be. Now, in my new role. I’m asking basic questions beyond the remit of my old job, like is this part of the paid-for visit (or “within the pay perimetre” as we call it) and I’m not sure anyone yet has come to a definite conclusion.
So the Sissinghurst project contrasts interestingly with the way the National Trust normally makes decisions. We move a a glacial pace normally, and think through every decision carefully, arriving at, if not the right decision, then at least the best decision. It remain to be seen whether a project like Sissinghurst will give us a kick up the backside, or make us retreat to the comfort of our old, slow ways.
