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Glamis Castle is famous the world over for its
close connections to Royal history and rather
impressively dates back to the late 14th
Century. Apart from being the childhood home of
the Queen Mother and the setting for
Shakespeare's Macbeth, Glamis Estate; the home
of the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne is a
first class example of a landed estate which is
adapting to the changes in farming and land
reform, yet retaining all of its historical
character. Even with its Royal connections and
esteemed history Glamis Castle is not exempt
from the challenges of modern day estate
management and must continually look to
alternative sources of revenue to keep the ship
afloat. Most recently it played host to a visit
from the so called ‘First Wives’ Club’ during
the G8 Summit 2005, just another event, albeit a
very unique one, in the packed diary for the
Castle staff to manage.
Extending to approximately fourteen thousand
acres Glamis Estate is situated in the heart of
the Strathmore valley. The estate has twelve let
farms, and an in-hand farming enterprise run by
the Farms Director David Soutar, which comprises
cereal production, vegetables, pigs, sheep and
beef.
Glamis Castle is the principal tourist
attraction in Angus and welcomes over 120,000
visitors each year, in addition to this the
castle and grounds are utilised for private
functions, weddings and events such as the
Countryside Festival, Prom concerts and vintage
vehicle rallies. The estate has 152 properties
of which 100 are let, and there is a programme
for identifying suitable properties for
re-development. Together with a sawmill and 1500
acres of commercial and amenity forestry, there
is a diverse sporting department on the estate
employing 4 full time keepers and shooting
approximately 50 days per year.
John Wood, the resident factor, carries out the
day-to-day management of the estate with
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support from Bell Ingram's Forfar office. The
estate is embracing many of the aspects of the
ever-changing legislation and has adopted new
Short Limited Duration Tenancies, negotiating
Limited Duration Tenancies where appropriate.
The estate has also worked closely with Scottish
Homes, now Communities Scotland, in developing
grant schemes for the refurbishment of redundant
and under-utilised houses. These are brought
back into occupation and let on Short assured
Tenancies, which not only improves the quality
of the housing stock, but also ensures families
have the opportunity of living in the
countryside. The local primary school and
village shops also thrive as a result.
Development opportunities have been taken up
with suitable housing sites identified and
promoted to the planning authority, leading to
the eventual sale of the site and the capital
re-invested in the estate. This is required to
keep Glamis’ position as one of the top private
visitor attractions in Scotland. The estate is
also actively considering wind energy
development as well as sand and gravel
quarrying.
In managing the estate it is essential not to
look at just one department in isolation, but to
consider the possible impacts, both positive and
negative, and how they might impact on other
estate activities. The use of outside grant
schemes whether they be agricultural e.g. Rural
Stewardship Schemes, or Long Term Forestry Plans
or Housing Grant schemes all assist in the
financing of the Estate.
The key to successful management in the twenty
first century is to consider fully all of the
options available and look outside the
traditional image and practices of rural estate
management. Estates are now more than ever rural
businesses that play an integral part in the
rural economy and community. The sale of
development land on the edges of settlements and
the encouragement of businesses into the rural
community are all part of estate management in
the 21st Century.
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