6 WINDSOR ESTATE AND OTHER
HISTORIC PROPERTIES
Extent of holdings
61. The CEC's Windsor Estate business division is
conspicuously different in scale and character from the other
three business divisions, and is managed at a loss. It is relatively
small in terms of extent (6,300 hectares) and capital value (£166
million). In 2008-09 it accounted for 3% of total value and 2%
of revenue of the Crown Estate. The lands and properties managed
by the CEC as the Windsor Estate include Windsor Great Park, farms,
forests, and residential and commercial properties. Key features
include the Savill and Valley Gardens, Virginia Water Lake, Cumberland
Lodge (a conference facility) the Long Walk and deer park, six
golf courses and Ascot Racecourse. Windsor Castle is an occupied
Royal Palace and therefore not part of the Crown Estate. The 1961
Act requires the Crown Estate to maintain the character of the
Windsor Great Park as a Royal Park and forest.
Performance
62. In their written evidence, the CEC told us that
"the cost of maintaining the Windsor Estate in 2008-09 was
£8.3 million which was offset by revenue of £6.3 million
from commercial and residential property, agriculture, visitor
revenue, the sale of timber and Christmas trees and filming on
the Estate."[85]
Their Annual Report termed 2008-09 "a year of consolidation"
for the Windsor Estate, noting that the £2 million loss was
"in line with that recorded in previous years."[86]
Objectives
63. In their written evidence, the CEC stated that
their objectives were "to ensure that the Windsor Estate
remains a valuable historic national asset; to maintain and improve
the stewardship of the Estate; and to enable millions of people
to make use of the various facilities."[87]
Wider issues
64. In the time available for this inquiry, we did
not examine the Windsor Estate in great detail. With regard to
our wider theme of the extent to which the CEC can accommodate
wider public interests within its predominantly commercial remit,
it is interesting to note from their schedule of properties that,
in addition to the Windsor Estate, the CEC's holdings include
a number of other important historic ancient possessions of the
Crown, such as historic castles like Chester, Carlisle, and Carisbrooke.
Here, stewardship must be predominant and, in most cases at least,
the emphasis is likely to be on limiting the loss involved in
their conservation and management. We did not have scope within
our inquiry to investigate the extent of these non-commercial
ancient possessions managed by the CEC, but consider that it would
be helpful if they were distinguished from the rest of the CEC's
commercial urban and property portfolio by virtue of their wider
significance as part of the nation's heritage and because of their
non-commercial nature.
65. We recognise that some of the ancient possessions
still forming part of the Crown Estate are not managed directly
by the CEC themselves but by other public bodies such as English
Heritage. In Scotland, around the time of devolution, the CEC
conveyed ancient castles and other historic ancient properties
of the Crown in Scotland that were managed by Historic Scotland
to the Secretary of State for Scotland so they would pass to the
Scottish Government. At a time when the CEC are reviewing what
they see as their 'core-assets', we can see merit in the Government
and CEC reviewing whether any of the non-commercial ancient possessions
in England and Wales might more appropriately be the sole responsibility
of other public bodies with a conservation remit, such as English
Heritage.
85 Ev 47 Back
86
Crown Estate, Annual Report 2009, July 2007, p 24 Back
87
Ev 47 Back
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