The custodians of the Grade I-listed Buckinghamshire mansion used as Wayne Manor in Batman Begins have responded to local authority demands for ecological checks, insisting their team is already on the case.
Buckinghamshire Council served a listed-building repairs notice to the property last month, requiring the owners of Mentmore Towers in rural Buckinghamshire to fix crumbling masonry and conduct mandatory bat surveys.
Campaign group Save Britain’s Heritage confirmed the notice demands immediate action to halt the decay of the stately home’s roof.
In response, a spokesman speaking on behalf of the owner, property tycoon Simon Halabi, dismissed claims of inaction, stating that “professional surveys, ecological investigations and preparatory work towards a programme of repairs and restoration are already actively progressing”.
Confirming their dedication to the country house, which featured in the 2005 movie, the representative added: “The Halabi family trust remain absolutely committed to the long-term preservation and restoration of Mentmore Towers.” They stated that: “The suggestion that nothing is being done at the property is false.”
The spokesman said Mentmore’s “own Batman team has already been on the case” in seeking bat emergence surveys.
“Since the council’s correspondence earlier this year, professional consultants and contractors have been engaged, specialist surveys have been undertaken, asbestos and other investigations have progressed, and a formal ecological and bat-survey programme has been commissioned and commenced,” the spokesman said.
“A schedule of works is being prepared and quotations are being obtained.
“There is an irony in the suggestion that nobody is dealing with the bats when a team of professional ecologists – effectively Mentmore’s own Batman team – has already been on the case.
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“These are not cosmetic exercises. They are necessary professional and statutory steps before responsible works can be undertaken on a Grade I-listed building of the age, scale and importance of Mentmore Towers.”
The mansion, near Leighton Buzzard, is the only surviving major work in Britain by Crystal Palace designer Joseph Paxton, Save Britain’s Heritage said, and will appear in the upcoming war film, Pressure.
Mentmore’s owners hit back at Buckinghamshire Council in the lengthy statement, issued on Wednesday, saying the council had taken legal action which resulted in security fencing being removed.
“Mentmore has suffered repeated unauthorised entry and trespass in recent years. Security personnel have had to deal with intrusions and the police have been contacted on numerous occasions,” the spokesman said.
“Temporary security fencing was put in place precisely to restrict unauthorised access and protect the building, its historic fabric and those who might otherwise enter a potentially dangerous structure. These steps are also aimed to reducing incidents which have taken up police time and therefore taxpayers’ money to deal with.
“Yet Buckinghamshire Council has taken legal action which has resulted in that security fencing having to be removed.”
Historic England lists the mansion, built between 1852 and 1854 for the Rothschild family, as in “very bad” condition and records its vulnerability as “high”.
If the notice is not dealt with, the council could seek government approval to acquire the mansion, subject to further legal action, the BBC reported.
It said the notice ordered bat surveys be completed by next August and, once works begin, the council and Historic England officers must be allowed to inspect the building weekly.
Mentmore’s owners also said there was an issue with a temporary storage shed, which they said was installed to “protect and securely store important architectural features, doors, building components, equipment and materials required for the repair and eventual restoration” of the mansion.
“It was erected following professional planning advice concerning the applicable temporary permitted-development provisions,” the spokesman said.
“It is therefore difficult to understand why a structure whose purpose is directly connected with protecting the fabric and materials needed to restore Mentmore should itself be the subject of action seeking its removal or demolition.
“The public is entitled to ask, if the objective is to secure, preserve and restore Mentmore Towers, how does removing its security fencing and seeking demolition of the structure protecting its features and materials assist in that objective?”
The statement concluded: “The appropriate way forward is constructive engagement: recognising the surveys and preparatory work already undertaken, allowing the necessary statutory processes to be completed, and working consistently towards the security, preservation and restoration of this nationally significant building.”
Peter Strachan, Buckinghamshire Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Planning said: “Our focus and priority is making sure this Grade I listed building – well known and well-loved in Buckinghamshire – is protected and preserved. This is why we’ve already issued a Repairs Notice to the site owners.
“We are also aware of works on site that have been carried out without planning permission which we’ve looked into and are taking appropriate enforcement action on.”
