AS the chocolates are finished and the tinsel put away, here at the National Trust, I am looking forward to a great year for Wellington Monument.

We made good progress in 2018 in our campaign to safeguard the monument’s future. Our fundraising received some major boosts, such as partnership funding of £500,000 from Highways England. We have now secured more than £2.6 million towards the £3.8 million project.

I am particularly grateful to the current Duke of Wellington who very kindly hosted a reception for some of the trust’s most generous donors at Apsley House in London. The Duke has helped us to raise the national profile of this important campaign. We were also pleased to be joined by Rebecca Pow MP and Cllr Gary James, Mayor of Wellington, and I am very grateful to all of them for their vision and support to get us to this stage. The monument has also been part of a national appeal to trust supporters across the country, alongside other important monuments.

None of this would have been possible without the support and determination of the people of Wellington. It is the local community, in Wellington and across Somerset, who are making a difference and I thank all of you who have played a part so far. I know we are all looking forward to getting the scaffolding up and starting the restoration next year.

We will start at the top of the monument, the section which is most at risk, and progress downwards. How much we achieve will depend on funding and only when the outside is secure can we start on the internal stairs. The cherry on the cake would be to allow visitors to climb the 232 steps to the top once more. So, we cannot be complacent, we still need to raise more than £1.2 million and we need your help.

Please give generously at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/wellington-monument-appeal If you want to know more, call our community fundraising and engagement officer Emma Jones. I am sure many of you know her already. She’s on 07779 454246 or [email protected]

Wishing you all a ‘monumentally’ happy new year.

Tim Parker

Chairman, National Trust