A NATIONAL Trust property near Leominster has picked up a national heritage award.

Berrington Hall won in the Best Event/Exhibition category of the 2017 Hudson’s Heritage Awards.

Established in 2011, the awards are an independently judged, annual, national scheme open to historic houses, gardens, museums and heritage sites and celebrate the very best visitor experiences.

Penelope, Viscountess Cobham, CBE, Chairman of VisitEngland presented the awards at Goldsmiths Hall in London with invited guests including owners and managers of the winning entries, representatives of the heritage tourist industry and the media.

David Bailey, general manager for Herefordshire and Berrington Hall, said: “We are delighted to have won a 2017 Hudson’s Heritage Award. It demonstrates the high standards and commitment we offer our visitors to ensure their experience is the very best and also to have the acknowledgement and recognition that Berrington Hall is amongst the elite of heritage attractions in the UK."

Throughout 2016, Berrington worked with a series of artists to create a programme dedicated to ‘Capability’ Brown, England’s greatest gardener and his final work in Berrington’s parkland and gardens.

Environmental artists, Red Earth, were the headline for the programme, creating a series of outdoor installations, called Genius Loci an arts Council England and Trust New Art funded project, which highlighted Brown’s design and encouraged visitors to get out into the parkland and can still be seen during 2017.

Indoors at Berrington the team also worked with Denis Watson of Delicarta who recreated 14 characters of Berrington, including Brown, as life size costumes, made totally out of paper. Also indoors at Berrington were the Embroiderers Guild who created a handcrafted and bespoke textile exhibition dedicated to Brown’s work and memory.

This year the Berrington team are continuing last year’s success and working with international artists, Heather Peake and Ivan Morison of Studio Morison who are designing a Georgian inspired pavilion which launches in the garden at Berrington in May.

Indoors at Berrington visitors will also find the internationally exhibited artwork, ‘War and Pieces’ by Bouke De Vries which is on display in the dining room and brings to life, Berrington’s Naval past.

More information about last year’s programme and what’s coming up this year can be found by visiting nationaltrust.org.uk/berringtonhall