14 August - Lesnes Abbey gives up some of its secrets
Someone
with close connections to Bexley council emailed overnight to shed a little light on the apparent
lack of progress
at Lesnes Abbey and whilst I was wondering if the information could be
validated, Lesnes Abbey councillor Danny Hackett fortuitously Tweeted about the
new Visitor Centre. It provided the perfect excuse to press him for a few
answers. Were any of the rumours true?
It would appear that they are. All of them!
The project is running at least three months late and the planned 31st August
opening date has been quietly forgotten. Early 2016 if you are lucky.
The gossip that circulated locally was well founded. The story about the horse
skeleton; true! A new bit of boundary wall discovered? True again.
The steel framework is coming later than originally expected but not because it was
forgotten, the design had to be changed for reasons which could not reasonably be foreseen.
The frame is not now expected to be delivered much before the end of September.
I can see the Abbey about 200 metres from where I am typing these words and the close
proximity drives home the fact that Bexley council is content to leave a Grade I Scheduled
Ancient Monument with minimal security for five days a week, 9-5, and
nothing whatsoever overnight or at weekends and bank holidays.
The neglect is scandalous.
As a result people trample all over the walls, light fires, illegally use metal
detectors and break in to contractors’ huts and vehicles.
But why is Bexley council saying nothing publicly about their failure to stick to the
schedule? Danny Hackett was unusually reticent about that but if I am any good at all
at reading between the lines he is right to be so. Bexley council is doing what it does
best, keeping things secret, but they have their reasons and the Visitor Centre
will be all the better for it.
Whether there will be any specialist staff left to run the show in 2016 is another
matter entirely. The Project Manager is not the only loss, but perhaps staff will
be consoled by the fact that not every custodian of a Grade 1 listed building will leave it to
the tender mercies of marauding vandals. Perhaps they will find a more responsible employer.