The head of the Griffin. (Wallington Hall)

Member Name: anwar7

Product:	Wallington Hall
Date:	10/11/08 (187 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: see review

Disadvantages: see review

I recently reviewed membership of the national trust and in my review I mentioned Wallington Hall in Northumberland. As the mention was only brief I thought it was time I wrote a more in depth review, so hope it will be of interest to anyone thinking of visiting!

Getting there.
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Wallington hall is situated in the heart of the beautiful Northumberland countryside. It is not easy to get to Wallington using public transport. However there is an infrequent bus service from Morpeth on Wednesdays and Fridays- snaiths 419.

From Newcastle the Arriva 508 runs on Sundays but only from June until October.

Wallington is 11 miles west of Morpeth near the tiny village of Cambo. If you are coming from the south then you will need to take the A 696,signposted Ponteland and the airport. This leads you to the B 6342 sign posted to Cambo. Wallington Hall is well sign posted from all directions.

What is at Wallington Hall?
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Wallington hall is a large 17th century mansion. It is set in over 100 acres of parkland. When you arrive at Wallington you will notice that the lawns sweep down to the roadside. The house is easily visible from the road. Where the lawn meets the road are 4 large Griffin heads. The area surrounding Wallington hall all belongs to the national trust.

Parking is free and there are plenty of spaces. The car park is set amongst the trees and as there is no hard standing, can get very muddy when its wet. Before you leave the car park it is worth spending some time in the excellent farm shop situated in the car park. They sell lots of local produce and their vegetables are excellent! They also sell some delicious home made cakes.

From the car park it is a short 200-yard walk to the entrance hut. The hut is not set up to take credit cards. The drive to the house and grounds is another short walk. Once through the clockhouse you enter the main estate. This area contains the shop, restraurant and toilets.

The house.
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I thought it would be helpful for me to give you a potted history of Wallington Hall here. In 1475 the Fenwick family, who were an important Northumberland boarder clan, lived in a Pele tower on the site. They fell on hard times and were forced to sell the site to the Blacketts. In 1688 a new house was built that incorporated the Pele tower. In 1777 the house was sold to the Trevelyan family, who rebuilt it in the Palladian style. The house has been in the care of the national trust since 1942.

The house is a square affair and to be honest looks a bit austere .The entrance is by a few stone steps, in addition there is a ramp for wheelchair users. Pushchairs are not allowed inside the house. In the centre of the house is a large hall decorated to look like an Italian courtyard. There are 8 large wall frescoes painted by Sir William Bell Scott, which depict scenes from Northumberland history. My favourites are the building of Hadrian's Wall and the Viking invasion of Tynemouth.

There are numerous rooms all containing various items of furniture, ceramics and paintings. There are lots of helpful members of staff on hand to answer any questions you may have. There is a large collection of dolls houses on view all beautifully furnished. My children really enjoy looking at all the miniature rooms. I like the fact that there are extra high viewing platforms so that children can see into each house-certainly saves having to keep lifting them up!

Upstairs are bedrooms, bathrooms and right at the top of the house is a room that houses a collection of stuffed birds and animals. There is also a collection crystals. My children were fascinated by the stuffed birds of prey. I had to reassure them that killing birds is thankfully no longer allowed!

The grounds.
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The grounds of Wallington are for me, what makes this place so special. From the front of the house the lawns roll down to the road. I like the fact that children can play on the lawns and you will see no keep off signs here! As you would expect you are not encouraged to walk on the boarders however! The gardens were designed by Capability Brown who once went to school in the village.

Several paths lead from the house to the woods. From the house it is a two-minute walk to the adventure playground. The playground has rope swings, logs to balance on and my children's favourite- a pulley type rope swing. There are a few picnic tables in this area, so you could bring a flask and sit and watch your children having fun! The playground has been made to blend in perfectly with the surroundings.

There is a large lake complete with water birds and boathouse. Follow the signs to the animal hide and spent some time watching the many birds that come to the area to feed. Until recently this was a great place to see red squirrels. However due to a virus carried by grey squirrels the feeders have been removed. I have not seen any red squirrels here for a while now but you never know you may be lucky!

Once you have explored the woods I suggest you walk back to the house and cross the road. The path leads to a beautiful walled garden complete with large conservatory. In the spring the colours and amazing! There are plenty of benches for you to sit and enjoy your surroundings.

Refreshments.
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No day out would be complete without some kind of refreshments! We usually take a picnic when we visit Wallington, as there are plenty of places to eat. However there is a restaurant situated just beyond the clock tower. We recently had a light lunch of soup and a roll there. The soup was very good although at £4.50 a bowl was not cheap! The restaurant is situated up a steep flight of stairs, however if stairs are a problem then staff will open a downstairs seating area for you. There are a few tables outside in front of a large lawned area. We have enjoyed a pot of tea here whilst our children played on the lawn. Ball games are allowed on this lawn too!

Other information.
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Next to the restaurant is a small shop selling national trust goods as well as a small selection of toys. Like all these places the prices are high although most things on ofer are of good quality. There is also a plant shop with some interesting plants and shrubs of offer. There are toilets with baby changing facilities both in this area and in the house.

Dogs are allowed on a lead. There are drinking bowls provided by the entrance and near the restaurant.

The ground are a bit uneven in places but can be accessed by wheel chair users. The downstairs of the house is accessible although the upstairs is not.

Wallington often has special events. In the summer, for example, there are music concerts and theatre groups. We recently visited during Halloween and there was a fun treasure trail for children with a small prize for each child at the end.

I forgot to say that you should wear good shoes or boots when you visit Wallington especially if it has been raining, as the walks can be very muddy.

Opening times and prices.
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National trust members have free admission both to the house and ground.
House gardens and grounds-adult £8.40,child £4.20 or £21.00 for a family ticket.

Garden and grounds- adult £5.80,child £2.90,family ticket £14.50.

The house is open from 15th March until 2nd November. The gardens and grounds are open all year.

Overall I highly recommend a visit to Wallington hall. It has something for everyone!

Summary: Large 17th century mansion and grounds in Northumberland