Halfway to our 10-Goal Target at Blenheim
In 2017, we announced 10 goals to deliver over the next 10 years. 2022 marks the halfway point in our journey so we’re taking a look at what we’ve achieved so far, and what’s still to come…
On Track
Five years into our 10-year programme, and despite the devastating impact of Covid-19, the Estate is making significant progress across all our targets. The goals, which were announced by CEO Dominic Hare back in 2017, are revolutionising the way the Estate is run and aim to ensure it not only survives, but thrives, in the 21st century.
Five Years On
Our goals now include becoming carbon neutral by 2027 and removing 230,000 tonnes of CO2e from the atmosphere by 2050, tripling the Estate’s contribution to the local economy, housing 300 families in high quality affordable homes and completing £40m of vital restoration.
Blenheim has also committed to training 100 apprentices, doubling its charitable contribution to the local community, and reacquiring or borrowing back key works from the Palace’s lost collections.
Going Green
We’ve been busy converting our fleet to electric vehicles, reducing our electricity usage across the site by a quarter by installing LED lighting and utilising renewable energy including biomass, solar, and hydropower to help power the Estate.
We’re planting 358 hectares of new forests, including an estimated 600,000 trees, assigning 800 hectares of land to regenerative agriculture and restoring 30 hectares of wetland as well as creating new solar farms. Since 2017 Blenheim has also welcomed more than 2.7m visitors, contributing almost £400m to the economy.
Building a Legacy
In addition to supporting 1700 local jobs, the Estate is also sourcing 44% of its supplies from within a 20-mile radius.
We’ve also built 66 affordable homes and have consent to provide 209 more, well on our way to our target of 300 homes and our building work is now supporting an extra 175 jobs in the local area.
We’re able to offer a 40% discount compared to the market rent, and we prioritise homes for qualifying key workers. Money raised by these developments also helps to fund the £45m endowment to ensure the long-term survival of our World Heritage Site.
Supporting Local
After achieving our goal of doubling charitable contributions to the local community within two years of launch, Blenheim has to date contributed £8.2m to charities and other good causes, which includes an annual £50,000 bursary for local good causes.
The apprenticeship scheme currently has 27 apprentices working across the Estate and at Pye Homes with a further 23 who have already graduated, exactly halfway to the goal of 100 by 2027. Blenheim directly employs 343 across all its businesses and is supporting more than 1,600 jobs in the wider community.
Record Breaking Restoration
This year will see record-breaking £6m spent on restoration projects, including more than £3.5m on the lake dredge and nearly £1m on repairs to Vanbrugh’s iconic Grand Bridge. By the end of 2022, Blenheim will have spent over £22m on vital repair work in six years.
Find out more about our 10 Year Goals and future plans.
