SIR - I was pleased to read of Paul Maynard's support of Strawberry Hill and the other historical properties at risk in the Twickenham area (May 21, Gothic house not the only one at risk').
The borough of Richmond is unusually well endowed with architectural treasures and their preservation and maintenance is a challenge indeed, valiantly met by a wide range of preservation and amenity groups.
Strawberry Hill, a building of international importance, is of course only one of them. But this is a unique year for Strawberry Hill.
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Its place in the World Monuments Fund's Watch List of the World's 100 Most Endangered Sites (along with the Great Wall of China and Nineveh) and its inclusion in the forthcoming BBC2 Restoration programme are a unique opportunity for one of Twickenham's (and indeed Britain's) greatest architectural treasures to gain the local, regional and national attention and support it so badly needs.
The Friends of Strawberry Hill and the Strawberry Hill Trust (a Building Preservation Trust) are working hard to rescue this unique and internationally important building for the future.
We plan to open both house and grounds to the public, combined with an educational and exhibition programme.
Strawberry Hill will finally be open to the local community, revealing the house's past, but will also be a source of learning and inspiration for local schools and colleges.
Readers might think that because Strawberry Hill has been included in Restoration its troubles are over.
In fact the fight to preserve Strawberry Hill for the future has hardly begun, as we still have to raise some £5.5 million in capital funding as well as a large sum for endowment.
I urge readers to vote for Strawberry in Restoration, to visit the house, go to the Friends of Strawberry Hill events listed in the website and the press and give their support to our campaign.
Michael Snodin,
Chairman,
The Strawberry Hill Trust,
Leyborne Park, Kew
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