BLENHEIM Palace has received a grant worth more than half a million pounds for preservation work.

Conservation work on Blenheim’s Grand Bridge will be boosted by a grant from the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund.

The £547,200 grant was announced yesterday and is part of a Heritage Stimulus Fund administered by Historic England.

The money will be used to restore and repair the waterproof deck of the bridge, preventing further damage to the structure.

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Blenheim’s chief operating officer Roger File said: “We, like so many other heritage sites across the UK and throughout the world, have seen our income devastated by the effects of the pandemic.

“For Blenheim Palace to continue to maintain its repairing obligations, we need to spend approximately £4 million each year for the next decade on a series of crucial restoration and conservation projects.

“This grant represents roughly half of the cost of the first in a 12-phase programme to help ensure the long-term survival of this magnificent bridge, which forms the centrepiece of the Grade I listed landscape.

“It will allow us to replace the deck of the iconic bridge, carry out essential drainage works, roadway repairs, and install a waterproof membrane to prevent water percolating through the stonework, as well as providing a footpath.”