The Lulworth Estate

Management Statement

The stretch of the Dorset coastline between White Nothe in the west and Warbarrow Bay in the east is owned and managed by the Lulworth Estate, a private Estate, owned by the Weld family since 1641. This stretch of coastline is approximately 5 miles and includes Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door, The Lulworth Crumple (Stair Hole) and the Fossil Forrest. The Estate continues to be managed in an environmentally sensitive way maintaining a balance between conservation of the environment, the local economy and social structure and the needs and demands of the visiting public.

1. Beaches

The beaches include from west to east West Bottom, Middle Bottom, Durdle Door, Man O' War, St Oswald's Bay, Lulworth Cove, Mupes Bay and Arish Mel. These are all, largely pebble beaches, although, depending on spring storms, sand can be found at Durdle Door and St Oswalds. All the beaches are clean and, except in stormy weather are safe to swim from, many being protected by a rocky, mainly underwater, "reef" approximately a hundred yards off the beach.

With the exception of Mupes Bay the beaches are open to the southwest (prevailing wind) and therefore are susceptible to debris being washed up from the open sea. To combat this, the Lulworth Estate has a programme of beach cleaning in addition to the volunteer days organised by the Ranger Service. Most visitors are encouraged to and do remove and dispose of their own litter.

Please take care when swimming and using light inflatable toys (including boats). The tides and currents can be strong at certain times and it is prudent not to venture too far offshore. Please ensure children are accompanied by an adult at all times.

2. Geology and Fossils.

Although Lulworth is very rich in geology, the rock formations having been made exceptionally visible by the erosion of the sea, it is not, obviously, as rich in Fossils as other areas of the World Heritage Coast (excepting the Fossil Forrest).

It is the Estate's policy to discourage the collection of fossils and any found should be taken to the Heritage Centre or The Estate Office at Lulworth Castle so that they can be properly and scientifically evaluated. Unless a fossil is particularly unusual, they will be given to the finder, but if they are not inspected, an important aspect of this very special coastline may be missed.

Please try and follow these requirements for the benefit of all.

3. Visitors

Approximately 500,000 people visit Lulworth Cove each year, 30% of which come during July and August with 10% visiting the site during the winter months (November to February, inclusive).

4. Visitor Impact

The large number of visitors bring considerable management problems, particularly, in the erosion of paths and the domination of the car park over part of the Cove area.
Conversely, the economic benefits to a rural area are considerable, providing substantial full time and seasonal employment and contributing to the local economy and social stability.

5. Lulworth Cove Heritage Centre

The Heritage Centre includes an exhibition on the geology of the area using simple interpretation boards and interactive displays, the social and agricultural history of the locality and is soon to be updated to include the modern environment and an exhibition on the Lulworth Grassland Project.

The Heritage Centre is intended to provide information to visitors and is free of charge. In addition to the various exhibitions you will find daily information on the state of the beaches and paths and the flora that you may see during your visit. The Estate is committed to continue to provide this facility and in pursuit of our continuing efforts to improve and enhance the centre please email any comments you may have following your visit or complete a visitor questionnaire which is available from reception.

The Lulworth Cove Heritage Centre is currently one of the most visited in England

6. The Lulworth Grassland Project

This is an estate-wide ecological project entirely funded by the Lulworth Estate committed to providing the widest diversity of habitats to maximise the number of species of flora and fauna being supported on the Estate. The project includes a major research programme to identify species and record the changes and differences in those species present in a wide variety of grassland habitats.

Lulworth boasts its own butterfly, the Lulworth Skipper.

7. Climbing

Climbing is banned on the Estate because of the damage caused to the friable chalk cliffs, the disturbance caused to wildlife and because of the large number of visitors who come to the Estate each year - professional and semi-professional climbers do not mix well with visitors, tending to encourage those with no experience or equipment to climb what are, potentially, dangerous and unstable cliff formations.

The Estate is very pleased that this policy has resulted in a significant downturn in the number of climbing related accidents and hopes that the climbing clubs will continue to support this ban.

8. Admission Charges

An admission charge is paid by way of the car parks at the Cove and Durdle Door which fund:

The Lulworth Cove Heritage Centre (free entry)
Lulworth Rangers - 2 full time rangers are employed. (25% funded by the Dorset County Council).
Footpath maintenance (both public rights of way & permissive paths) including steps providing access to the beaches.
Education programme - Lulworth hosts a formal programme of talks and guided walks for thousands of students each year, Topics include landforms, geology, tourism and ecology. Walks and events for the public are also organised.
Lulworth Grassland Project - an ongoing ecological project of chalk grassland management and detailed research.
Public facilities at the Heritage Centre.

Charges: £2.50 for up to 2 hours, £4.00 for up to 4 hours and £5.00 all day. Tickets are transferable between each car park. Please note that charges apply between 7:00 am & 7:00 pm and no overnight parking is permitted at Durdle Door.

9. Park & Ride

Although many visitors to the Cove and Durdle Door come to enjoy the beaches with children, picnics, buckets, spades and the family pet, an increasing number arrive to walk a part of one of the most beautiful stretches of the UK's coastline. This latter group will, potentially, benefit from a park & ride scheme, which the Estate continues to review. The designation of the Jurassic Coast as a World Heritage Site may well increase the opportunities to introduce such a scheme in the future. The Lulworth Estate is committed to the management of the coast in a balanced and environmentally sensitive way, constantly seeking initiatives to improve this balance and enhance the coastline and the rest of the Estate to secure its conservation, not preservation, far into the future so that our children are able to enjoy the beauty and wonder of this area of the world as we have been privileged to be able to do.

James Weld
Lulworth Estate Manager
July 2002.