Gwrych Castle

Location: Abergele, North Wales

Status: Grade I

Client: Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust

Architect: Chambers Conservation

Team: TRPCE, Cavendish Bloor, Crookes Walker

Date: 2019 - Present

Services: Heritage consultancy, heritage statements, surveys, ongoing advice during construction

Project Overview

Gwrych is a Grade I listed castle near Abergele. The castle has sadly fallen into decline over the last 40 years, to a point where it is now a roofless ruin. Chambers Conservation were appointed in 2019 to develop a Conservation and masterplan, and are also supporting initial grant-aided repair projects. The team have worked carefully to, firstly, develop a detailed understanding of the remaining fabric, its condition and significance, then develop a 25 year masterplan for the site, defining uses and phasing for the castle and its many outbuildings as well as the wider landscape.

In 2019, the castle famously paid host to the ITV television programme ‘I’m a Celebrity’. The team worked with ITV and the trust to ensure the programme was able to use the castle to full effect and the site benefitted from a significant amount of investment in conservation and repair. Additionally, Chambers have worked with the Trust on a variety of small conservation projects such as the repairs to Tower B and works to the Coach House, including the design and detailing of replica doors to replace those which have been lost.

Castle Core Project

In 2024, planning permission and listed building consent was granted for the installation of new floors and roofs within the existing ruin. This project is just the first phase of a long-term masterplan for the Castle, that aims to bring it back into use as a hub for tourism and events. The proposals were developed to respond to the existing historic fabric, and detailed buildings surveys and a 3D model (produced by Terra Measurement) allowed us to understand what remained of the existing fabric, so we could ensure that our proposals retained as much as possible.

In 2019, the castle famously paid host to the ITV television programme ‘I’m a Celebrity’. The team worked with ITV and the trust to ensure the programme was able to use the castle to full effect and the site benefitted from a significant amount of investment in conservation and repair. Additionally, Chambers have worked with the Trust on a variety of small conservation projects such as the repairs to Tower B.