Letter from HES.

Hi I have received a letter from HES this morning. In short, after meeting with ACC they have decided to reopen the castle gate on 1st June 2016, but review the situation again in 2017. Just to say, HES were able to view the petition and see your support and comments. Thanks for your help and support ! :) =====================LETTER===================== Stephen A Duncan Director of Commercial and Tourism Longmore House Salisbury Place Edinburgh EH9 1SH stephen.duncan@hes.scot T: +44 (0) 131 668 8781 Dear Gregor, Thank you for your recent correspondence on the closure of the walled garden gate at Aberdour Castle. I have visited the site again since the gate’s closure, where I had informative and constructive discussions with representatives of Aberdour Community Council. Having considered the matter further, I would like to update you on plans for the future of the gate. Taking all views into consideration, I have decided to re-open the gate on 01 June. The findings from this trial closure will then be considered with a view to reviewing the situation for 2017. The original decision to close the gate was taken as a result of the difficulty site staff face in differentiating who had paid to access the site and who had not, which was impacting on their ability to carry out their duties effectively. I would like to invite the local Aberdour community to assist HES in finding a solution to this difficulty while retaining the important role that the Castle and gardens play in the village life. Feedback that we have already received from local residents will also be taken into consideration, and I or a senior member of my Visitor Operations team will offer to attend a future meeting of the Community Council to discuss the options in greater depth. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you again for your feedback on this issue. I greatly value comments and suggestions from visitors and local communities; this is vitally important to our work. ==================END OF LETTER================