New general manager takes the helm at Sudeley Castle

Sudeley Castle and Gardens has appointed Wendy Walton as its new general manager.

Wendy will lead and direct all aspects of the daily operations of Sudeley Castle including its retail and catering activities, weddings and corporate events. She will manage a team of permanent employees as well as seasonal staff and a team of 40 volunteers.

“I feel enormously privileged to be working at such a historic place,” said Wendy. “I studied history at university and read a lot of books about Tudor history, so you can imagine my excitement when I saw a job at Sudeley Castle being advertised! I’m enormously grateful for the opportunity to work here, and I’m looking forward to helping visitors make the most of their visit to both the castle and the gardens,” she added.

Before taking up her management role at Sudeley Castle Wendy was employed as the director of commercial operations at Bristol Zoological Society. Prior to that she ran one of the Wildfowl and Wetland Centres on the South Coast and also managed a stately home and worked for more than 15 years as the programme and marketing manager at The Brighton Centre, the biggest arena on the South Coast.

Wendy says one of her main ambitions is to increase the profile of the castle, both locally and nationally. She said: “So many people refer to Sudeley Castle as the hidden gem of Gloucestershire, which in a way is great but I want to help elevate it to somewhere that is one of the most well-known visitor attractions in the county. There’s something for the entire family to enjoy here at Sudeley. We’ve recently installed a fantastic new fun fort in our adventure playground for children to enjoy, and we have a fun and varied programme of events on offer over the coming months.

“It’s not just the castle here at Sudeley though, we’ve got some of the best gardens in the whole of the UK and a pheasantry that contains some of the rarest species of birds from all over the world. The castle holds some incredible paintings and artefacts which are really worth seeing. There’s something for the whole family to enjoy here.”

The castle, which lies on the outskirts of Winchcombe, is steeped in history and, with royal connections spanning 1,000 years, has played an important role in the turbulent and changing times of England’s past. Sudeley Castle was once home to Queen Katherine Parr, who is buried in St Mary’s Chapel on the castle grounds, who was the last and surviving wife of King Henry VIII. Henry himself, as well as Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, Queen Elizabeth I and Richard III have all played a part in Sudeley’s story. King Charles I found refuge there during the Civil War, when his nephew Prince Rupert established headquarters at the castle. Following its ‘slighting’ on Cromwell’s orders at the end of the Civil War, Sudeley lay neglected and derelict for nearly 200 years. Nowadays the castle is one of the most visited historic buildings in Gloucestershire.