'Crumbling' castle needs £13.5m of work - councillor

21 December 2025

Sharon Edwards,East Yorkshire and Lincolnshireand

Emma Petrie,East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

News image — Councillor Natalie Oliver claims the walls of Lincoln Castle are "crumbling"

BBC A picture of the gate house of the castle, with its turrets and castle walls. A temporary band stand structure is on the lawn in the left of the picture. — Councillor Natalie Oliver claims the walls of Lincoln Castle are "crumbling"

Lincoln Castle's walls are "crumbling" and the site required £13.5m of maintenance work to prevent it from being closed to the public, a councillor has claimed.

Reform UK's Natalie Oliver, portfolio holder for children's services and culture at Lincolnshire County Council, said the previous Conservative-led council had failed to provide an investment and maintenance plan for the castle.

But Conservative opposition leader Richard Davies said the authority spent millions on the castle when the party led the council, with "constant renewal and investment".

He accused Oliver of "political opportunism" and said there were no reports to back up her claims.

Reform UK took control of the county council in the local elections in May. The Conservatives had previously controlled the authority for most of the last 50 years.

"A lack of planned investment and a planned maintenance structure means the castle walls are literally crumbling and without investment and maintenance we may well have to close the castle," Oliver said.

She continued: "I can categorically confirm that they have had no planned investment and maintenance, and they have used small emergency investments in order to literally keep the castle from being a danger to the public."

Without "constant care and attention", Oliver said the castle, which is nearly 1,000 years old and owned by the authority, would be left in "a really dangerous, delicate state".

"Anybody who has lived in and around Lincoln over the last 20 years will see how much money has been spent in Lincoln Castle," Davies argued.

"Where it is now, compared to where it was a generation ago, is almost incomparable."

He questioned: "Where is the report? Where is the forward plan that shows this?"

Oliver added that the council is looking to bring in a repair scheme for the "jewel in the crown" heritage site.

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