Heritage 'at risk' report warns

More than £10m is to be spent on Wentworth Castle near Barnsley

Many of the most significant historic buildings, parks and cemeteries in the Yorkshire and Humber region are neglected, a report has revealed.

Some 133 of the region's Grade I and II listed structures are on English Heritage's Buildings At Risk register.

But English Heritage's 2004 study also shows that £237m of lottery cash has been spent on restoration since 1994.

Local councils were doing their best with limited resources "but more needs to be done", English Heritage said.

Wentworth Castle near Barnsley was highlighted as one of the key sites in Yorkshire that will soon benefit from £10.4m of lottery money.

The cash will be used to restore the baroque exterior of the main house, re-landscape the gardens and transform a greenhouse on the derelict estate.

And the report said £19.6m of lottery funding had been awarded for the conversion of the Leeds Institute into the new home of the Leeds Museum.

However, 10% of the region's 2,603 scheduled ancient monuments were in a bad or poor condition.

Vandalism rife

Most cemeteries were in a frail condition - 28% having undergone some irreversible changes and 38% having lost their chapels. More than a third had been vandalised.

David Fraser, English Heritage's Yorkshire regional director, said: "Generally, local authorities are doing their best to care for those under their control, given their often limited resources.

"But clearly more needs to be done. The survey meets the first need to understand the scale and nature of the threats posed."