Belton House near Grantham is closed due to forecast of snow

Belton House will be closed today (Friday) due to the weather.

The National Trust establishment announced on its Facebook page yesterday that it would be closed as a result of the forecasted snow.

On the post it said: "Due to the forecasted snow, for the safety of visitors, staff and volunteers, Belton will be closed all day.

"The Lion Gates will remain open for local walkers.

"We’re sorry for the disappointment this will cause and will provide updates through our social media channels and the website."

Ian Cooper, Belton House general manager, said: "As with any situation where we face possibly disruptive weather conditions, we make a decision on whether to open 24 hours in advance so we can let visitors and our team know.

"Some of our visitors travel some distance so putting closure notices on our website and social media in advance enables us to limit the number of people that might set off and arrive to find out we are closed.

"We consider the current weather but also the next 24 hour forecast as well as possible risk to travel, and in this case the Met office forecast suggests snow until lunchtime tomorrow, so we’ve taken the decision to close.

"Unfortunately, it’s not an exact science but I’d rather take that decision now and not risk having to make the decision to close tomorrow morning when it may be too late to let some of our visitors know."