The National Trust: Leading by Example

The National Trust, whose patron is Charles, Prince of Wales, is the caretaker of a vast estate and offers a successful, dynamic example of what a well managed, well funded organization can accomplish over time.

"Since its first purchase of Alfriston Clergy House in 1896, the Trust has expanded to the point where it now manages over 700 miles of coastline, 612,000 acres of land and over 200 buildings, gardens and monuments. But its very success as national guardian of this vast estate has tended to obscure another aspect of the Trust's work, one that is possibly even more important than its headline mission â€" and one in which it is equally as successful. As befits an organisation whose patron is the Prince of Wales, the Trust has become one of the driving forces behind the move towards rural regeneration, and it is here that the Trust makes its greatest impact on national life."

Thanks to Cristina Smith