Contrary to the claims of Simon Jenkins (The National Trust has needlessly provoked an ‘anti-woke’ campaign, 13 October), Churchill was not condemned in the National Trust’s report on the legacies of slavery and colonialism at places in our care, and nor was the report written by a group of partisan academics. The report was authored and edited by a number of the most experienced curators in the National Trust. It went through a robust review process with internal and external curators and academic historians before it was published. The report presents our existing knowledge about Chartwell and many other properties in a straightforward and factual way, in the hope that we and others can build upon that knowledge and enhance our understanding of the global nature of the British country house.
John Orna-Ornstein
Director of curation and experience, National Trust
