ISTANBUL 

A UK charity is seeking £500,000 (approximately $583,000) to repair a historic residence once home to William Shakespeare's family.

Situated in Stratford-upon-Avon, the playwright’s birthplace, Hall’s Croft sustained damage in October when a car unintentionally backed into the property.

No one was hurt in the incident, but it resulted in “substantial damage to the fabric of the building, damaging several seventeenth-century timbers,” according to a statement from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT).

The BBC reported that the collision splintered multiple oak beams and created a gap in the wall facing the road. It also highlighted the structure’s existing weaknesses and its urgent need for restoration.

Fully conserving the building would cost £2.5 million, but it was seeking assistance to start repair work, the BBC said in the report, citing the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, the charity in charge of the Grade I-listed property.

The earliest remaining sections of the house date to 1613, when it was occupied by William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway’s eldest daughter, Susanna Hall, along with her husband, Dr. John Hall.

After Shakespeare died in 1616, the couple moved out.

The property passed through numerous hands until the SBT acquired it in 1949 and opened it to visitors two years afterward.

Hall’s Croft has not reopened since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, the SBT began an extensive preservation effort for the site, supported by a £1 million contribution from American playwright Ken Ludwig—the largest private gift the organization has received in its 177-year existence.

"Shakespeare is the great foundation for all of us who work in the theatre,” Ludwig was quoted by Euro News as saying at the time.

“As a playwright, restoring Hall's Croft is a way of giving back for the lifetime of joy and inspiration I've derived from the British theatre,” he added.

The charity now reports that it needs further support to start repairing the Grade I-listed property following the vehicle collision.

“Incidents like (this) are a stark reminder of how vulnerable our heritage is and how vital it is that we continue to invest in its protection,” said Rachael North, the trust’s chief executive.

To raise an initial £500,000, the trust is calling on individual donors through its “Adopt-A-Beam” program, which aims to keep expert conservation crews on-site and “unlock momentum” for additional backing.

The trust has referred to the project as “fundamental stewardship of one of the most culturally significant houses in England.”