Wentworth Woodhouse: Stately home's prized crockery left in pieces

About 80 delicate items which were used in afternoon tea events at the house were smashed

Part of a stately home's extensive crockery collection has been left in pieces after it fell off a shelf.

Staff at Wentworth Woodhouse in Rotherham were left "devastated" when they arrived at work to see the 80 cups and saucers strewn across the floor.

The collection of Royal Albert china had taken staff five years to build, only to be destroyed in seconds.

An appeal has been launched to replace the delicate artefacts, which were for the house's afternoon tea events.

A spokesperson from Wentworth Woodhouse thanked people who had donated their Royal Albert china to keep the weekly tea service going.

The shelf which had held the cups, saucers, plates and sugar bowls "gave way", CEO Sarah McLeod said.

A number of replacement items of china have already been donated to Wentworth Woodhouse

"We spent the last five years seeking them out in various places - sales, antiques shops and charity shops - to build this fantastic collection," she added.

Staff had since asked people to check their cupboards and storage for more rose-patterned fine tea ware that the house could use.

"We've had a great response: people donating their cups and saucers, or people who know where things are for sale," Ms McLeod said.

"It's the kind of thing people have tucked away in a box which they don't use.

"The afternoon teas are a really important source of income for us. It's a really important part of what we do," she added.