Parts of an Iron Age hillfort in England are to be closed to the public while essential repair work is carried out. About £40,000 is to be spent repairing badly eroded ramparts at Danebury Hillfort near Stockbridge, Hampshire. Parts of the fort, which sees between 70,000 to 100,000 visitors a year, will be temporarily closed as the four months of work is carried out. The overall site will still remain open and the repairs are expected to be completed by mid-March.
     The work will see steps replaced as well as the repairs to the ramparts, which have become badly worn because of the number of visitors to the site.
Councillor Margaret Snaith, Hampshire County Council's executive member for heritage, said: "These works are essential to slow down the process of erosion and to protect the future of this 2,000-year-old national monument."

Source: BBC News (11 December 2005)