Town hall to city pool: £3.5m for historic buildings in North East
Newcastle's City Pools will reopen
Skelton-in-Cleveland High Street, Newcastle’s City Pools Buildings, Morpeth railway station and Thornaby Town Hall are all set for ambitious regeneration projects with communities at their heart.
Thanks to National Lottery players, all four are benefiting from a share of £3.5million.
- A community-led scheme in Skelton will restore the character and architectural features of more than 30 buildings along the high street, which will also see improvements to paving, street furniture and tree planting. An archaeological investigation and mosaic mural project will look further back into Skelton’s medieval past
[quote= Ivor Crowther, Head of HLF North East]“I look forward to seeing these buildings develop to once again be a focal point in community life.”[/quote]
- Closed in 2013, Newcastle’s City Pools Buildings will reopen as a community swimming, health and wellbeing facility. The Turkish baths and one of the swimming pools will be restored to their former glory while the second pool will become a fitness area. The reopening is expected to boost the local economy and provide a number of employment and training opportunities
- Morpeth railway station is the gateway to North Northumberland but parts of the building, designed by Benjamin Green, have stood empty for a decade. Now they will be brought back into use as space for small businesses and a café to serve passengers. As well as creating a sustainable future for the station, the project will also see its striking decorative chimneys and portico entrance restored to their former glory
- Thornaby Town Hall’s distinctive clock tower and elaborate renaissance-style features provide a rare glimpse into Thornaby’s Victorian past, but the building now stands mostly vacant. The building is now set to be transformed, restored and opened up as space for volunteers, community groups, events, exhibitions and the town’s archive
Ivor Crowther, Head of HLF North East, said: "We are delighted to be able to support all of these projects which will benefit people, boost local economies and protect our region’s heritage. Many of these buildings are loved because of their distinctive architecture or for the role they once played in their communities.
"I look forward to seeing these buildings develop to once again be a focal point in community life.”
