C O N T E X T 1 0 7 : N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 8 25 regeneration.The Harvey’s Foundry Trust was formed after a partnership was established in 1998 to develop a proposal to achieve this. Phase one involved restoring the most prominent building, the former drawing office, that fronts on to the main square at Hayle. This created office space and a visible sign that regeneration had begun on site. Behind this, a new 8,000 square foot office building was erected on vacant land using appropriate materials and a modern design. This has provided space for small local businesses, now employing 70 people and bringing in rental income to support the further regeneration work of the trust. Phase one involved nearly £2 million of grants from a variety of funders including English Heritage, Penwith District Council, the South West of England Regional Development Agency and European Union Objective One funding. Penwith District Council project-managed and financially underwrote the project, and played a full role in the partnership. Phase two restored the Foundry Farm buildings, creating 16 art and craft workshops, three of which are live/work units for the use of people working at Harvey’s. These are the first live/work units in the Penwith District. Their rent is subsidised. The workshops also provide space for the crafts to be displayed and sold. Energy conservation has been an important design consideration, as has the revival of traditional building skills. Some of the workshops have a ‘living roof’. For new buildings, the project has used traditional materials, sustainable timber, vegetable stains, paperpulp insulation and measures to ensure low water consumption. The investment of £4.2 million has created more than 80 new jobs on this formerly abandoned industrial site. The catalytic effect is evident in the independent restoration of neighbouring buildings for further employment purposes. Another product of this project to recycle the Harvey’s buildings is the credibility gained by the building preservation trust. It now employs a full-time officer and is spreading its net to other buildings in Hayle. Phase three of the original project will involve the restoration of the main Foundry Barn and other associated stores to provide more business and community facilities together with greater interpretation of the site. The reintroduction of a pumping engine might have potential to be more than just a visitor attraction and could be used to pump grey water to local housing. Since the start of the project, the Cornwall andWest Devon Mining Landscape has been added to the list of world heritage sites. Following the restoration of a maltings at Mistley in Essex, we are working with the same developer on the restoration and reuse of a vast maltings site in Sleaford, Lincolnshire. The maltings closed in 1959. Fifty years on, they are abandoned and have suffered fire damage. To demolish such a large area of inherently well-built, Grade II* listed structures offering flexible space would be a massive mistake. Nevertheless, it is a huge challenge to find viable new uses for over 500,000 square feet of redundant space in a town of 15,000. In Nelson, Lancashire the Prince’s Regeneration Trust is working closely with the hugely successful Heritage Trust for the NorthWest to communicate the potential for the reuse of historic buildings. This is an area where the local authority has sought to demolish much of the 19th century housing that, together with the mills and community buildings, presented an exceptional example of a ‘cotton town’. It is accepted that the traditional size of terraced houses is often no longer suitable for 21st century families. However, it is evident that in such cases the most environmentally responsible and cost-effective solution is to combine two houses into one, not to demolish them to the create modern-style housing developments. Where the Heritage Trust for the North West has been able to acquire property, it has demonstrated that good conservation practice returns good capital value and creates a home in which people want to live. It encourages a sense of place. Harvey’s Foundry before restoration Harvey’s Foundry site after restoration Foundry barn: the area was once the steampumping engine production capital of the world.
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