A big step back from the brink

It’s been a long time coming, but it’s official - £14 million has been awarded for the recontouring earthworks, diversion of the culvert and landscaping around the former Chatterley Whitfield colliery. You can find out more on the Friends of Chatterley Whitfield website and from English Partnerships’ press release, though the project's official website is still woefully inadequate.

The project Partnership has been working for the last six years to get to this stage, and even though I’m no longer working as Project Co-ordinator, I feel a wonderful sense of achievement in having contributed towards this. During this time, however, the buildings have slipped still further into a state of ruin, and the projected costs for restoring them continue to increase. Today's announcement won't directly help restore buildings on the site, but at least it should help other funding bodies to decide to support the scheme as well.

It was my conviction that the restoration of this site was worthwhile that kept me involved after I quit the job, and led me to become Chair of the community group dedicated to giving the colliery a new future. Recovery of this lost but stunning site will feature heavily in this blog in the months and years to come.

(Photograph taken from the Friends' website, courtesy of Tony Jones)