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£24.25 million Bishop Auckland proposal would bring new jobs and investment to the area

Major steps are about to be taken towards the multi-million pound regeneration of one of Britain’s most important ancient sites, Auckland Castle.

Four schemes totalling more than £24 million that will breathe new life into Auckland Castle and the historic market town in which it stands, will be lodged with Durham County Council before Christmas.

If approved the multiple projects will not only see the Palace of the Prince Bishops of Durham undergo the most far reaching and visionary changes for 300 years, but herald the economic revival of the once prosperous town of Bishop Auckland.

The plans include:

• The £17 million restoration of the castle, which has received initial support* from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), including the construction of a new museum wing telling the story of all religious faiths in Britain
• The creation of a £2.5 million visitor welcome centre incorporating a visually stunning 27m tower
• The £3 million transformation of a former bank in Bishop Auckland Market Square, designed by the local Victorian architect George Hoskins, into a new and internationally important Spanish art gallery
• A £1.5 million development to turn an adjacent derelict building into a study facility for post graduate students of the arts

Together, the proposals total £24.25 million and will create new jobs and investment into the area. Subject to planning approval, work will begin in 2015.

Chief executive of the Auckland Castle Trust, David Ronn, said: “Our aim in all this is to be a catalyst for the regeneration of Bishop Auckland and especially the historic and very fine Market Square at the northern end, linked historically both physically and through use with the castle and the Deer Park beyond.

“By working closely with responsible organisations such as Durham County Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund, as well as the Town Team, the Civic Society of Bishop Auckland and a wide range of local people and businesses, we believe that the Market Square and surrounding streets will become once more places of fine and functional buildings, busy and active with people and trade, and a source of pride for those who care about it.”

The work of the Trust over the last two years has created 40 jobs – with 80% of those employed living within 20 miles of the castle – with many more to come.

“Those numbers will grow,” Mr Ronn said. “As will the numbers of local contractors that we use who are nearly all drawn from the area. Already we employ the services of 100 local contractors and suppliers.

“We have been very active focussing our efforts beyond the castle walls and out into the Market Square of Bishop Auckland, once a place alive with activity and trade, surrounded by fine buildings which stand witness to the status and wealth of this former great coal mining town.

“We have planned and we have consulted with a range of local and national experts. We have also spoken to the community. We have actively consulted with 9,000 people this year about the plans and reacted to their feedback.”

Mr Ronn added: “Subject to planning approval, in 2015 all these projects will start to come to fruition and those who have believed in Jonathan Ruffer’s vision will see it turn to reality: local people, responsible groups and organisations, and funders who have taken the leap of faith and supported it in the early days.

“With those plans will come a range of opportunities for people living here and further afield.”

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