COMMUNITY, ARTS, HERITAGE AND FUTURE TECHNOLOGY CENTRE IS APPROVED
Plans have been approved for a new £6M Community, Arts, Heritage and Future Technology Centre in the heart of Saltaire being delivered by Shipley College and the Saltaire Collection which will benefit both local people and visitors.
Alongside five modern new classrooms, the current proposals include a civic garden to the front of the building and a publicly-accessible rooftop exhibition garden - intended to be open during the daytime.
It will also become the new home for the Saltaire Collection – a large collection of historic artefacts and documents relating to the history of the World Heritage Site. There will be a public exhibition space, and community classroom to enable people to learn more about the history of Saltaire.
Diana Bird, Principal at Shipley College explained: “The new building will create new public green spaces and a permanent storage and exhibition space to tell the story of Saltaire to visitors - something that our village does not currently have.”
Maggie Smith, Trustee of the Saltaire Collection said: “The Saltaire Collection is on its way to museum status, but will not get there without a location that the public can access every day to share this wonderful collection.”
The current proposals also include new modern public toilets and changing facilities, which were a core requirement of Shipley Town Council, one of the project stakeholders.
Shipley College has long protected historic Saltaire buildings from becoming derelict, especially in the 1980s and early 1990s. The College also partly manages Victoria Hall, which is a commercial venue with a small team who work to hire out its facilities and often receives visitors whose expectations it cannot meet.
The design and development ran alongside public engagement and consultation, as well as guidance from the Council’s planning authority and Historic England, to ensure the plans protect the Outstanding Universal Value of Saltaire.
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Transport and Planning, said: “This is a once in a generation opportunity to enhance Saltaire for the future. It is important that it is done to an extremely high standard and in a sensitive way which respects the history of this very special place, and the plans certainly reflect that.”
The College works with professional organisations and local employers to develop inspirational education and training that meets the skills needs of the region. Working in partnership with the West & North Yorkshire Chambers of Commerce we have recently supported the development of the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) for West Yorkshire, and are the regional lead on Health for the LSIF Digital Innovation project - meaning our students will be taught AI and robotics to help provide the healthcare experts of the future.
The new building will help provide fantastic new teaching facilities to teach young people in-demand technological skills that will support the growth of the local economy and support the prosperity of the region.
“This is a once in a generation opportunity to enhance Saltaire for the future. It is important that it is done to an extremely high standard and in a sensitive way which respects the history of this very special place, and the plans certainly reflect that.”
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council's Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Transport and Planning