Traditional craft skills take centre stage at New Briggate heritage festival

Traditional craft skills will be showcased at an event celebrating the important part that Leeds’s heritage is playing in the regeneration of a much-loved city street.

The free festival-style event will take place tomorrow (Saturday, June 24) in the grounds of St John’s Church on New Briggate in the city centre.

Visitors will be able to watch as carpenters, glaziers, blacksmiths and other craftspeople demonstrate techniques that have been passed down from generation to generation.

The event has been organised to help raise awareness of the work currently being done by the New Briggate High Street Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) programme.

A partnership between Leeds City Council and Historic England, the HAZ project is delivering a heritage-led regeneration of New Briggate through the use of government-funded grants for improvements to buildings and public spaces.

Representatives from the council, Historic England and the Churches Conservation Trust will be on hand at tomorrow's event to provide information about the project. Storytelling sessions will also give younger visitors the chance to learn more about days gone by.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council's executive member for economy, culture and education, said:

“We’re proud to be putting heritage at the heart of our efforts to regenerate New Briggate and make it an even better place to live, work, shop and spend time.

“This event promises to offer a fascinating insight into some of the traditional skills and techniques that helped shape our city and are still being used to good effect today.”

Bryan Davies, New Briggate High Street Heritage Action Zone project lead for Historic England, said:

“The New Briggate HAZ isn’t just about regenerating a historic street, it’s also about giving local people and visitors the opportunity to discover more about Leeds’s heritage.

“The festival will reveal the dedication, passion and expertise of the craftspeople – past and present – who built the city we know and love.”   

Jake Millar, regeneration officer at the Churches Conservation Trust, said:

“The Churches Conservation Trust is delighted to be working with Leeds City Council and Historic England on the New Briggate High Street Heritage Action Zone.

“The festival is a brilliant opportunity for people to come together at St John’s Church and learn about the range of traditional craft skills that are used to protect and conserve historic buildings.”

The HAZ project recently provided grant aid for significant repairs and refurbishments to a row of shops and commercial units on New Briggate.

The ongoing work is using traditional materials and cutting-edge conservation methods to ensure the revamped buildings will fit neatly with the look of historic landmarks such as the Grand Arcade and St John’s Church.

This phase of the programme follows positive recent progress on other HAZ-funded improvements to New Briggate, including the restoration of stylish terrazzo paving at the entrance to the Grand Arcade.

Tomorrow's craft skills event runs from 10am to 3pm and is open to all, with no booking required.

Notes to editors:

High Streets Heritage Action Zones is a £95m government-funded national programme led by Historic England, designed to secure lasting improvements and help breathe new life into historic high streets for the communities and businesses that use them. Historic England is working with local people and partners to unlock the rich heritage on these high streets, through repair and improvement works as well as arts and cultural programmes, making them more attractive to residents, businesses, tourists and investors.

The Churches Conservation Trust (CCT) is a national charity charged with protecting more than 350 beautiful church buildings which attract almost two million visitors a year. CCT’s collection includes irreplaceable examples of architecture, archaeology and art from 1,000 years of English history. CCT is the operator of the third largest heritage estate in charitable ownership in the UK and has an international award-winning reputation in heritage conservation and regeneration.

ENDS