An impassioned campaign to save an iconic 19th century Liverpool boys' club (above) ravaged by decay and a wide-ranging environmental and economic regeneration plan for Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland’s only World Heritage Site, have had multi-million pound Lottery grants confirmed today (January 21 2010).
The Florence Institute for Boys – affectionately known as the Florrie – served as Toxteth’s first youth club after being built in 1890 by a West Indies merchant and former city mayor in tribute to his daughter, who died in tragic circumstances at the age of 22.
The Institute has fallen into disrepair since being closed in the late 1980s
It has become more popular with vandals and arsonists since being closed in 1988, but a Friends of the Florrie group and Stop the Rot campaign by local newspaper the Echo have spearheaded public clamour for a £6.5 million scheme to restore the altruistic calling of the building. The Heritage Lottery Fund will provide £3.7 million for the scheme.
Gerry Marsden, of 1960s chart-toppers Gerry and the Pacemakers, praised the plans for the venue where his group held their first gig in 1950.
A project to turn Middlesbrough's Transporter Bridge into a panoramic viewpoint over the River Tees has won initial support from the Lottery Fund
"It was where I learned to play the guitar and where our skiffle band started out," he reminisced.
"The Florrie was a place for kids to go – it was the centre of the community, something to look forward to. I'm sure the new Florrie can do the same and young people will learn a lot and be able to give something back."
Giant's Causeway has won £3 million.
Giant's Causeway, the meandering, mythical path of interlinked basalt columns along County Antrim's coastline, will be granted £3 million for protective works, new visitor facilities and extensive volunteering programmes.
Project Director Graham Thompson said the plans would provide a critical boost for jobs and tourism.
"Moving forward will be a real boost for the local economy – in the short and medium terms many construction jobs will be secured," he explained.
"In the longer term the attraction of the Causeway and North Coast will be enhanced, with more visitors coming who will hopefully stay longer."
Kettle's Yard, in Cambridge, was created as an "open house" for artists in 1956 by Jim Ede, the Tate Gallery's first modern art curator.
The HLF also announced initial support for four further projects. Kettle's Yard, the innovative "open house" gallery in Cambridge, has been given £225,000 in development funding and encouragement for an eventual £2.3 million bid. Conservation work at The University Church of St Mary the Virgin, a Grade I-listed church at Oxford University, has won £118,000 for conservation work and educational campaigns ahead of a possible £3.3 million final award.
Middlesbrough's Transporter Bridge – one of only three surviving moving bridges in the country described as "a spectacular landmark on the River Tees" – will be restored with improved access if it augments a £111,000 grant with the £2 million organisers are pursuing from the HLF.
The public may get their first chance to fully explore Camp Farm if the Cumbria site builds on an initial award announced today.
Camp Farm, the Roman fort housing the largest intact civil settlement on Hadrian’s Wall in Cumbria, will open to the public for the first time with a live excavation of the 1,900-year-old archaeological site if it wins £3.74 million. It has been given £165,000 in preliminary support.
HLF Chair Dame Jenny Abramsky said the schemes represented "all the kaleidoscopic glory of heritage". "These places have mass appeal," she observed.
"Heritage means different things to different people but what is really important is these places reflect the UK's multi-layered and fascinating history."
