The latest phase of repairs to the magnificent Grade I Listed Heaton Hall, which is situated within Heaton Park, North Manchester, have been completed. Tours around the Hall will begin in April.
Heaton Hall – one of the North West’s most important heritage assets – has received key funding support from Historic England and Manchester City Council to ensure the building is protected in the future and to complete essential maintenance works.
The Grade I listed property - which is one of very few Grade I listed buildings nationally - has been on Historic England’s At Risk list for many years. The Hall, designed in 1772 by esteemed architect James Wyatt, has undergone five phases of essential maintenance works. The previous four phases have consisted of work including: repairs to the east and west wings; replacement of the windows and shutters and fixing the roof of the Orangery to protect the Hall.
The current phase, phase five, consists of on-going maintenance repair works including the replacement of recently broken windows, rendering repairs, and internal repair work on the first floor. Maintenance and ongoing repairs were started over 3 years ago and have now been completed to help protect the architectural gem for future generations. The current works are now complete and further maintenance will take place in the future.
The Friends of Heaton Park will conduct free, monthly guided tours on for groups to enjoy.
The dates are:
Sunday 10 April
Sunday 8 May
Sunday 19 June
Sunday 10 July
Sunday 14 August
Saturday 10 September
Sunday 11 September
There will be also be charged, guided tours around the Hall on every second Sunday conducted by Blue Badge Guide Jonathan Schofield.
Manchester's flagship Heaton Park – along with the iconic Heaton Hall – has also benefited from major improvement works that will help maintain one of the city’s best-loved green spaces and most popular cultural attractions.
Recently, 18 English oak trees have been planted in Heaton Park, on either side of the tram track near the Middleton Road entrance as part of the £1m Tree Action MCR programme, funded by Manchester City Council.
Over the past five years the Council has been refashioning aspects of the park in a sustainable way to help ensure accessibility and to further enhance the setting of the Hall and make the Grade I building a fitting focal point of the wider park landscape. Improvements include the provision of new toilets in the park; creating wider entrances; the resurfacing of main paths and installing 23 new benches.
Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, Executive Member for Neighbourhoods, said:
“As custodians of Heaton Hall, the Council takes its responsibility to ensure it is properly looked after very seriously, and we can't wait to give the public the chance to see all the work that has been done inside this remarkable building.
"With its initial restoration now complete the Hall is once again the magnificent centrepiece - the crowning jewel - of our magnificent park, and we hope it will continue to delight and inspire local residents and visitors to the city for generations to come."
"In partnership with Historic England this amazing heritage asset has been painstakingly worked on to protect and preserve its unique architectural features and restore it to its former glory.”
Catherine Dewar, Historic England’s North West Regional Director, said:
“Heaton Hall, and its surrounding park, are really valued by people in Manchester and far beyond and these last couple of years have shown us all how valuable these spaces are to communities. The hall is one of a tiny proportion of buildings across England to be listed at Grade I, which is reserved for buildings of the highest significance.
“Working closely with the City Council since 2015, Historic England has provided advice and £758,000 in grants to get to this point and we’re thrilled that locals and visitors will soon be able to get inside this North Manchester heritage gem once again.”
For information on the Friends of Heaton Park and their tours: https://www.facebook.com/FriendsofHeatonHall/
For more information on the Jonathan Schofield tours please visit: https://www.jonathanschofieldtours.com/