The Old School Room's work has begun.

The Telegraph & Argus:

Work has begun on a near £100,000 project to restore one of Haworth’s most important historic buildings following a major fundraising effort. The renovation of the 184-year-old Old School Room, in Church Street, started on Monday.  The work is expected to last for about two and a half months.  The total cost of renovation of the historic building, which is used for community events and functions, and recently featured on Celebrity Masterchef, is £96,000.  The work comes after eight years of fundraising by Brontë Spirit, the charity dedicated to repairing and refurbishing the property.  Around £70,000 came from grant money and nearly £30,000 from community fundraising.
A spokesman for the scheme said: “On Monday Averil Kenyon, chairman of Brontë Spirit, was on hand to greet the contractors Hopleys as they arrived on site to start the project that is expected to take in the region of ten weeks to complete. “The work has been made possible by a grant of £44,973 from landfill community fund WREN, £10,000 from The Garfield Weston Foundation and £15,000 from The Pilgrim Trust.”
The grade II listed Old School Room was built by Patrick Brontë in 1832 and was extended in 1850 and 1871. (...)  Reverend Peter Mayo-Smith, the rector of Haworth Parish Church, said he was delighted that the main part of the renovation is now under way.  “I congratulate the trustees of Brontë Spirit for the extremely hard work they’ve put in to making this possible,” he added.  “This is excellent news.
“The Old School Room is a very valuable building not just for Haworth but also for the nation.  “It is one of two properties Patrick Brontë was responsible for building, the other being St Gabriel’s Church in Stanbury.  “He was a great believer in education being a way out of poverty – something still very relevant today – and he wanted the children of local mill workers to have an education so they could escape the deprivation of the surrounding area.” (Miran Rahman)

Haworth's Old School Room building to receive grant worth nearly £45,000

A MAJOR project to repair and refurbish one of Haworth's most valuable and historic buildings has received a welcome funding boost.
The Brontë Spirit Charity, which is in charge of the Old School Room, in Church Street, has today revealed that it will be able to carry out vital repairs to the landmark property thanks to a £44,873 grant from funding body WREN.

The money, awarded by WREN’s FCC Community Action Fund, will be used to fix the badly-leaking original roofs of the Patrick Brontë-inspired building. Averil Kenyon, chairman of The Brontë Spirit group, believes that once this work is complete, the fully restored facility will make a huge difference to the lives of people living in the area.
She said: “This project will provide a real boost to the people of Haworth and its visitors.
"It’s fantastic that WREN has awarded us this money and we are really looking forward to finishing the very necessary repairs to the roofs at the west-end of the building.”

WREN is a not-for-profit business that awards grants for community, biodiversity and heritage projects from funds donated by FCC Environment through the Landfill Communities Fund.
Penny Beaumont, who is WREN’s grant manager for Yorkshire, said: “We are delighted to be supporting the Haworth Old School Room Roof Repair Works project, and pleased our funding will make such a difference to so many groups of people across Haworth.

"WREN is always happy to consider grant applications for projects that benefit local communities, and we are looking forward to this one having a positive impact very soon.”
Mrs Kenyon added that she hopes that the repairs to the old, battered Victorian-era roof will be completed before the start of next winter.

Located between Haworth Parish Church and the Brontë Parsonage Museum on Church Street, the grade II listed Old School Room is one of the most important parts of the village's literary heritage.
Originally built by Patrick Brontë in 1832 and used for teaching by all his famous children, it is an integral part of the Brontë family landscape and story.

Since 2011 the Old School Room has been managed by a small charity, The Brontë Spirit.
This is made up of local people whose aims are to conserve and maintain the building for future generations, and to build on the Old School Room's 184-years of service to the community.
At the end of last year Bradford Council approved an application to replace six windows on the northern side of the building with new, timber frame replica windows. keighleynews

Old School Room in risk.

A key part of the Brontes’ family legacy in Haworth remains seriously at risk, according to the group working to try and save it.

The warning comes from John Collinson, of Bronte Spirit, which has taken on the demanding job of raising cash to renovate the rundown Grade II-listed Old School Room in Church Street.

The property was built by Patrick Bronte in 1832 and was extended in 1850 and 1871. The building housed a school where Mr Bronte’s children – Charlotte, Emily, Anne and Branwell – worked as teachers.

Bronte Spirit received £15,000 from English Heritage last year to fund replacement windows. But Mr Collinson said the building’s roof was in an extremely poor condition, adding the full restoration project could cost about £500,000.

Read more: Keighley news

Exciting times for the Old School Room

Finally, good news for the Old School Room in Haworth. English Heritage has given a £15,000 grant for restoration purposes. In Keighley News:

                                      brontespirit

The money is being provided for the grade II-listed Old School Room and will fund the replacement of windows as a first step towards repairing the rest of the property. (...)

Charity group Brontë Spirit has been campaigning to have the property restored. Currently, it is only partly used as the roof is in poor condition.
Responding to the English Heritage grant, Brontë Spirit chairman Averil Kenyon said: “We’ve progressed from a position where Haworth Parish Church had to consider selling the building as a possible building development site to one of seeing the restoration project become a reality.
“Now we’re a registered charity, have a 25-year lease on the building and have been engaged in meaningful discussions with English Heritage not only about its restoration but about creating a sustainable future for it.
“We have plans to open the building to the public from mid-July until the end of August. These are exciting times for Brontë Spirit and the Old School Room and we’re now extremely hopeful that not only will we be able to restore this wonderful building to its former glory but also to find a use that will sustain it over many years to come. (...)
An English Heritage spokesman said: “The building’s rundown appearance harms the village and the impression left on its many visitors. The grant will go towards new windows for the building’s main elevation to replace those that have been ravaged by years of harsh Pennine winter weather.
“Talks have been taking place between us and Brontë Spirit about the complete restoration and future of the building, and a development grant is being considered so a wider repair project can be moved forward.” (Miran Rahman) Bronte blog

Beautiful pictures on: the old schoolroom Haworth 

Bronte restoration cash boost

 

Bronte Spirit chairman Averil Kenyon, centre with councillors Glen Miller and Rebecca Poulsen 

 

An initiative to restore a historic Haworth building has received a £2,500 boost.
Worth Valley ward councillors have allocated the money from the ward investment fund to support Bronte Spirit, which is campaigning to ensure the long-term future of the Old School Room. The Church Street building, which requires major repairs and renovations, was built by the Reverend Patrick Bronte. 
The money was made available by councillors Glen Miller, Rebecca Poulsen and Russell Brown. Coun Miller said: “We were keen to support this project as it still has a long way to go. We’ve given it some start-up costs.” Averil Kenyon, chairman of Bronte Spirit, said she and her colleagues were delighted with this financial backing. We are overwhelmed, it was just so timely,” she said. She added that the money would help with the costs of drawing up a business plan, needed as part of an application for further funding. Her group has staged a pair of open days to give local business people and community leaders a chance to see what potential the property has as a venue. Keighley News

Old School Rooms

The latest initiative of Brontë Spirit for restoring and safeguarding the Old School Rooms in Haworth: The voluntary group leading a project to restore one of Haworth’s most historic buildings wants to develop links with the business world. Brontë Spirit is working to safeguard the future of the Old School Room, in Church Street, which was built by the Rev Patrick Brontë. The group is staging open days at the premises Friday and on Saturday. It has invited many members of the district’s business sector along with community leaders to see what potential the building offers. Averil Kenyon, chairman of Brontë Spirit, said: “While we are currently discussing with English Heritage how we can restore the building to its former glory we have to consider what kind of sustainable future the building has. “For the two open days we have invited representatives from the commercial estate agency world to come and talk to us about what kind of business or community use might most easily fit into what the building can offer. “We have also invited companies from many sectors which could easily find a use for the building and community organisations looking to expand their operations now that the Government is asking us to embrace localism, or need extra space to house their current operations. “We’re very optimistic that this building will adapt to a modern use and that will ensure this key structure within the Haworth historical footprint will be saved for future generations to appreciate.” The Old School Room currently has serious problems with its roof and needs major external refurbishments. Mrs Kenyon added: “Our discussions with English Heritage are at an advanced stage and they have been very helpful. (Miran Rahman) Keighley news

Old School Room

Keighley News SAVED BY SPIRITED CAMPAIGN
An historic Haworth building which was at risk of being sold off to developers has won a reprieve.

Campaigners have been working to save the Old School Room, which is the only building in Haworth to have been designed and constructed by the Rev Patrick Bronte, father of the famous sisters.

The Church Street property is owned by Haworth Parish Church, but it is in urgent need of restoration. Dry rot was discovered in the building’s roof space in June.

A committee called Bronte Spirit has been investigating how to drum up support for the expensive project.

It has been estimated that nearly £1 million is needed to repair and refurbish the roof.

On Monday, a spokesman for the group said: “Following a series of crisis meetings between the church’s parochial council and Bronte Spirit, it was decided last week that enough potential support had been received for the restoration project to continue for the time being.

“At a meeting last Wednesday it was agreed that archaeologist Dr Angela Redmond, one of the current directors of Bronte Spirit, would lead the project, that the planned application for charitable status would continue and that discussions with two organisations are to be explored.”

Dr Redmond, who had been employed by Bronte Spirit when an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund was being advanced in 2008, said: “We believe that the building has a future with a role in the community and that’s something we’ll be exploring in the next few weeks.

“We were concerned that the lack of funds and support were threatening the project. But we’ve been encouraged by our initial discussions with organisations and individuals who want the Old School Room to be restored and remain true to Patrick Bronte’s vision of having a building available for public good.

“We don’t want to say publicly which organisations have been in touch with us because negotiations are at a delicate stage. No doubt if those discussions are successful it will be possible to make appropriate announcements later.”

The Rev Peter Mayo Smith, the priest in charge at Haworth Parish Church, said: “We’re exploring every avenue and, although we recognise that these are not easy economic times, we believe that it could be possible to secure enough grants to enable us to restore and develop the building as a community asset.

“None of us really wanted to sell the building but we have been in real danger of having to take that drastic step. Fortunately, we have been able to step back from that brink.”

"Train up a Child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it."

In 1820 Patrick Brontë was appointed perpetual curate of St Michael and All Angels, Haworth and the Brontë family moved into the Parsonage, which was to be their home for the rest of their lives. Patrick valued education and strove throughout his life to provide education for the poor, and in particular, poor children.

This led to his campaign for the establishment of a National Sunday School in Haworth.

In 1831 he obtained a grant of £80 from the National School Society towards building a Sunday school in Haworth, the Church Lands Trust having given the land on the north side of Church Street (then Parsonage Lane) for the purpose. The remaining funds required were raised by public subscription.These funds provided the money needed for the construction of what is now the oldest part of the building.

It was in 1844 that the new day school was opened with Ebenezer Rand the first master. The pupils at the day school paid 2d a week and were provided with slates and pencils. That the school was a success there is no doubt, with 160 pupils per week registered on its books. When Ebenezer Rand married, his wife took charge of the female pupils and classes were also made available in the evenings so that children working in the factories could attend. It is known that Charlotte, Emily, Anne and Branwell all taught at the school.

When Arthur Bell Nicholls became Patrick Brontë’s curate in 1845 he took over responsibility for the school, a role he undertook with great vigour until 1853. During this time funds were raised for the first of two gabled extensions at the westerly end of the building, completed in 1851. In 1853 the building hosted Nicholl’s presentation and later following his marriage to Charlotte Brontë, a celebratory afternoon tea for 500 local guests. http://www.haworthchurch.co.uk/old-school-room

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The only building in Haworth designed and built by Patrick Brontë may be sold as a development project.

The only building in Haworth designed and built by Patrick Brontë may be sold as a development project. The single-storey building is in need of a major restoration but the owner, Haworth Parish Church, says it does not have the cash or expertise. It is estimated that just short of £1 million will be needed – not only to repair the roof, which has dry rot, but to complete the refurbishment. The Old School Room, which is next to the parish church and the Haworth Parsonage where the family lived, was built as a ‘national’ style school by Mr Bronte in 1832, then extended in 1850 and 1871. The building housed a school where Charlotte, Emily and Anne, together with their brother Branwell, worked as teachers.

The church committee charged with maintaining the premises is called the Brontë Spirit. Chairman Averil Kenyon said: “We had high hopes of gaining funding several years ago but were unable to take the project past the development stage for many reasons. “Haworth Parish Church has its hands full seeking funding to undertake its own restoration and, while they are making progress, there is simply not enough cash or people to help us advance the Old School Room project. “Now the roof needs at least £12,000 spending on it to keep the building even reasonably water tight through next winter. “On top of that thieves have again raided the lead from the roof and we’ve suffered some water damage as a result.” Mrs Kenyon said: “If no solution is found in the next three or four months, the building will suffer more serious damage and become even more expensive to restore. “We have to find a solution and one of the options we and the church’s council are considering is whether the Old School Room could be sold as a housing or development project. “That would be heart-breaking but we’re running out of answers, money, people and time. The telegraph and argus news.Bronte_School_Room_at_Haworth_could_be_sold/