Eighty-Three Grade II listed homes in Nottingham are the focus of a new heritage project – looking at the history of the buildings and the people who lived there.
The Promenade Heritage Project, which is run by Nottingham City Homes (NCH), local historians Laura Summers and Chris Matthews, and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. It has been created to celebrate the history of The Promenade, Robin Hood Terrace and Campbell Grove – which consists of 160-year-old terraced houses neighbouring Victoria Park on the border of St Ann’s and Sneinton
NCH and specialist contractors recently carried out restoration and renovation work to 16 of the listed council houses, and this sparked a renewed interest in the history of this area. A successful bid was made to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for a project that will celebrate the history of these houses.
The homes, some of which are still owned by Nottingham City Council, were originally built in the late 1850’s to meet the demand for housing during the city’s boom in the lace trade. In 1973, they were officially designated as a General Improvement Area, which saved them from the wrecking ball. They are rare surviving examples of good quality working-class Victorian housing and Grade II listed on account of their historic interest and architectural value.
Today, they are a distinctive and popular part of St Ann’s, though their history has not often been broadcast. This new funding has meant that a project is being delivered to explore the history and heritage of the area. A part of this project, a new book telling their story has been commissioned, which includes many archive images.
However, NCH would now like to speak to people who live there or have lived in these homes in the past, or who may have had family members who lived there. A series of events are being held to introduce the project and welcome people to share their stories, memories and/or photographs of this area.
Councillor Linda Woodings, Portfolio Holder for Planning, Housing and Heritage at Nottingham City Council, said: “I know this is going to be a fascinating project, not only for people living in the area now, but for anyone with an interest in Nottingham and the city’s history. These homes are able to tell us a lot about our local history, and about the people who lived in these homes over the last 160 years.
“I am pleased we’ve been able to carry out recent restoration work to the historic buildings with our partners NCH. The council still owns and rents many of these homes as much needed affordable housing and the story of that restoration work is presented in this new book – a Heritage Report for the neighbourhood. I would now encourage anyone who has photos of stories of their time in that area to please get involved with the project.”
Adrian Cheetham, Director of Property at Nottingham City Homes, said: “We want to make sure the history of these homes is more accessible to others. This project enables the community to explore the history of their own streets and I encourage people to attend the online heritage workshops to help us learn more about the people who have lived here over the years.
“The work we are doing will all be made public and thanks to lottery players and the Lottery Heritage Fund we have been able to put this programme of events together and publish this new book about the history of these homes and the people who have lived in them over the years.”
The new book on the history of these homes is free to download from the project website and a copy has been given to households on these streets.
Project Promenade website
There is a dedicate website to the project here – www.thepromenadeheritageproject.org/p/the-project.html
Online book
The heritage report is now available online, outlining the 160 year history with archive images and references.
Free Events
There are different free events during 2020 to give people the chance to tell their story:
Events can be found here – www.thepromenadeheritageproject.org/p/events.html
