Glassmakers open letter supporting move away from Glass Centre as campaign group hit back with misrepresentation claim
A coalition of over 200 glass and ceramics practitioners and educators from across the UK and abroad have penned an open letter to the people of Sunderland saying they support the transition of glassworks in Sunderland to the proposed former Peter Smith Antiques building.
With the the current owners of the city’s National Glass Centre, the University of Sunderland, reiterating the centre will close to the public on July 31, the coalition are backing the current proposed plan to move to the site on Borough Road in Sunniside.
At the end of November, the City Council approved plans for enabling works to begin at the site.
The letter states that focus should be on saving the skills and tradition of glassmaking in Sunderland, rather than the National Glass Centre building itself.
The Save the National Glass Centre Campaign Group feel the letter “misrepresents our campaign as merely being about ‘preventing the loss of an important cultural building’.
The letter states: “We, the undersigned glassmakers and ceramicists working in Sunderland, across the wider UK and internationally, write to state our collective support for the development of Glassworks Sunderland, proposed for the former Peter Smith Antiques site in Sunniside.
“The closure of the National Glass Centre after 28 years of internationally recognised work in glass art, education, exhibition, outreach, and public engagement is deeply regrettable.
“Equally significant is the scheduled closure in 2026 of the BA, MA, and PhD programmes in Glass and Ceramics at the University of Sunderland, ending more than four decades of continuous, high-level specialist education.
“We recognise that the University’s decision reflects a wider national trend of higher education institutions withdrawing from arts, design, and heritage craft provision.
“While we do not support this direction, we acknowledge the broader context in which it has occurred.
“We acknowledge the efforts of the campaign to Save the National Glass Centre and their commitment to preventing the loss of an important cultural building.
“However, we differ from the campaign on a fundamental issue. As professional glassmakers, educators, technicians, and practitioners with over 4000 years of combined experience, we believe that the primary asset at risk is not a building, but the continuation of glassmaking itself: the skills, knowledge, passionate people, and professional ecology that sustain the practice and its community of makers.
“Glassmaking in Sunderland has a documented lineage of over 1,350 years, during which it has existed in many different buildings, workshops, and industrial contexts.
“The history of glass in this city has never been defined by a single structure. It has been defined by passionate practice, resilience, adaptability, endeavour, experimentation, and transmission of skills.
“From our considered and professional standpoint, the continuation of glassmaking in Sunderland is of greater long-term cultural value than the preservation of a building.
“For this reason, we fully support the development of Glassworks Sunderland as proposed by Sunderland Culture for the Peter Smith Antiques site in Sunniside.”
Following the university’s initial announcement in 2023 that the National Glass Centre is to close, a number of city residents established the Save the National Glass Centre campaign group.
The group has established a petition to save the centre which has so far received 42,000 online signatures.
In January, the Campaign Group were joined at the Glass Centre by the building’s concept architect Andy Gollifer who said he “didn’t understand” the repair figures being quoted by the university that he “expected it to be in a much worse state than what I see today”.
Lat week, Sunderland Labour Group and the city’s Labour councillors called on the university to immediately halt the closure and demolition of the National Glass Centre over what it says is “new information which has come to light from both the university and campaigners”.
Responding to the letter, a spokesperson from the campaign Group said: “The campaign to save the National Glass Centre welcome the contribution of a group of mainly glassmakers, somewhat belatedly, to the continuing debate about the future of the National Glass Centre.
“We hope the letter is not designed to encourage division in what is an already complex situation.
“We are disappointed that the letter misrepresents our campaign as merely being about ‘preventing the loss of an important cultural building’.
“We would like to point out that ‘public messaging’ about the viability of Glassworks comes from all directions. Residents, glassmakers, visitors, the Council Leader, Councillors, and Council Officers are all on record.
“Our concerns about the proposed new site are the suitability of the old building, how close it to so many people’s homes, how accessible it will be, if there is enough money available, and who will own and run Glassworks.
“We also want to know how the potential two year gap between the NGC closing and Glassworks opening would be bridged and whether it will get planning permission.
“The recent announcement of the £1.5billion cultural fund shows that funding is available, but somebody needs to apply for it.
“Our campaign is currently focused on working with the North East Combined Authority and Sunderland City Council as they have shown leadership and have the powers to step in.
“Now the Labour group on Sunderland City Council support our campaign we have moved closer to our goal of transferring the NGC as a going concern.
“The educational offer is an essential part of the reinvigoration of the NGC and we hope that this group of glassmakers will be willing to contribute to its success.”
Signatories on the open letter include practitioners and artists such as Magdalene Odundo, Richard Slee, Katharine Coleman MBE, Peter Layton (London Glassblowing), Neil Wilkin, Emma Woofenden, Matt Durran, Monica Guggisberg, Allister Malcolm, Catheryne Shilling, Devereux & Huskie Glassworks, and Colin Reid.
They also include winners of Netflix’s Blown Away, Elliot Walker and John Moran, alongside the Chair of the Contemporary Glass Society, the Executive Director of the Glass Art Society, and the Vice President of the Royal Society of Sculptors.
The list also includes alumni and current and former lecturers and staff at the University of Sunderland.
We contacted the University of Sunderland for comment on the open letter and they have directed us to Sunderland Culture, who are leading on the Glassworks Project at the proposed new site.
The university’s most recent comment on the closure of the centre doubled down on their original repairs costings and the closure date.
A spokesperson said: “It is three years since the University first announced the closure of the National Glass Centre (NGC). Since then, no individual or organisation - including Sunderland City Council - has come forward with a feasible plan to cover the cost of the capital works required on the building which range from £14m to £45m.
“Nor has anyone proposed a way of covering the £800,000 annual subsidy provided by the University to cover the NGC’s running costs.
"Given that nearly 90% of its income comes from student tuition fees, the University must spend the money on its core purposes of teaching, research, and knowledge exchange.
“It cannot afford the ongoing liability of maintaining and operating a building that does not have a sustainable future. The NGC will close to the public on July 31 (2026).”
We will publish any comment from Sunderland Culture as and when it arrives.