Repair work approved for leaky Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens

Plans for vital repairs and conservation work at Sunderland’s Museum and Art Gallery have been given the green light by city councillors.

Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee, at a meeting this week, discussed a planning application for the historic building near Mowbray Park.

The plans, submitted by the city council in late-2023, proposed internal and external works to safeguard the original 1879 structure for future generations.

This included repairs to the roofing, structural timber, external joinery and glazing, as well as “addressing damage to internal areas caused by active water ingress to the building”.

Proposed external works included alterations to the roof, the replacement of the flat roof of the central tower and the removal of a flagpole, which is expected to be ‘kept in storage’.

Other works included two “redundant” roof lights being replaced with slate roofing, as well as new stainless steel gutters, the removal of “redundant and defected pipework” and a new security door to the central tower.

The proposals follow Sunderland City Council gaining funding from the Arts Council’s MEND (Museum Estates and Development Fund) to “undertake repairs to the building fabric”.

The city council has previously said the oldest part of the Museum and Winter Gardens is a priority for investment in advance of larger lottery-funded refurbishment plans.

A council committee report prepared for decision-makers recommended the museum and art gallery repair works for approval.

The report, prepared by council planning officers, said the repairs would “ensure that the architectural and historic integrity and significance of the listed building will be conserved” while “sustaining its use” as a museum.

It was also noted that the scheme was prompted by “the need to repair, and address the effects of water ingress at the 1879 building which has and continues to create damage to the existing integrity, and historic interest and fabric of the building”.

The report said that, in this context, repair works aimed to “conserve an historic built environment resource whose future could otherwise have been placed in doubt and jeopardised”.

The plans were formally considered by councillors at a meeting at City Hall on January 8, 2024.

After being put to the vote, the plans won unanimous support from members of the Planning and Highways Committee.

Several members of the decision-making panel praised the scheme and the investment into protecting the city’s historic museum.

Councillor Ciaran Morrissey said: “This is a very important historic building and I’m really happy to see that the council is taking some proactive effort to make sure it’s renovated, fit-for-purpose and fit for future generations.

“I will be supporting the application and I’m glad that this civic building hasn’t been left to go the way of the glass centre”.

Councillor Iain Scott said he agreed with sentiments about the “community value” of Sunderland’s museum and the public benefits of repairs.

Cllr Scott continued: “The building being repaired will certainly safeguard it for future generations to enjoy, as much of us have already through our time”.

Councillor Melanie Thornton, chair of the Planning and Highways Committee, added: “It’s a much-loved building and we need to continue the investment into such buildings of historic value to the city”.

A design and access statement submitted to council officials this year said the Grade II-listed museum building had been developed several times since its original construction.

This included expansion in the 1960s with a “large modernist extension on the site of the former winter gardens” and a new entrance building and winter gardens being built in the early 2000s.

Applicants state the museum is of “national significance as the earliest municipal museum outside of London, and a reflection of widespread social reform – particularly relating to education of the working class – during the 19th century”.

Following planning approval, it is expected that a scaffold will be erected around the building’s north, east and west elevations and central tower to carry out repair works.

The council stressed the museum would remain open for the duration of the works with the visitor entrance on Burdon Road remaining in use.

For more information on the planning application, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 23/02281/LB3