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A Port Sunlight landmark will soon have some major conservation work done to it after funding was secured.
The Lyceum Building on Bath Street has secured almost half a million pounds in funding. The Grade II listed late 19th century former school will benefit from a £499,999 grant from the Museum Estate and Development Fund, as reported by Birkenhead News. The funding was announced by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Arts Council England in April as part of the programme's fifth round.
Plans have now been submitted to Wirral Council on how the funding could be used on the building. Port Sunlight Village Trust has proposed the building undergo some repairs, such as reinstating a flat roof over the entrance area and toilets, along with conservation works to the building's spire and tower.
Planning documents have listed some issues affecting the spire and tower, some of which include displaced leadwork and slipped slates. In the planning documents, it states that these and other repairs are "much needed".
Solar panels are also included in the plan for the building's roof, but away from "key views" from the model village, assuming they don't want to distract from the model village's landmarks.
Another huge development for the Port Sunlight Village Trust recently is their new ownership of The Bridge Inn, Port Sunlight's popular pub that has been leased to Greene King since 2015. Also in the name of conservation, the trust wants to keep the pub to conserve its history and protect its future. Over a month ago, the trust even requested a project team to come together to help with the roof.
When the funding was announced, Ellesmere Port and Bromborough MP Justin Mathers described it as "great news for our area" and "a real investment in our communities, and in the next generation".
