Save the National Glass Centre #savetheNGC

We are shining a light!

Article written by Nigel Taylor, Chartered Engineer and a Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers.  I also have over 40 years experience on large construction projects and was an Operations Director for a tier one national building contractor.

Have you heard that the University of Sunderland has decided that one of our City’s landmark buildings, the National Glass Centre (NGC), is to close in 2026? 

I am a member of a campaign group set up with the aim of stopping what amounts to vandalism of one of the City’s cultural assets and visitor attractions.  Would you like to support the campaign to keep glassmaking alive on the River Wear? We would love more residents of Sunderland, Washington and the coalfields to get involved, along with any other friends and family far and wide who believe that the decision by the University is short sighted and against the wishes of the vast majority of the people of the area.

The NGC was opened by Prince (now King) Charles in October, 1998. Sunderland was chosen as the preferred site, due to our long history in glassmaking. Indeed, this year, sees the 1350th anniversary of Benedict Biscop bringing craftsmen from Europe to start making glass on the banks of the Wear at St Peter’s Church. 

Over the years, glass making grew as an industry. Sunderland glass developed a worldwide reputation and, by 1860, more than 1,000 glass makers were employed in the area working in more than 20 companies.

Most of us will have some glassware made in Sunderland in our cupboards. Who hasn’t got the odd Pyrex bowl, plate, or casserole dish, which often has been passed down through the generations. These were all manufactured on Wearside by Jobling, the glassmakers. Some of the designs are quite valuable now, so hang on to these prized possessions.

The NGC itself is not only a place for local glassmakers and artists to showcase their innovative designs, but is alsokeeping the tradition of glassblowing alive for new generations to see. Many of you may have been on one of the short, day courses to make a Christmas bauble, paperweight, or tile, and have felt the satisfaction, as I have, of creating something unique and beautiful. I am reminded of this every year when the Christmas decorations come out and I see the bauble I made some years ago, with a lot of help from one of the excellent craftsmen employed within the NGC.  All of this will be lost if the NGC closes.

This area’s cultural heritage has already been decimated over recent years with the loss of the mining and shipbuilding industries.  Are we prepared to let people from outside of the area now running the University of Sunderland make arbitrary decisions without proper consultation and without fully understanding the impact this will have on the local community?  

Local children will lose the experience of seeing the traditional skills, for which Sunderland was once famous; school trips to the NGC were often a high point of a school year. Local history is made more real by experiencing an activity, rather than reading about it in a book. Can we afford to lose this important landmark for ever?

Over the years, the NGC has evolved into more than just a museum or workshop space—it has become a cultural landmark and a symbol of Sunderland’s regeneration. It has attracted many visitors to the region from all over the world, which helps the local economy.  Glass artists who have studied at the NGC have gone on to receive worldwide acclaim for their work and even now sing the praises of where their journey started, in Sunderland.

Our group has been set up to try to prevent this closure. We meet regularly and have set up a petition which already has over 32,000 signatures, a website and a blog, to keep people up to date with the campaign. You are all welcome at the monthly meetings

If you are as affronted as us by the impending closure, pleasesign the petition and add your weight to the cause. 

You can sign the petition here https://www.change.org/p/save-glass-blowing-in-the-historic-st-peter-s-ward-save-the-national-glass-centre?recruiter=1299637260&recruited_by_id=66116780-bc22-11ed-85f2-d5d47b59f0d0&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=petition_dashboard&utm_medium=copylink

and view the website here: https://savethengc.art.blog/

If you would like to become more involved with the project, please email the campaign on savethengc@gmail.com

Let’s try and keep our local history alive for future generations #SavetheNGC #savethenationalglasscentre