National Glass Centre is still open. We want to keep it that way.
Tag Archives: piers Gough
After a remarkable council meeting I thought I’d share some highlights. Cross party support for the motion requesting a more robust look at the presented documents from Sunderland University regarding the National Glass Centre and a call for compulsory purchase.
Labour representatives were reading from carefully considered scripts to spin the narrative towards Glassworks Sunderland whilst patronising us by suggesting we are ‘romanticising heritage’.
This is OUR CULTURE. This is our future. That’s why the fight will continue until common sense prevails. As proud working class people we cannot allow this top down dictatorship. We deserve our NATIONAL Glass centre. Not empty promises.
Save the National Glass Centre photograph by Jo Howell
You are invited to…
Sunderland City Council Meeting
At 4.00pm in City Hall, Sunderland on 25th June 2025
To witness the debate deciding if the Council will pass the Motion below and start the process of investigating the actions of the University of Sunderland regarding the decision to close the NGC, thereby ending 1350 years of glassmaking in Sunderland.
The Council Meeting is open for the public to attend, please come and show your support for the Campaign to Save the National Glass Centre.
Or follow the live stream of the Meeting at…
Notice of Motion – Protecting our heritage
This Council regrets the decision taken by the University of Sunderland to close the National Glass Centre in 2026.
Preserving Sunderland’s glassmaking heritage is vital to the city’s cultural offer as well as the Council’s economic growth ambitions.
The University has taken this decision due to what it claims are unaffordable repair costs and sustained operating losses. Council expresses concern regarding the accuracy of the cost estimates so far presented.
Council therefore resolves that the Chief Executive will write to the University’s Vice Chancellor with the following questions:
1. What is the scale of the Centre’s operating loss in the current financial year and the preceding 5 years?
2. Do those losses reflect the cost incurred when structural changes were made to the Centre’s main façade in 3. 4. 2022?
3. How does the University account for the Centre’s income and expenditure?
4. Will the University release all documents relating to its ownership of the Centre and confirm whether that ownership is subject to any restrictions?
The proposal to establish an alternative glassmaking provision in Sunniside in 2027-28, known as Glassworks: Sunderland, fails to address the loss of expertise caused by the Centre’s closure, ignores the economic implications for the surrounding area, and is itself only partially costed.
Council further resolves that the Chief Executive will prepare a detailed report, to be made public within 6 weeks, with the following terms of reference:
Fully explain the proposed ownership structure of Glassworks: Sunderland.
Consider whether the National Glass Centre and Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art will continue to exist in any form following the closure of the Centre Building.
Outline the capital and revenue cost of making Glassworks: Sunderland fully operational (i.e. the cost of relocating equipment, refurbishment, fitting out, employing staff) and how this will be funded.
Save the National Glass Centre photograph by Gill Helps
Make some signage or some fashion and pop down to City Hall with us on the 21st May 2025 at 5pm.
Show the love, save the national glass centre promoted by Sunderland Conservatives
What’s the crack?
We want you to come and show support for the National Glass Centre.
Make some signage or some fashion and pop down to City Hall with us on the 21st May 2025 at 5pm.
We want to save the building et al because it was purpose built for our glassmaking heritage as a regeneration project for the City.
We believe demolition is needlessly destructive and will have adverse effects on our delicate marine and coastal environment.
The most sustainable building is the one that already exists.
Add to this that National Glass Centre is situated in St Peter’s because glassmaking was known to have been brought to Sunderland and taught to others in 674ad.
That’s 1351 years of glass!
We want to save the National Glass Centre because it has inspired working class people to enjoy art and heritage. It brings 230,000 people a year and we believe it could command even more.
The National glass centre building is an iconic emblem on the riverside. A cathedral of glass. Its cultural wealth and impact upon the surrounding area should not be underestimated.
The prestige of the highly skilled glassmakers has made our city known across the world. It symbolises our rich creative past and could be a flagship of new science or technologies of the future.
This National Glass Centre of ours is uniquely Sunderland. Anywhere can make music. Obviously we’re glad that we make music too but we are about to concede to the destruction of our only internationally facing unique selling point.
Katy Wheeler has put it excellently in the Sunderland Echo read it here:
Meet us at 5pm on May 21st at City Hall in Sunderland. Bring signs!
We need you beautiful people with some hand painted signs to have a visible outpouring of public love for the National Glass Centre.
It won’t be long until the shutdown of the National glass centre begins in earnest. We are running out of time to press this issue with MPs, councillors and everyone who has sway in this City.
The National Glass Centre has over £30 million of taxpayers money invested in it over the years. This is our investment. Our National centre with global appeal.
If you can’t come in person then take your opinions and crowbar them in on every comments section of every post of the Uni and the council. Point out hypocrisies publicly.
And of course share all of our posts!
See you at 5pm on May 21st at City Hall! Bring posters, signs and righteous indignation.
After another shock announcement that the National Glass Centre will close on Sundays from March 16th Save the National Glass Centre Campaign calls for more boots on the ground.
Sign up for updates on how to help the campaign by emailing savethengc@gmail.com with Newsletter in the subject line.
Yet again the offer for locals and visitors is weakening with the University of Sunderland deciding that working families will only be able to enjoy a visit to the “world-class” cultural venue on one day of a usual working week – Saturdays.
Campaigners believe that the university should not have the sole responsibility for deciding the much-loved attraction’s future. They are questioning why Sunderland’s second most popular visitor attraction, after the Stadium of Light, (Tripadvisor) will be closing on Sundays, the second most popular day for visitors (according to Google).
Tenants have been told by email that,
“The decision has been taken by the University of Sunderland to balance the needs of students, staff and visitors to the NGC, with the University’s efforts to ensure the NGC runs as sustainably as possible until the planned closure of the building in July 2026.”
The NGC used to host about 230,000 visitors in a usual year according to Sunderland Culture. People north of the river are worried about what will happen to local businesses such as B&Bs, shops, cafes and pubs if the NGC closes in summer 2026.
A substantial amount of money will need to be raised, and work has barely started on developing a robust business model for the self-sustaining glass making hub. The predicted footfall of 50,000 visitors at Glassworks will make it much harder to afford to employ 16 “creative roles”.
1700 schoolchildren used to visit the NGC annually to learn about the unique heritage of Sunderland and experience the thrill of glassmaking, yet there is no mention of children in the new plan.
If the plan for Glassworks fails to overcome all the challenges, we could be left with nothing!
Campaigners now know through Freedom of Information requests that the university has written off the value of the NGC and NGCA in its accounts, previously the “net book value” was £10.6million (FOI2425/10/16), assets created for the community using a huge amount of public money.
The Chair of the Board of Governors has written that “the land is not of significant value and even that would be largely offset by the cost of removing the building and any potential landscaping” (11.04.24).
The university’s own documents show that the NGC building has not been well maintained, leading to a backlog of repairs. The documents also show that there is a workable solution with build costs of around £6.6million.
Considering all this, campaigners are appealing directly to the university to allow Sunderland City Council to step in and take back full control and return the centre to what it was, a “world-class cultural asset” for the public to enjoy.
In the summer of 2026, the last university students will leave the building. This leaves plenty of space for the important heritage of glassmaking to continue whilst developing an even more enhanced offer for visitors, artists and our future generations by celebrating the religious, industrial and maritime heritage aspects of Sunderland’s proud history.
There are several organisations in Sunderland that could be drawn together under one roof. Never forget that Sunderland was the largest shipbuilding town in the world, that there is a little bit of Sunderland in millions of cupboards around the world in the form of Pyrex dishes, or the memory of Venerable Bede and his creation of the idea of the English as a people. Why can’t our city’s proud heritage be celebrated more?
Whilst The National Glass Centre will probably never beat The Stadium of Light and become the most popular visitor attraction in Sunderland it certainly could continue to enjoy its current second place!
Remember to email us! We are planning something and we need you all to be part of it!
Save the National Glass Centre campaign on historic Corning glass publication
Save our 1350 year glassmaking heritage! First brought to the area to adorn St Peter’s and St Paul’s churches in 674 ad by Benedict Biscop. We have continued with pride and have a unique collection of highly skilled artists who have stayed in the region to make glass. You wouldn’t destroy 1350 years of heritage anywhere else, so why do you think it’s ok to vandalise culture in the North East?
Regarding Their Intent to Close and Demolish The National Glass Centre, Sunderland
14th March 2024
Dear Board of Governors
How do histories end? Is it through neglect, by the misguided actions of a few, the averted gaze of many, or by compliance when there should have been challenge? This year 2024, is thought to be the 1350th anniversary of the start of glassmaking in Sunderland. An important historic event many want to recognise and celebrate.
Instead, in 2026 it will be the end of that history if the University of Sunderland is successful in its campaign to demolish our National Glass Centre (NGC) and in the process deny future generations the opportunity to understand, revere and continue the history and tradition of glassmaking in our unique and proud city. Given that this will cause extensive, irreparable economic and cultural damage it is natural that this decision should be open to the highest levels of scrutiny.
When the University, as owners of the NGC, made the shock announcement in January 2023 of its intention to close and demolish Sunderland’s “world class cultural asset” (2021 City of Culture Bid), it was met with widespread disbelief. People immediately questioned how the University could announce that it would cost £45million to repair an existing building when the construction costs for the brand- new Culture House in the city centre are reported to be £25million. It is not even clear what the basis is for the £45million cost as it was not an option covered in GSS Architecture’s 2022 Roof Level Feasibility Report. There was no explanation as to why the more affordable Option 2 costing was not considered.
The £45million figure has been met with derision by construction industry professionals who have examined the Cost Estimate in detail (see attached Report pg 9 onwards), and who point to Option 2 as a viable solution. Has the quoted repair bill of £45million discouraged any potential financial backers?
The University’s actions show scant regard for, or reference to, the usual regulatory framework, including the: Town and Country Planning Act 1990, Charities Act 2022, Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) 1974, Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and The Seven Principles of Public Life (Nolan Principles) 1995.
According to The Seven Principles of Public Life, as a Board of Governors you are “…public officeholders… both servants of the public and stewards of public resources.”
Yet the decision to close and demolish the NGC was made without any public consultation over what would happen to a much treasured educational establishment, visitor attraction and charity, run solely for the “public benefit”.
Instead, your Executive presented you with a set of biased, partial evidence. The decision was made without an Impact Assessment, or a Change Programme, or planning as to the future usage of a site with limited potential for redevelopment. There has been no strategic plan to ensure sustainable, future growth. In addition, there has been no viable plan to relocate the many and varied functions of the building, the academic courses, the galleries, the public engagement and visitor facilities and tenanted studios. This is an astonishing lack of objectivity, due diligence and a rejection of well-established management techniques used to arrive at Best Outcomes. The only determination was to rid yourself of the civic obligations of ownership of a public, charity run asset, described by Vice Chancellor, Sir David Bell as “the burden” when he wrote that “…the University cannot be expected to carry all of the burden on that front…” (letter to Bridget Phillipson MP, 24.08.2023). He considers that “…much of what takes place in the Centre is not ‘core’ to the University’s overarching academic mission as an educational institution…” (letter to Julie Elliott MP, 14.05.2023). His approach to the ethical function of a university within society is somewhat different to other universities such as Durham University, which evidently applies a different moral stance when running its seven visitor attractions.
In October 2022 the Executive’s evidence, the Roof Level Feasibility Report (2022), led to the University making major structural changes to the NGC’s main glass façade by removing the brise soleil and external frame. This was done without planning permission or the involvement of Building Control.
Contractors removed the bracing that stiffened and strengthened the façade and protected it from the force of the wind. Damage occurred in October 2023 during high winds, but before the main impact of storm Babet. Luckily no one was hurt when a large panel of glass dropped out of position. It is the very definition of a near miss; for a year thousands of people worked, walked, sat, ran and cycled past tonnes of glass held in a potentially weakened structure due to the University’s maintenance choices. It led to the University declaring the façade as a “dangerous structure”. Whilst Sir David Bell has continued to insist that it was: “…simply untrue to suggest that the University has failed to maintain the building adequately.” (letter to the office of Julie Elliot MP, 26.10.2023). The University Environmental Sustainability Plan 2025 states that it has been neglectful of the fabric of the building in that they “…fail to plan, invest and maintain the University’s physical estate…”. In addition, it has revealed that “The University does not have an Operation and Maintenance document for the NGC.” (FOI2324/01/10) This explains why there has been no systematic maintenance routine; a potential factor in the current state of disrepair and the resultant increased costs to rectify the situation.
In 2010 the transfer of ownership of the NGC to the University, thought to be for £1, was probably the best solution at the time. Since then, the University has enjoyed the benefit of ownership and the use of facilities that would have cost many thousands to rent annually. The University chose to run the visitor attraction business in a particular way that did not truly take advantage of the unique potential of the NGC. The recent damage to the building has further weakened the visitor attraction business, and people’s livelihoods. Although the NGC enjoys extensive, loyal, public support, and the diligent staff have made heroic efforts to reconfigure the building and provide a warm welcome, inevitably visitor numbers have declined as the building is partially open, less accessible and frankly looks neglected.
Further damage to the NGC has been caused by the lack of a planned future: it was undoubtably a factor in Sunderland Culture and the NGC’s unsuccessful bid to become the new venue for The British Glass Biennale. The prestigious international exhibition and events could have been of great economic and cultural benefit to the city.
This apparent “managed decline” of the NGC as a visitor attraction has been compounded by the lack of support for, and promotion of, the glass and ceramics academic courses leading to a climate of uncertainty. The offer to students has been weakened so that numbers will fall, and the courses will be cancelled, resulting in the permanent loss of vital material knowledge and expertise: glass is a sustainable, future facing material, not an anachronism.
Now after over a year there is no definite plan to relocate the many and varied activities that take place within the NGC. Half-hearted attempts have been made to relocate the NGC gallery and the academic course facilities into two locations, an unbuilt new development and an old building on the other side of the river, neither of which can provide the required specialist facilities. There is no plan for glassmaking to continue anywhere. The University is a Founding Partner of the charity, Sunderland Culture, and glassmaking is written into its Charitable Objects, a fact that the Board of Governors appears to have completely ignored, or been unaware of, when making the decision to close (see Report pg 5 onward).
In October 2023, it was revealed that the University had decided that they were not in the position to ‘lead the charge’ on the creation of a new glassmaking facility (University Internal update) thereby threatening the purpose and assets of a charity.
When is the University going to acknowledge that the NGC is a public asset run by a charity, with millions of pounds of embodied public funds invested in its creation and maintenance? Its inauguration in 1998 was not just about creating a visitor attraction or an asset for the University to dispose of as it wished. The NGC was, and still is, essential to the regeneration of Sunderland after the years of economic decline led by the demise of heavy industries. According to the Seven Principles of Public Life, as “public office holders” the Board of Governors have a duty to act as “…servants of the public and stewards of public resources” and “…act solely in terms of public interest.” The obligation is to “…act and take decisions impartially, fairly and on merit, using the best evidence and without discrimination or bias.” And to be “…accountable to the public for their decisions and actions and must submit …to the scrutiny necessary to ensure this.” You must be aware that there is an online petition to save the NGC which has a wealth of public opinions. If you are in any way unclear as to what people think about your decision read the Report (pg 20 onwards).
Change needs to happen. There is no reason why the NGC cannot be placed on the path to a sustainable future if given the backing of organisations with the expertise, enthusiasm and commitment to effect real change. The campaign to # Save The National Glass Centre have amassed a wealth of evidence and a network of highly skilled supporters ready and able to contribute to a positive outcome for
Sunderland, our children, visitors, the creative community and world-wide glass artists. All that is needed is for the Board of Governors to abide by the Seven Principles of Public Life, review their decision making and start a dialogue with the public over our National Glass Centre’s future.
On behalf of #Save the National Glass Centre, we would welcome the opportunity to meet face to face and if you require any clarification, we are more than happy to oblige.
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.
Glass optics circa 1950’s curtesy of Tyne and Wear Archives, Sunderland Museum collection. Pyrex magazine.
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.
1350 years of glassmaking on Wearside
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.
Pyrex science department circa 1950’s curtesy of Tyne and Wear Archives, Sunderland Museum collection. Photograph by Leslie Bryce.
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.
Pyrex science department circa 1950’s curtesy of Tyne and Wear Archives, Sunderland Museum collection. Photograph by Leslie Bryce.
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.
Save the National Glass Centre campaign fully supports any action the unions or the workers wish to take. Solidarity!
We stand in solidarity with all of the staff and students. We are distraught to hear that like a thief in the night Sunderland University is taking away our glass and ceramic courses leading to inevitable loss of highly skilled staff, valued teachers and of course eventually the building itself. Filling their boots with Sunderland’s heritage and the future of glass making in the North East.
Save the National Glass Centre campaigner Keith Brown explains
On the 8th of December 2022 the University of Sunderland announced its shocking decision to close the National Glass Centre (the NGC) on the banks of the river Wear in Sunderland.
The campaign to reverse that decision and to keep the NGC open in some form is gathering momentum. Campaigners have highlighted the NGC’s iconic architectural status; the devastating cultural and artistic impact of the NGC’s work, not only upon Sunderland but also upon the north-east and the entire UK. People need to be made aware that the cost of repairs widely broadcast by the University are grossly inflated.
MA exhibition photography by Gill Helps
Well-over 31,000 people have signed a petition against its closure and demolition. Campaigners are now calling for more people to help save the award-winning NGC, cited as a “World-class cultural asset” in Sunderland council’s 2021 UK City of Culture bid. The campaign already involves many local people, and also receives support from key national bodies.
Renowned international architect Piers Gough in the 20th Century Journal has said that
“Sunderland cannot afford to lose such an icon. It would seem ideal for a forward-looking University to use or repurpose, but should it be superfluous another more appreciative owner should be found.” He also stated that “the NGC references Sunderland’s shipbuilding heritage as well as glass making past, making this unique building special to its particular location. It is the best and most apposite 21st Century Building of the region“.
Architect Piers Gough in the 20th Century Journal
The 20th Century Society (C20) , the professional organisation which saves endangered buildings, has sought independent advice from experts in building lifespan and sustainability. They have cast doubts on the figures quoted for repair and renovation.
“condemning this landmark building that’s barely 25 years old and in the process losing one of the few purpose built glass blowing facilities in the country, is unconscionable“.
C20’s article 21.6.23
Architecture photography by Gill Helps
In 2000, the Design Council awarded this unique building Millenium Product Status in recognition of its creativity and environmental approach. The building also received commendations from the Craft Council, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the DTI.
The National Glass Centre is owned and maintained by the University. Sir David Bell, the vice chancellor and chief executive stated in May 2023 they could close it as early as 2025, he also stated, without any prior consultation, that the National Glass Centre will be demolished.
The building sits adjacent to the University campus where the University is planning to undertake significant capital works over the next five years. This suggests it intended all along to expand onto the NGC site.
National Glass Centre photography by Gill Helps
The University’s Intention to demolish and redevelop, releasing embodied carbon in the process, is the wrong decision given the concern over accelerating climate change. Retro fitting is by far the best solution. This academic institution should focus on STEM subjects and treat The National Glass Centre as a case study for sustainability and growth rather than managed decline and potential destruction.
The repair costs of £45m broadcast by the University are now widely believed. How the costs can be so high for what essentially should be the refurbishment of the existing building needs further clarification by the University because such an inflated figure is guaranteed to deter any potential funders.
The published costs are not for repair alone, but for an array of other enhancements including replacing the entire roof (solid & glazed) all the glass curtain walling, installing photovoltaic panels, and replacing all the mechanical and electrical systems. Even with these enhancements the reported figure appears seriously inflated, particularly when the construction cost for Culture House, a brand new building in the centre of the city, is reported as being £25m.
MA exhibition photography by Gill Helps
Retired planning inspector David Vickery wrote in a recent campaign article: “Sunderland City Hall was completed in November 2021 costing £42m (which is £3 million less) and for that £42 million Sunderland got two large glass and steel office blocks, one of five storeys high and the other of six storeys (190,000 square feet), both buildings connected by a glass atrium. How can it cost £45 million just to repair a roof?”
Early in 2023, the campaign gave the University a Freedom of Information request to enquire how the University had come to their decision to close the National Glass Centre.
In March 2023 the University published documents online, showing the consultation that they had based their decision on.
The campaign followed up by meeting in person with executives from the University on 22.06.23. (The day of the public meeting at Saint Peter’s church.) During this meeting the campaign requested access to all of the NGC’s maintenance records.
Save the National Glass Centre public meeting photography by Phil Vickery
In August, the University stated via email that the FOI was not received, the campaign issued a new FOI request on the 14th of August ’23 (FOI 2323/0814).
The University said they were gifted the NGC when it was 12 years old, however the land registry document appears to show they were given it for no recorded price when it was only 8 years old, (GOV.UK Title register for: National Glass Centre, title number: TY454590).
There is no doubt that the University has struggled to maintain the NGC, a fact that was recently noted in its Future Strategy Statement.
Also the University’s Head of Estates stated in 2013 ” the centre has suffered as a business and its maintenance regime hasn’t been as robust as it could have been.” Since then, the exterior has further deteriorated under their stewardship.
” The centre has suffered as a business and its maintenance regime hasn’t been as robust as it could have been.”
Future Strategy Statement. The University’s Head of Estates stated in 2013
Sadly, the deterioration and destruction continues and in January 2023, due to some corrosion and safety concerns the University removed and rapidly disposed of the massive heat sink (brise soleil) which was a superb and crucial design feature on the front of this monumental building.
National Glass Centre photography by Gill Helps
In addition, in 2013 the NGC received £2.5m for an internal refit. This grant aided alteration allowed the University to move their glass and ceramics course into the NGC, also Sunderland Council moved the Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art into the building. Two property moves that achieved substantial ongoing financial gains for the University and in particular Sunderland Council.
Opened on the 23rd of October 1998 by Prince Charles, now our King, this iconic building encompasses a vast array of crucial delights: substantial visitor experiences and facilities; brilliant collections and exhibition spaces; the Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art; workspaces for the academic courses, the tenanted artists’ studios; and the specialist facilities for the creation of ceramic and glass artwork – all housed within the building. Plus, there are numerous creative and constructive magical children’s workshops, some where children see their designs being cast in molten glass.
Also this extensive and marvelous property used to occasionally be used for weddings, and could actually accommodate many special events if properly managed and promoted.
National Glass Centre photography by Jo Howell
We cannot afford to let this delightful institution go, not just for the enjoyment of locals and many visitors, or even for its national and international status promoting glass and the Arts… but for the cultural heritage of our future generations.
Amid this tangled tale let us not forget that Sunderland is the birthplace of stained glass in the UK; The National Glass Centre can have a viable future and should be allowed to continue the tradition of glass making that was first started here in 674AD.
Please come and visit this unique wonderful place and see why it must be saved.
We strongly urge the University of Sunderland to reconsider their plans, and for local and national politicians to become actively involved. And you can help by supporting the campaign:
William Pile’s Shipyard, North Sands, Sunderland c.1830, oil on canvas Photo courtesy of Tyne and Wear Museum Archives
In 1988 the last shipyard closed on the River Wear. We had been ship builders since as far back as 1346, when Thomas Menvil created a shipyard at Hendon docks. Some would argue that we were boat building for far longer than that. Proved adequately by a well-preserved Neolithic canoe being pulled out of the anaerobic sediments of the river Wear, near Hylton. This canoe was hewn out of a single log and is now housed at Sunderland museum.
The river and the proximity to the sea is the common thread that runs through all of us Mackems way back into pre-history.
Blind children touching the canoe in 1888 courtesy of Tyne and Wear Museums Archive
Ship building on the Wear was inextricably linked to the boom of coal mining. Back in the 1700’s, large shipments of coal were needed regularly and speedily by the South. The Wear and the Tyne were geared up to take the coal from the North to the need. This was via the olden days super highway – the sea.
And the production of glass was tied in with these two industries in turn. Coal was needed everywhere and they needed ships to ship it. Empty ships came back ballasted with good quality sand. A by-product of sending the coal south.
We used sand mixed with soda and lime to create batch glass. Then we heated it together using the coal.
A holistic system. Not separate from normal life, but integral to it.
These industries were historically our region’s trifecta of success and power. We created a whole host of new rich people to give the aristocracy a great run for their money.
All of these industrial professions required practiced skills and knowledge. With the skills and the knowledge we can understand ourselves better and be proud of everything we achieved.
Sunderland museum miner’s strike collection from Tyne and Wear archives. Photographed and composed by Jo Howell
Furthermore, in 1984 and 1985 there was the miners strike. Massive protests against Maggie Thatchers pit closures. People were left to starve and many on picket lines were attacked by mounted police. The miners received support from across the world including a huge charity concert by Bruce Springsteen held in Newcastle!
Poverty and destitution was inevitable as all of our major industries were wound down until they were gone. This took place from 1984 to 1993 when Monkwearmouth pit finally closed and mining was completely ended in the area.
These social upheavals had wide ranging and long term knock-on effects. Next came the high youth unemployment. With high unemployment comes the other social problems of drug use, homelessness, addictions and a low quality of life.
Jobless and poor with no prospects. These times of Dickensian poverty as we marched into the new millennium have left scars upon the people that will take generations to heal.
Sunderland museum miner’s strike collection from Tyne and Wear archives.
The dirt is visceral. But they’re all just kids trying to enjoy life by playing in abandoned buildings and back lanes. They had nothing, and their parents had nothing because over the course of the worst decades the North East had ever seen – every industry that gave us pride, community, and wealth, were all closed with no alternatives offered in place.
Pyrex 100 film by Lonely Tower films produced as part of the Pyrex 100 celebration at Sunderland Museum.
In the 90’s another looming loss to the community was playing out in slow motion. There were intense pressures on the City’s glass manufacturers from mass produced glass coming in from China. Flooding the English market with cheap glass. Pyrex was struggling to compete with rising energy prices on top of the product competition. Slowly but surely the demise of industrial glass was on its way.
In 2007, Pyrex finally completely closed its Sunderland plant and moved all operations to France.
Final publication of the in-house magazine of Pyrex, Sunderland curtesy of Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens
All hope was seemingly lost but in 1992 to 1993 tentative hopeful whispers began in the meeting rooms of Sunderland. We had just been awarded City status.
No longer the depressed town of Sunderland. It helped us to secure more help and funding from government. We were one of the first of the 90’s new city’s without a cathedral.
Sunderland University has always placed itself at the centre of our cultural innovation as both a town and a city. In 1992 with the new City status our local polytechnic became a university.
Sunderland University puts its history here as far back as 1901. The University’s modern roots lie in the Sunderland Technical College, which opened at the Galen Building in Green Terrace in 1901.
Pyrex 100 celebrations at Sunderland museum 2022 photography by Jo Howell
The old shipyards had been demolished.
Our very polluted river began to slowly heal from the centuries of industrial use. There was a lot of work to be done.
Work to the landscape and to the people. After all of that poverty, loss and struggle those up on high decided to throw the City a bone.
The new University, Sunderland city council, the arts council, the V and A, local glass businesses, and the Tyne and Wear development corporation began to imagine a new era.
A striking new monument to glass blowing and shipbuilding. The National Glass Centre. Opened by (then) prince Charles in 1998. With aspirational ambitions to safeguard the skills. Too show the people what we can do and to secure a legacy fit to fill the boots of all that was before.
Sunderland was not entering the new millennium with nothing but starving kids.
We were going to take a piece of polluted brownfield land and we were going to turn it into a shiny new beacon of hope.
Celebrating our long history with glass in St. Peter’s ward in Roker and honouring the titans of industry. Protecting the skills and giving new life to destroyed land. We were awarded a ship shaped building with wizards housed inside who crafted molten glass.
The National glass centre. Pure magic.
Hailed as an architecturalgem by RIBA master architect Piers Gough. It was glorious. And it went a long way in changing the hearts and minds of disenfranchised mackems across the city.
No longer would we toil in mines, and shipyards. No longer would the youth be feckless and unemployed. Here was the age of the artists and artisans.
Photography by Mike Blenkinsop courtesy of TWAM archives
Before the rhetoric of ‘levelling up’ and the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ there was a genuine investment into arts and culture.
Back in 1999 a certain young 14 year old attended to watch the wizards shape molten glass into objects. I went from only hearing about mining and ship building to having my eyes opened to the immense possibilities of the arts.
National heritage secretary Virginia Bottomley yesterday visited the north east and announced that the national lottery has already made 115 awards, totalling £29.7m, to the region – and that was just the beginning.
The national lottery was an engine for regeneration and job creation, she added.
Speaking at the launch of the Media Programme of Visual Arts UK in Newcastle, Mrs Bottomley said that the national lottery was this year’s great British success story:
‘The arts, sport and heritage now have access to more money than ever before. The national lottery is an entirely new element in the funding picture which, after only one year, is already transforming our national heritage. And it is also a boost for jobs making a real contribution to local economies through job creation and regeneration.
‘Here in the north east a wide range of projects, large and small, have benefitted. High profile awards include the £6m to the National Glass Centre and the £5.7m to Newcastle’s Smiths Park. Awards have an enormous and beneficial effect on their local economies. They bring jobs to the areas and improve the quality of life of local people in the longer term. There have been dozens of small-scale projects which have also received awards.’
In the maelstrom of millennium projects and joyous investments in to education a new generation of Mackem’s emerged. Mackems who were innovative, culturally rich and hungry for more.
As I trawl through the TWAM archive photographs I took in June I will add more to this written series. If you think I am missing out any important points, let me know!
Until next time, get yourself down to the National Glass Centre. Have a brew. Take in some amazing art. Enjoy watching wizards in the hot glass demonstrations. Take a class.
The National Glass Centre is open for business and Save the National Glass Centre campaign wants you to show your love ❤️
BBC reports this morning about the impact of levelling upon North East arts projects. The article draws attention to the lack of footfall to many of our cultural organisations. It’s apparent that the cost of living crisis has become an overwhelming factor of everyday life. Decisions about your weekly budget have to be made carefully. And, at the moment, bus fare and lunch is a stretch too far for far too many.
Many organisations like the Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle are struggling to survive – with audiences failing to return to pre-Covid levels and a lack of local authority support. How is Arts Council funding distributed and how effectively is the government moving spending outside London?
By Richard Moss Political editor, North East & Cumbria
Most of our cultural organisations offer free entry, and often have free workshops or events. The National Glass Centre is one of these fantastic places. Sunderland University wants to eventually demolish the building, and they are ‘considering’ future options for the entire St Peter’s site. The campaign to save the National Glass Centre flies in the face of the current position of Sunderland University, Sunderland City Council, and local labour MPs. We have an extremely tall order to sway these main oppositions around to our way of thinking.
Delicious coffee and excellent views at the National Glass Centre
We are not going to be able to do that if the National Glass Centre doesn’t have enough footfall. The opposition have already won, if we aren’t visibly using the assets we already have. The campaign wants the National Glass Centre to stay, and be the amazing treasure that it is, for future generations. So, it starts today with you choosing to pop in for a coffee, or to watch a demonstration, to buy something from the shop, to take a workshop, or to enjoy an exhibition.
The National Glass Centre is open for you. Let’s keep it that way by visiting it! Check out the list of workshops and exhibitions on their website:
See the sea exhibition 2022 at National Glass Centre
In other news, the amazing Piers Gough, award winning master architect has sent us a message of support. Piers Gough was a great supporter of the National Glass Centre as an excellent example of one of the first buildings of its kind. Read his statement below:
The National Glass Centre does so many thing so right. It exploits the sloping topography between Roker Terrace and the Wear by inviting the visitor straight onto the roof to first get a sense of the panoramic setting. Whilst entry to the building, signalled by two soaring chimneys, is invitingly sliced into the slope [in the manner of the great Oscar Niemeyer] The roof of course turns out to be a tour de force of glazing giving a unique birds’ eye view of the spaces below. The multi function interiors are inviting, spectacular, well lit and flexible enough to allow for many existing and future uses. The lowest level space opens seamlessly onto the quayside from where the whole building can be perceived as akin to a glass aircraft carrier including its quirky below deck control turret. This reference to Sunderland’s ship building heritage as well as glass making past makes this unique building special to its particular location. It is the best and most apposite 21st century building of the region.’
‘Sunderland cannot afford to lose such an icon. It would seem ideal for a forward looking university to use or repurpose but should it be superfluous another more appreciative owner should be found.’
Save the National Glass Centre 