Westmoreland House was a building at Nos. 104–106

Stokes Croft Stokes Croft is a road in Bristol, England. It is part of the A38, a main road north of the city centre. Locals refer to the area around the road by the same name. The road became a centre of industry during the mid-19th century, including the ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, next door to the Carriage Works.

History

The building was opened in January 1966 by Lady Westmorland (wife of

David Fane, 15th Earl of Westmorland David Anthony Thomas Fane, 15th Earl of Westmorland, (31 March 1924 – 8 September 1993), styled Lord Burghersh until 1948, was a British courtier, landowner and member of the House of Lords. Early life and military service The elder s ...

) which it was named after. It was built to house the headquarters of the Regional Pools Promotions. Regional Pools Promotions (RPP) was a membership scheme through which members could win prizes. Members paid a shilling a week subscription. Tuppence (2d) of this was sent straight to the organisation we now know as SCOPE, then called the

Spastics Society Scope (previously known as the National Spastics Society) is a disability charity in England and Wales that campaigns to change negative attitudes about disability, provides direct services, and educates the public. The organisation was found ...

. Members were part of the “Spastics League Club” and the whole set up was known at the time as “The Spastics Pool”. The club and headquarters closed in 1982 after they were unable to pay a £250,000 tax bill, and the building has not been legally occupied since. Following the closure of the Spastics League Club, Westmorland House became increasingly derelict and a popular place for

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

artists to display artwork. This has led to

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

classifying the whole Stokes Croft conservation area "at risk". The premises was bought by Comer Homes for redevelopment in 1989, but plans stalled after they were unable to agree with the city council on how to proceed. The building was planned to be redeveloped by the South West Regional Development Agency, but plans were cancelled in 2009 following budget cuts. From 2007, local community group People's Republic of Stokes Croft led initiatives to envisage the redevelopment of the site as a community asset. In 2014, the Mayor of Bristol announced Westmorland House would be demolished, while the neighbouring Carriage Works would be spared and turned into flats as it is a Grade II* listed building. Local residents, who enjoy the diversity and anticommercial nature of Stokes Croft were unimpressed with the plans and hoped something more inspiring could be designed. Campaign material against the redevelopment was posted to the front of Westmorland House, including a hand-painted sign on the former main entrance that reads "No to luxury flats – yes to affordable homes" Demolition of Westmorland House was scheduled to begin in July 2018, but delayed owing to the discovery of

asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...

. It finally began on 21 November.

References

External links

Carriage Works
– includes history and details on the Carriage Works and Westmorland House

– images of the derelict structure, with graffiti artwork {{coord, 51.4639, -2.5894, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Buildings and structures in Bristol Demolished buildings and structures in England Office buildings completed in 1966 Buildings and structures demolished in 2018