Scheme on the rise

From the archive, first published Thursday 7th Jun 2007.

Work is on target to complete a heavenly £9 million community development - blessed by royalty and led by a vicar who was inspired by the model village created by Sir Titus Salt for his workers at Saltaire.

Builders are making headway with the Cottingley Cornerstone project which so impressed Prince Charles he made a donation from his own pocket after visiting the Aire Valley village in 2002.

The project, which will see the creation of a new community modelled on Sir Titus Salt's Saltaire, should be finished by April next year.

Project manager is Cottingley's canon, the Reverend Sue Pinnington.

More used to wearing a dog collar than a hard hat, the vicar who has been at St Michael's and All Angels Church in the village for the past seven and a half years has taken on the role with gusto.

Just like Victorian benefactor Titus Salt created a community from scratch to come and work at his mill, leaving the grimier city mills behind them, a new micro-village is being built in the heart of Cottingley, right in the middle of a housing estate.

The Rev Pinnington, who visits the site at least every fortnight for meetings with architects, contractors and engineers, says it has been a huge learning experience for her.

"They certainly didn't teach us anything like this at theological college.

"It's been a huge learning experience, finding out about fundraising, building regulations and all the nitty gritty of how you develop a building from a vision."

And she said the workmen were getting used to the sight of a vicar roaming round checking on progress.

She said: "Some of them have been a bit surprised to see a Reverend on site but I think they are getting used to me now.

"It's exciting to be working on this project for them because it's something a bit different. It's not like building the usual houses, shops or offices - it's a church and a whole community from scratch.

"It's also good that we have been able to employ local labour. A lot of them know me anyway and it's good for them to have seen how these plans have grown from a tiny seed over the years and turn into a mighty oak."

The community facilities on the site will cost about £4.5 million and, to help the cash roll in, a Buy-A-Brick scheme was set up.

Money needed to complete the development at Littlelands is coming in.

The development will include a community hall as well as the new St Michael's and All Angels Church, youth and IT rooms, pre-school playgroup, and a doctors' surgery.

Sensory and wildlife gardens will also be built into the pioneering design which will also have a social services base and a respite care home for young people with disabilities - plus 55 new homes.

The Rev Pinnington, who is chairman of the centre's trustees, said work on the state-of-the-art community facilities was being "watched with wonder" by people working and living in Cottingley.

"Seeing really is believing. There's been so much talk about this project for so long that it's exciting at last to actually see the bricks and mortar coming together," she said.

And she is hoping Prince Charles will be there on completion day to do the opening honours.

"We keep in regular touch with Prince Charles who has a keen interest not just architecturally about what we're doing here but also on the regeneration side," she said.

As well as the Prince's own funding, bids have also been submitted to the Big Lottery and several trusts and foundations to help close the cash gap.

Anyone else who wants to make donations can send them to Cottingley Cornerstone Centre, The Vicarage, 6 Woodvale Crescent, Bingley, BD16 4AL.

Trustees are also hoping funds will get a boost from a garden party on Saturday, June 16, being hosted at the home of the Bishop of Bradford, the Right Reverend David James. It starts at 2pm at Bishopscroft, Ashwell Road, Heaton.

Anne-Marie Quigg has been one of the main fundraisers and says fingers are being kept crossed for the outcome of grant bids.

"We're expecting to get news soon. Certainly from one of them this month. It's quite a long, drawn-out process."

And she said on a local level the fundraising drive was on-going and as upbeat as ever.

"We've got the garden party at Bishopcroft and then we'll be getting involved once again in the community day later this summer."

The buy-a-brick scheme, which costs £10 for each one, has also been a success.

Anyone who buys one will have their name entered into a book of donations which will be kept on display when the centre opens.

The contract involved the transfer of land from Bradford Council to the Diocese of Bradford, the sale of land for housing to Bramley Homes and a lease for Cottingley Cornerstone Centre from the Diocese.

It's been more than three years in the planning and the total budget is fast approaching £9m, including £1 million from the Government-backed programme Futurebuilders England. More funds are also needed now to shed more light on the new church building.

Trustees were awarded an Arts Council grant to commission Yorkshire artist Dan Savage to come and work with the community and get ideas to design and make an etched glass window.

The project proved so popular and ideas were so many that the plan is now to get funding for another five.

An original concept report from the project architects, Wildblood Macdonald, said: "The intention of the development is to provide a heart to the community, which is a recognisable destination.

"In time it is intended that the quality and principles of this proposal will reach out into the surrounding areas provide a catalyst for sensible urban development, pride in the neighbourhood, and an appreciation of the quality required of a successful-built environment."

The report said that the model for development was based on Saltaire, partly because of the relationships linking the function of the principal buildings to the housing.

The Rev Pinnington said she believed the modern concept of Cottingley Cornerstone project was unique.

And she added: "Doing what we're doing here is definitely unique, we've not found or heard of anything similar happening like this, involving a church of our size or such a small parish as this."