By John Baron
The sale of Pudsey Town Hall has been delayed and could possibly be scrapped, a councillor has claimed.
Council chiefs had agreed to proceed with the sale of historic Pudsey Town Hall to an unnamed highest bidder back in February. It’s understood the sale – believed to be for residential use – has been progressing through the legal process but is not yet complete.
However it’s understood Pudsey Civic Society has applied to Historic England to have the Town Hall Listed as a building with special architectural or historic interest, which gives it legal protection against modifications.
The move has been welcomed by Councillor Andrew Carter (Cons, Calverley & Farsley), who had been campaigning against the sale of the building. He said: “There is still hope for saving Pudsey Town Hall.
“An application has been made to Historic England to have the building listed. So far my understanding is it’s passed the first stage of the process, with Historic England saying the listing is worthy of being explored. This all begs the question what happens if it’s listed?
“Does the company that still hasn’t completed the purchase try to get a price reduction from what is, in my view, a ridiculously low figure, virtually given away? If that’s the case the council would have grounds, in my view, to scrap the sale.
“I would then want the town hall brought back into proper use for the community and maybe some council officers moved back in there as well. So maybe there is a glimmer of hope. Fingers crossed.”
Pudsey councillor Trish Smith (Ref, Pudsey) acknowledged the progression of the Town Hall listing application was an “important development”, but was more wary. She added: “It also raises some difficult questions about how best to protect Pudsey’s heritage, while securing a viable future for the building.
“If the entire building were to be listed, it could add tens of thousands of pounds to the cost of renovation and potentially make essential repairs and redevelopment far less attractive to investors. We have already seen other council-owned buildings fall into long-term decline because the costs of restoration became too great. Heritage protection is important, but so too is ensuring that a building remains capable of being brought back into active use.
“For many years I have argued that the Council Chamber, Mayor’s Parlour and tower represent the most historically significant parts of Pudsey Town Hall. That was also the basis of the Town Hall CIC’s Asset of Community Value application, which sought recognition of the civic and community importance of these spaces. Unfortunately, Leeds City Council declined to recognise that heritage value through the ACV process, despite these being the very areas that generations of Pudsey residents most closely associate with the building’s history and identity.
“I remain convinced that a more targeted approach, protecting the civic floor and tower while allowing flexibility elsewhere in the building, offers the best balance between conservation and regeneration.
“Pudsey Civic Society’s listing application has now progressed beyond its initial assessment, the sale has not yet completed, and there is still an opportunity to find a solution that safeguards Pudsey’s civic heritage without creating barriers to the investment needed to secure the building’s future.”
A spokesperson for Historic England confirmed that it had received a listing application for Pudsey Town Hall.
“We have assessed the building and have submitted our advice to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), who will then make the final decision on the case,” the spokesperson added.
No timescale has been given by Historic England.
Leeds City Council is currently awaiting the final decision. A council spokesperson told WLD: “Depending on the outcome of the listing determination, we would then speak with the preferred bidder to discuss how best to proceed.”
Council chiefs are selling the building as they struggle to balance the books after years of underfunding from central government and rising costs of provision in services including adult social care.
WLD reported in March that council chiefs have refused to confirm the final sale price of Pudsey Town Hall – but have said ‘there was nothing more they could have done’ to secure the building for community use.
The move has proven unpopular in Pudsey, including opposition from local councillors and two petitions each with more than 1,000 signatures.
Pudsey Town Hall CIC had been hoping to use the building as a mixed-use community and enterprise hub.
WLD will be speaking to Pudsey Civic Society in more depth about their listing application.
- WLD has been tracking local and national government budget cuts through its Cutswatch series here.
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Pudsey civic hall could be a public liabrary like the one in leeds city centre , a library that higher education teenagers as well we have quire a few high schools in pudsey area we could discuss more …
It’s Pudsey Town Hall not the Civic Hall which is located at Dawson’s Corner.
Until the mid-1960s, the public library was housed in the basement of the Town Hall before a fantastic new library was built adjoining Woolworths on Church Lane.
At all costs, Pudsey’s heritage should be preserved with the council chamber and court room, in particular, being saved from reckless residential development.
You look at the photo the town hall as we knew it many years ago and the church in the back ground it’s a market town and we should preserve it . Farsley, Carlverly, and Pudsey are all beautiful areas and as such should be treated as historical imo. Its listed in the doomsday book. I loved growing up in Pudsey and it doesn’t need modernisation to the extent that it becomes just another characterless town. If it int broke don’t try en fix it.