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THE WELCOME BUILDING

SEPTEMBER 2017

The Welcome Building

The Welcome Building in Bishop Auckland consists of a new viewing tower and central ticketing hall for the The Auckland Project. It acts as an access point and gateway to the wider site whilst also giving views over the town and landscape setting. The tower – a timber framed structure – is now well under way on site.

The building team has worked tirelessly and with the highest level of precision, to build the in-situ concrete lift shaft. Working from the ground up seemed to take an age.

Meanwhile, the enormous larch glulam beams have been carefully crafted and manually grey-oiled in the joiner’s workshop.

The frames are now being lifted into position on site and suddenly the building can be seen. Almost in an instant. As if the past four years had happened in the blink of an eye.

We are so excited and proud – even – to see this fantasy project becoming real at last. But with completion on the horizon, time seems to now move all too fast.

AUCKLAND CASTLE PLANNING APPROVAL

MARCH 2015

Auckland Castle Planning Approval

We have received planning approval and Listed Building Consent for the restoration and extension to Auckland Castle in Co. Durham. The project involves repairs and alterations to the existing listed buildings, a new museum extension and a visitor reception building facing the town square. Given the high sensitivity of this unique site, the planning process took almost one year, involving a very constructive dialogue with English Heritage and Durham County Council. The designs had overwhelming support from local people.