“Saved from demolition by a vigil, itself building on the community sit-in 20 years earlier. Jericho Road helped Ancoats Development Trust to get £5M HLF Heritage Enterprise Round 1 funding and develop the partnership with igloo Regeneration. Later I returned through the Architectural Heritage Fund to work alongside Bob Thust to help pull the delayed Round 2 application together. Sadly, HLF decided it was now too risky. I advised the group to focus on other ways to achieve their priorities a) preserve the building, façade only if necessary, b) heritage interpretation, c) the health and wellbeing of people in Ancoats.” – Jess

Anfield in North Liverpool was an early case study in Jess’ PhD study on ‘Self-Renovating Neighbourhoods as an alternative to gentrification or decline’. Homebaked bakery and community land trust showed how local people can ‘self-renovate’ even as their neighbourhoods are being torn down around them. It was in Anfield that Ronnie Hughes tested his idea Coming Home – renovating and renting out otherwise-empty properties for absent landlords. Nearby Anfield Cemetery was one of AHF’s clients as they tried to rescue the South Chapel within Kemp’s masterpiece of park planning.

Jess signed an Advocacy Agreement with Birnbeck Regeneration Trust in 2016 and held a session with trustees and volunteers. After many years of the trust’s hard work, a major step forward came in 2023 when North Somerset Council and the RNLI worked together to unlock the difficult ownership. With £9m+ funding from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, Historic England, RNLI, National Lottery Heritage Fund and Levelling Up Fund, the pier is now undergoing a full restoration project.

Blackpool, King of the Coast, presses all our buttons as the seaside underdog. Jess has a long relationship with the town, partly through the wonderful Carl Carrington who entertained his mates in York by getting a job at Blackpool and then fell in love with the place and has been there more than 12 years. Jess was delighted to be involved through the AHF supporting Blackpool Grand Theatre

Bradford has been a favourite place for Jess for a long time, associated with childhood family friends and close colleague Hugh Rolo of Locality. Jericho Road became involved in the Bradford Odeon initially through Hugh who was supporting a community share launch for a community bid. This was a rare occasion when the alternative offer, apparently from a local businessman actually turned out to be the right thing to do (as far as Jericho Road could tell). Jericho Road worked with Lee Craven of Bradford Live over two years from Feb 2015.

In 2018 and 2019 JRS supported the community land trust in Brighton and Hove in developing their financial (investment and sustainability) strategy, and brokered a friendship with our own CLT, Heart of Hastings (now called Hastings Commons). The allied organisations have shared knowledge and skills that have strengthened their work in their respective towns and presented opportunities to collaborate on shared priorities.

Jericho Road worked with Bognor Pier Trust over a period of 3 years from Jan 2014 to Jan 2017 in an attempt to pre-empt problems through “rescue before ruin”. Bognor Pier is owned by John Ayers, a genial “on-shore” owner vastly preferable to the ownership situations with other piers but facing potentially crippling future repairs and maintenance. We made a lot of progress but in the end John decided to keep the freehold and forego the potential grant. One day I expect the Trust will need to step in again.

After years of closure, there was new hope on the horizon for Byrne Avenue Baths, the 1930s Grade II listed swimming pool complex in Rock Ferry, Wirral. With Jess’s support through the Architectural Heritage Fund, Byrne Avenue Trust successfully took over the lease of this much-loved building following years of complex negotiations. The group took a phased approach to this extensive restoration process to open different parts of the building as soon as possible so that everybody could enjoy this stunning space.

A 19th century 140 acre ‘model farm’ in the middle of a 1st century Roman fort, North of England Civic Trust have been working with local people and schools to develop proposals for a multi-faceted ‘Learning and Care Farm’. Jess visited in 2017 on behalf of the Architectural Heritage Fund and supported the Civic Trust to access early stage grants.

Jess was involved for a while in 2014 and loved the paradox of a medieval monastery close to the centre of Coventry and the great vision and leadership from Ian Harrabin of Complex Development Projects. AHF were pleased to support the project which became the largest ever asset transfer by an English local authority. Charterhouse is now one of the assets held by Historic Coventry Trust which (alongside Hastings Commons) is one of AHF’s Heritage Development Trusts.

Christ Church in Crewe, Cheshire, with its gothic revival tower, baptistery and courtyard garden, is one of very few remaining historic buildings in the heart of Crewe town centre and the only ‘green lung’. The Diocese and the Council were working together with the Citizens Advice Bureau to consider new potential uses and establish a Friends group as a first step towards a community management trust. Jess supported them through Architectural Heritage Fund, including accessing an early-stage grant in 2018, and following up with a larger grant to support a project officer tasked with establishing a new trust to take on the asset. 

These farm buildings are the last remaining heritage buildings in the Barnet area due to heavy bombing in WWII. Bound for demolition as part of the largest redevelopment project in Europe, Clitterhouse Farm was saved by locals who all lived within 5 minutes walk of the farm, who were the only successful group to object to the planning proposals. They felt a great responsibility to use the site well for the community.

Jericho Road Solutions guided CFP through incorporation, strategic planning, fundraising and negotiating the asset transfer. Working with other local community groups, an experienced board of advisors, Barnet Council and the Brent Cross Cricklewood Developers, the mission has been to transform the historic Clitterhouse farm into a vibrant hub for the community and local enterprise. The farm aims to build social cohesion, create a shared sense of pride in the area and to bring local people together through arts, culture, food growing, the principles of sustainability, skill-sharing, educational workshops and training.

The work we do is baited with challenge and Victoria Pier is one of the sadder tales of neighbourhoods we’ve supported. The Grade II listed structure was dismantled by contractors and the empty space where it once stood looks an eerie sight on Colwyn Bay. After sections of the pier collapsed during storms in February 2017, the Welsh government gave the go ahead to pull it down. Before this, the poor maintenance of its delicate heritage and a lengthy ownership battle (both depressingly common features of piers across Britain) put the pier at continued risk. Jericho Road worked with the Colwyn Victoria Pier Trust to rescue and restore the pier, and although it was a tragedy to lose such an amazing building, the same team were able to look to the future and redevelop a shorter pier where the old structure once stood.

Neighbourhood Services Company and Alt Valley Community Trust have taken a long lease on the collection of historic buildings at Home Farm in Croxteth Park, Liverpool. They run it as a working Victorian Farm, alongside the Rare Breeds herds of cattle, an Environmental Education Centre, and many special events serving vulnerable groups in a disadvantaged area.

The Flimwell Park development is a proposal for a new woodland centre, based in the heart of Flimwell. The aim of the project is to create a diverse and sustainable woodland centre that generates opportunities for community involvement and attracts visitors to this beautiful part of South England. The mixed use development will provide a place for living, working, learning, socialising, recreation and the arts.

In 2015 JRS provided support to two private developers with a woodland site in Flimwell, East Sussex to consider options for partial community ownership and management.

This iconic building, built in 1902 as a purpose-built, high class tea room, served for a long period as a repertory theatre and concert hall/club. Despite remaining empty and neglected for over 8 years, Pavilion is held in much affection by both local residents and past visitors. Jericho Road helped locals set up Friends of Leas Pavilion, supporting them with fundraising and organisation structure and linking them with the CADO programme (strength in numbers). They struggle on to get ownership of and influence over the beautiful pavilion, and we continue to support them in the complex negotiations with the developer and council.

Granby is going through a major physical renovation, achieved through the sustained efforts of local residents after many years of blight, demolition and dereliction. While much of the renewal is through housing association investment, the energy of residents in the neighbourhood is now channelled into Granby4Streets CLT, who have several thriving projects including a popular street market, community gardens and the renovation of 13 affordable homes. Perhaps most astonishingly, they won the Turner Prize for the unusual design in their houses, a collaboration with Assemble. Jericho Road has been intimately linked with Granby4Streets through much of its evolution and Jess used Granby as a case study neighbourhood in her PhD in Self Renovating Neighbourhoods.

Beki and Jo are tenacious directors of the Good Things Collective (formerly the Exchange Creative Community CIC) in Morecambe – a community-driven creative hub that uses the arts and creativity as a means to improve individual and collective wellbeing, learning and enterprise locally. Since 2015 their activities have harnessed local talents and energy as well as the benefits of collaboration and sharing. They hope to take ownership of Trinity Methodist Church to expand their work in the neighbourhood. Jess supported them with a feasibility study funded by AHF. They would like the church to be repurposed as a community arts studio and enterprise hub, project space and community café where the community will have the chance to run their own diverse projects and explore their ideas. As Jo said, “it’s all about the energy that people in the community want to bring.” We agree!

Sudley House is a Grade II listed, Victorian Merchants House in extensive grounds in Mossley Hill, South Liverpool, renovated with support from AHF.

A historic walled garden in the grounds of Sudley House, has been taken on by Growing Sudley CIC as a space for health, wellbeing and social cohesion. Following a successful pilot season, they also took over and repurposed the derelict changing rooms nearby as a therapy and well-being centre, providing a long term income stream to support the garden and is activities.

The historic convent on the White Rock hillside in Hastings has been deteriorating for some years. JRS supported HISA in 2016 to explore the business plan for an international school of art and music. Sadly this came to an end when the property was apparently sold. Not much has happened since but the whole area was the subject of Hastings Borough Council’s Bohemia Area Action Plan.

A small group of relentlessly committed volunteers have been working for years to bring together and curate Hastings Pier Community Archive. Since the pier was sold to a private owner, the archive has been placed in the guardianship of Hastings Museum who have no capacity to share it with the public. The archive group’s mission is to ensure that residents and visitors can access our beautiful pier’s heritage through the archive once again. Jericho Road is supporting the volunteers to apply for HLF funding, incorporate as a charity and grow their capacity to manage the archive into the future.

Created in 2000, Islington Mill remains a work in progress; an ever-evolving creative space, arts hub and community. Scratch the surface and you’ll find a vibrant and resourceful cross disciplinary creative network; a space where conversations leads to connections, collaboration and co-creation. Public arts programmes, residencies and galleries sit alongside rehearsal space. Music and visual arts mix with events and exhibitions. More than 50 businesses and 100 artists call the Mill home. More than 15,000 people visit the building every year.

Bought in 2000 by local resident Bill Campbell to secure it for arts uses, the Mill has a great track record as home and incubator for all kinds of artists and musicians. As large-scale demolition continues to destroy historic Salford, well-known cultural entrepreneur Erika Rushton is helping the Islington Mill Arts Club to develop new spaces within and around the Mill.

This dilapidated 1892 Victorian railway station has been transformed into a ‘family-friendly’ cafe, co-working space and bar, with enough room for live music, DJ sets and other events. Funded by the AHF and supported by Jess to increase the length of the lease and the likelihood of long term community benefit, the team behind the renovation brought the former Levenshulme South Station back into public use. Parquet flooring, original windows and ceilings have all been restored and with a huge glass window installed for diners to look over the Fallowfield Loop below, an 8 mile off road cycle path.

The Leigh Spinners Mill opened more than a century ago and still houses the operating Leigh Spinners Company. Now an AHF-funded development project offers residents in surrounding areas the opportunity to develop new community, leisure and employment facilities in the underused spaces within one of Leigh’s finest and largest buildings – so big the space could house the local Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s within its walls with space to spare! To make the best use of the site, the Leigh Building Preservation Trust brings together a range of commercial, community, education, sports and heritage uses in a unique package to ensure the site’s sustainable future and support the local economy.

Jericho Road coached London CLT to support their ambitions to develop the John Denham Building at the St Clements site in Mile End. The first CLT residents moved onto the site in 2017 and since then the CLT has been working with local partners to sensitively conserve this magnificent building and create communal space for events and activities. The CLT wanted the building’s history as a caring institution to be woven into the project through its design, with exhibitions and activities in the transformed spaces offering opportunities to think, talk and learn about themes of health and wellbeing.

Cricket has been played continuously on this site since the early 17th century. The pretty little 1904 pavilion has been a victim of local development pressure and delays, making it impossible for the Cricket Club to stabilise their lease or raise funds for improvements. JRS provided coaching to a local heritage group working with the Club to develop new plans and put pressure on Merton Borough Council to consider compulsory purchase.

JRS supported a group of micro creative enterprises that were based in a building known as the Old Bakers in St Leonards to develop joint plans and incorporate a shared company. With the lease uncertain, they needed ‘a good landlord’ and were quickly convinced to become one of the first tenants to move into Rock House where they now occupy the first floor, designed with a shared central eating and talking space to remind them of the best bits of their old situation.

They are a melting pot of creative and technical disciplines include expertise in design and media (print, web and everything else), photography, website development, animal welfare, youth projects and initiatives, event management, as well as much more besides. The Old Bakers’ motto: “it’s about mixing not stirring”.

This heritage building is in a serious state of disrepair, heavily damaged by water, partly collapsing inside, dirty and neglected. In 2007, the Victorian Society placed it on their list of most at-risk buildings in the whole of the UK and is part of the Community Assets in Difficult Ownership programme (owned by G1 London Properties – goodness knows why…).

Local people, concerned about the long-empty old town hall and courts, were supported to form a Friends group to encourage the council to take enforcement action on the absent owners.  A planning application by a local developer was approved in 2019 and so finally the building was thought to be saved. But it has passed through several hands since then; the current owner has done nothing in the four years he has owned it.

Jess worked with South Parade Trust to access pre-feasibility and start-up grants for Southsea’s South Parade Pier in Portsmouth. They became one of the 10 demonstrators in the CADO (Community Assets in Difficult Ownership) programme. In the middle of it all the ownership of it changed, throwing the project into uncertainty but giving the pier a real chance. The fully restored pier was reopened in 2017.

Toxteth Reservoir, a brick fortress perched on the top of Liverpool’s High Park Street and the size of half a football pitch, was one of the first in the world to use cutting edge Victorian engineering to preserve fresh water for Liverpool’s growing population. In this powerfully immersive experience, the history, mystery and beauty of one of Liverpool’s hidden gems is reimagined for the 21^st century.

The space has been enlivened with eccentric art projects for the Liverpool Biennial in the past. In 2018, visitors could step inside art installation Aurora, a 40-minute ‘walk on water’ through the cave-like vaults, immersed in the sights and sounds of an ice cave, a tropical rainforest and monsoons. Jess and the AHF are proud to have been part of such an unusual project.

This mill has remained almost unchanged as part of the village and its life since the 1840s, though it can trace its origins back to the era of the Doomsday Book. Its future has been uncertain, so support from various funders including AHF was a catalyst to hope. The mill was brought back into full working order as both an asset for the community and its local economy. It retained its milling machinery and water course which was brought back to its original use, and also enabled the incorporation of hydro technology into the works. Jess supported the project from the development phase via the Architectural Heritage Fund. Their website states that the AHF’s “help and shared vision for the future of this last unrestored corn mill in Cumbria has been crucial”.