Life After Death: Historic England Funds Newcastle Cemeteries Project
Historic England has awarded £26,000 to Tyne & Wear Building Preservation Trust (TWBPT) toward a project that will breathe new life into two cemeteries in the West End of Newcastle.
St John’s and Westgate Hill cemeteries in Elswick are Grade II listed in recognition of their architectural and historic importance. However, these Victorian burial grounds are in poor repair and prone to anti-social behaviour. As a result, they are on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register.
The Westgate Cemeteries project – run by TWBPT on behalf of Newcastle City Council, which is co-funding – will develop new initiatives to make the most of these sites to benefit the local community.
As well as places for burial and remembrance, cemeteries can play a valuable role as green spaces, particularly in urban areas where many people do not have access to a garden or local park. Victorian cemeteries like St John’s and Westgate Hill are similar in design to public parks from the same period. They can provide many of the same mental and physical health benefits and provide a haven for wildlife.
Cemeteries also provide an important record of the area's social history, with each cemetery offering a biography of its community. The West End of Newcastle is ethnically diverse, reflected in the many cultures, nationalities and religions of the people buried in St John’s and Westgate Hill.
Over the next 12 months, TWBPT – in collaboration with the local community and the Council - will develop local heritage and wellbeing initiatives at the cemeteries and other projects to make the sites welcoming and thriving community spaces. The project will also create a Friends group to take forward the restoration and custodianship of the sites.
These beautiful Victorian cemeteries have huge potential to benefit the local community. We hope this project will be the first step towards securing the long-term future of the sites as valued community spaces and towards their removal from the Heritage at Risk Register.
