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The Halls regeneration

• Projects
  • Norwich 12
  • Strings Of Pearls
  • Time & Space
  • The Mustard Shop
  • The Halls regeneration
    • Frequently asked questions
    • Archaeological evaluation
    • History of The Halls
    • Memories of The Halls wanted
    • Project architects appointed
    • Halls survey results
  • SHAPING 24
  • Medieval churches photography exhibition
  • Norwich Trails
  • Norwich Lanes
  • Walk-it
  • Education and outreach
  • Cathedral Quarter
  • Colman‘s Mustard Shop & Museum recipe competition
  • Museums at Night

Introduction 

The Halls - St Andrew‘s and Blackfriars - are the UK‘s most complete medieval friary complex, with a rich and diverse history spanning 700 years. These buildings have been a church, priory, school, granary, workhouse, building stores and a mint over the years. They have been owned by the City of Norwich since 1540 and are currently used for a variety of civic, community and private events. They also hold the country‘s largest collection of civic portraits.

Ambitious plans are underway to transform The Halls into a regionally important cultural and conference venue and an accessible community facility for the city and beyond. The complex will also act as a hub for a range of nearby cultural facilities and the story of these iconic buildings will be told to new generations of audiences and visitors.

Memories of The Halls wanted

We would like to hear from people who have memories of events they have experienced in The Halls over the years.

The memories will create a permanent record of the remembered history of The Halls in the twentieth century and contribute towards increased understanding of the central position the buildings have held in the life of the city, supplementing existing documentary research on the buildings.

Extracts from selected interviews will form part of interpretative displays in the buildings about the history of The Halls and may be used as soundbites for audio guides and presentation materials in the future.

Please click here for more information and details on how to get involved.

Funding update

In autumn 2008 HEART made an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for £7.5m to go towards transforming The Halls. There was stiff competition nationally for funding and after careful consideration the HLF have decided that they were unable to support the application at this time. 

Whilst this is naturally a massive disappointment for us and everyone who has supported the project to date we still believe the project is incredibly worthwhile and that it would deliver massive cultural, social, economic and environmental benefits to our city and further afield.

We have been talking to the HLF about whether there are other opportunities for their support and funding for the scheme. We will also continue to look at alternative sources of funding to ensure we can still transform the buildings and deliver an outstanding community and cultural venue that Norwich can be proud of and enjoy for generations to come.

For a full statement about the HLF announcement please click here.

More information

Frequently asked questions

Archaeological evaluation

Brief history of The Halls

Survey

A big thank you to everyone who took the time to fill out our survey in the Autumn, which provides us with feedback from the local community and visitors to The Halls. The surveys will help us build up a broader picture of how people use the buildings and what improvements they would like to see which will feed into the plans to regenerate the buildings.

There will be further opportunities to comment on the development of The Halls in the future. Please check back or send us your contact details to be kept up-to-date.

Supported by HM Treasury's Invest to Save Budget