Get a glimpse behind the scenes of the Elephant Tea Rooms restoration

The restoration of a historic Sunderland landmark is underway and providing members of the public with a great opportunity to see work in progress. 

The Grade II listed Elephant Tea Rooms is undergoing external repair and enhancement works - which began in September this year - including striking new shop fronts and the reinstatement of lost decoration and features that will rejuvenate this iconic building.

To give members of the public the chance to explore the history of part of Sunderland's historic high street, and learn about the quality of the craftsmanship used in the restoration of the famous Elephant Tea Rooms, specialist local contractor NCS Ltd will be hosting a series of hard hat tours on Wednesday 7 December as part of Sunderland's Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) heritage skills programme.

Booking for the tours, which will include access to the live construction site and scaffolding to see the early stages of the external works designed by Mosedale Gillatt Architects Ltd, is now open.

The first phase of the project, including a new timber shop front to Fawcett Street, is expected to be completed by the end of January 2023 and will be followed by the construction of the intricately designed brickwork shop front and repair of delicate features to the upper floors.

Further opportunities for residents to get involved will be available as the project continues, including practical workshops led by expert craftspeople.

Sean Anderson, managing director of NCS Ltd, said: "Now that works are well underway at the Elephant Tea Rooms we are delighted to be involved in the first of a series of Hard Hat Tours to showcase some of the intricate work being undertaken on this iconic project in the City, which we hope will be of genuine interest to people."

Located at the corner of High Street West and Fawcett Street, the Elephant Tea Rooms was constructed at the height of Victorian wealth and investment in Sunderland and opened to the public in April 1875 as a grocer's shop and tea warehouse for Grimshaw & Son.

The building is one of the architectural highlights of Sunderland, with a distinctive Hindu Gothic style featuring intricate ornamental elephants, oriental birds and gargoyles overlooking the high street.

The external restoration project, which is expected to be finished by August 2023, is being supported with a total of £720,000 funded by Sunderland City Council, Historic England and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (DLUHC) through the Future High Street Fund and Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) projects.

Councillor Graeme Miller, leader of Sunderland City Council, said: "It's fantastic to see the restoration of the Elephant Tea Rooms continuing to move forward.

"Preserving the city's heritage is important to Sunderland City Council, and the Tea Rooms is part of a series of restoration projects that are already making a very real contribution to reviving our high street which we're proud to be supporting.

"I hope members of the public enjoy the hard hat tours and seeing how traditional craft skills are being used to restore and protect another fantastic landmark in our city centre."

Maria Carballeira, from Historic England, said: "This is the chance for local people to don a hard hat and get a sneak peek at the conservation works so far on one of the city centre's best-loved historic buildings. We're really looking forward to seeing the Elephant Tea Rooms transformed by removing those harmful alterations made in the mid-twentieth century and adding some beautiful new shopfronts that reflect its intricate original designs."

The hard hat tours will take place at 10:15am,11:45am and 1:45pm on Wednesday, 7 December. Participants must be over 16 and prebook their place here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/hard-hat-tour-elephant-tea-rooms-tickets-474765485347.