Vaux is a significant brownfield
regeneration site opportunity.

School pupils in Sunniside find regeneration is right up their street

25/06/2009

Young artists at a Sunderland school are finding regeneration is right up their street as they create a collage of buildings out of recycled old materials.

Pupils at Hudson Road Primary School are taking inspiration from a disused shop fitters that overlooks the school and is to be knocked down as part of future regeneration plans for the Sunniside area.

Children from Year 5 and 6 are working with North East artist Dawn Lehrer to use images and paint to create their very own street in Sunniside.

Dawn, who has been commissioned by regeneration agencies Sunniside Partnership and Sunderland arc, said: “The pupils have been learning about the regeneration process as it is part of their visual landscape. Their work will reflect the changes of Sunniside through the use of materials and images gathered from the area to make collages which they will combine to create a new and vibrant piece of art.”

Dawn is working on her own contribution to the project at Sunderland Artist Studio, where some of her previous work is on display. The culmination of the project will be an exhibition at thePlace – Sunniside’s new business and arts centre – later in the year.

Ben Hall, director of Sunniside Partnership, said: “We are delighted to be supporting this project as it gives people the opportunity to become involved in the regeneration process.

“Dawn is introducing the pupils to new and exciting art techniques as well as encouraging them to express their views on the changing environment around them.”

Since Sunniside Partnership was set up in 2003 by Sunderland arc, Sunderland City Council, One North East and the Homes and Communities Agency, the area has attracted more than £90 million of private investment and boasts award-winning developments including Sunniside Gardens, thePlace and the Gentoo led Mowbray Apartments.

Listed buildings have been brought back into commercial use and the area is becoming renowned for its high quality bars, restaurants, cafes and niche shops. Public realm improvements to the main streets linking Sunniside into the rest of the city centre begin later this summer.
 

ENDS

Media contact:

Emily Taylor, communications manager at Sunderland arc

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Notes to editor:

Dawn Lehrer
Dawn has been working as an artist and a community educator for over ten years working with a wide range of people with differing education and motivational needs. She received a Master’s Degree with Distinction in creative writing from Northumbria University in 2007 which has given her the skills needed to help students and community members express their views in writing as well as visually.

Sunniside Partnership
The Sunniside Partnership was established in 2003 to oversee the regeneration of the Sunniside area. The Partnership works in conjunction with regeneration company Sunderland arc and is supported by Sunderland City Council, the UK’s national regeneration agency the Homes and Communities Agency and the regional development agency One North East. Sunniside Partnership has already attracted over £90m of its £130m investment target.

www.sunnisidepartnership.co.uk

Sunniside
Sunniside is a prominent, tight knit, urban area in the eastern part of the city centre, containing many historic buildings. It is a crucial part of Sunderland city centre and has played a key role in Sunderland’s commercial and cultural life over centuries. Great progress has already been made towards restoring the area to its former glory, with new public space, offices, stylish homes, artist’s studios as well as niche shops, bars and restaurants, helping to establish Sunniside as a fashionable and thriving quarter of the city.

Sunderland arc Limited is registered in England and Wales

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