Rich history of Holbeck celebrated as local people share their stories

Now, after decades of decline, Holbeck is once again undergoing a transformation as CEG presses on with its £350m redevelopmentof the Globe Road area.

New buildings are set to spring up alongside the dozens of listed sites such as Temple Works, Tower Works and the Round Foundry, where Matthew Murray made his name as a great engineer in the late 18th century.

While CEG says a wealth of Holbeck's architectural heritage remains for all to see, it found the stories of the people who live there were at risk of being forgotten.

Together with theatre company Slung Low, it has set out to change this through the Tales of Holbeck project.

Aisling Ramshaw, head of sales and marketing at CEG, said: “This initiative started because we realised that while we had a wealth of information on the architectural history of Holbeck, we were missing the human stories.

“Holbeck is so rich in history and a lot of these memories are held with the people who live in the community. When we heard some of the stories, we realised that something needed to be done to help record them, but also to celebrate those memories that have played a huge part in Holbeck’s history."

People with a connection to the area were invited to come forward to share their stories and memories as part of Once Upon A Time in Holbeck, a community event hosted at The Holbeck.

The task of choosing the most powerful of those stories was shared by Aisling and fellow judges Carol Shaw, from BAM Construction; Chris Skelton, of Thompson Brand Partners, and writer and blogger Jon Howe.

David Kelly, winner of the first prize, said: “It is an honour to have my work recognised by this great initiative. I feel very passionately about Holbeck’s history, having lived here for 28 years, so I wanted to take this opportunity to capture some of the community’s highs and lows.

“The main character in the story, Matthew Murray, was created so his life would reflect major milestones in our community’s history, from the Battle of Holbeck in 1936 to the thrill of watching the football crowds pass through on Leeds United match days. I’m very proud to be part of this great community and this project has been a great way to commemorate its rich history.”

Other prize winners on the night included Stephen Peacock, Ellies World and Eve Tidswell.

Alan Lane, artistic director of Slung Low, said: “This project has been about listening and valuing the stories and experiences of the people who live and work in Holbeck. The quality of the stories that featured on the night was testament to what a good idea this is.

"Holbeck’s history is crammed full of stories of the extraordinary, the bold, the brave, the generous, the kind and the hard working. The event made clear that this wonderful history promises so much for Holbeck’s future. This is a really exciting time to be in this part of the city.”

And the work to gather those memories is continuing, with other contributors invited to email [email protected] to add their stories.

Aisling added: "We’re looking forward to adding to our catalogue of stories and would encourage anyone else with a memory, whether that’s a photograph or a story, to come forward and share them with us.”