Durham Miners' Hall
Redhills is the headquarters building of the Durham Miners' Association (DMA) in Durham, England. Officially called Miners' New Hall, it is known as Redhills from its location on Redhills Lane in the City of Durham.
| Redhills | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Edwardian Baroque |
| Address | Redhills Lane |
| Town or city | Durham |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 54.7773°N 1.5877°W |
| Inaugurated | 1915 |
| Client | Durham Miners' Association |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | H. T. Gradon |
Redhills was designed by H. T. Gradon[1] in Edwardian Baroque style and opened in 1915 to replace the former Miners' Hall building in North Road. Its debating chamber was known as the "Pitman's Parliament".[2][3]
In March 2020 the National Lottery Heritage Fund awarded a £4 million grant for restoration and renovation work, with the aim of restoring Redhills as a community and arts centre.[4] In October 2021, as part of the grant agreement, Durham Miners Association transferred ownership of the site to the Redhills Charitable Incorporated Organisation.[5] As of 2022, restoration and renovation works are underway.[2]
The site is used by a number of organisations, including the Durham School of English.[6]
The main building houses the office of local Labour MP Mary Foy. In May 2022, Labour leader Keir Starmer was accused of having broken COVID-19 pandemic legal restrictions at the venue the previous April, by drinking beer and eating takeaway food in a room there with other party members present. This became known as "Beergate".[7][8]
References
- "MINERS HALL, City of Durham - 1161184 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk.
- Gouldsbrough, Patrick (10 May 2022). "Inside Durham Miners' Hall where Keir Starmer's 'breach' took place". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
- "The Redhills Appeal" (PDF). Durham Miners' Association. 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
- Coman, Julian (15 March 2020). "Durham's 'pitman's parliament', a monument of industrial heritage, saved from ruin". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
- Dowson, Andy (21 October 2021). "Durham Miners Association hands Redhills over to the people". Redhills Charitable Incorporated Organisation. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
- "Learn English in Durham". Durham School of English. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
- Zeffman, Henry (3 May 2022). "Nadine Dorries accuses Keir Starmer of lockdown lies". The Times.
- Culbertson, Alix (6 May 2022). "Beergate: Sir Keir Starmer insists there was 'no party' after Durham Police say they will investigate claims he broke lockdown rules". Sky News.