One man’s plans have been revealed to restore a former Ryde school back to its original glory with the help of students — if he can win it at auction.
Vectis Hall, on Melville Street, Ryde, a Grade II listed building, was supposedly the first free school in Ryde, providing an education to children since the early 1800s.
Now hoping to take the building back to its educational roots, Peter Venner, a Ryde resident, is throwing his hat into the ring trying to purchase the building, potentially with involvement from Ryde Town Council, restoring the building to a school of traditional building skills.
He said it would be much like the courses that used to be run at Portsmouth Polytechnic before it became the university.
Peter said:
“If the building can be taken over, my project is to get the students of the school to rebuild the hall itself so they will have that rounded learning elements
“It would offer valuable apprenticeships, evening classes and specific experience for building tradesmen and professionals.
“It is absolutely vital for listed buildings around Ryde to be built and restored with traditional methods such as lime mortar and limewash.”
The building itself is in urgent need of repairs, with roof restoration alone thought to cost £350,000 but Peter is hoping with hands-on apprenticeships and courses, restoration can go together with teaching, drawing on knowledge from building professionals on the Island who are as equally interested in traditional building methods.
However, with the building going to auction on Wednesday(4), Peter is hoping with support from other partners, potentially Ryde Town Council, it could be bought before it reaches the auction stage.
He said:
“There is an uncertainty of it going to auction and getting the finances sorted in a very short time frame but the urgency of it all has had sparks flying.”
Having previously presented his plan to a meeting of Ryde Town Council’s acquisition and commercial management committee, Peter said many people had stories to tell about the hub of activity the building used to be, including as a scout hall and a place to get NHS orange juice.
Ryde Town Council clerk, Lisa Dyer, said:
“The town council will be considering the purchase of Vectis Hall at their meeting tonight (Monday).
“Due to the commercially sensitive nature of the proposal, I am unable to provide any further information at this present time.”
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