Local London Assembly Member, Unmesh Desai AM, has added his voice to those rejecting proposals for the historic Whitechapel Bell Foundry to be redeveloped into a 108-room boutique hotel. At a community meeting hosted by the London Muslim Centre on Monday evening (9th September), Mr Desai spoke alongside Councillor Ehtasham Haque, Executive Director of the East London Mosque Trust, Dilowar Khan and TV Historian Dan Cruickshank, supporting alternative plans put forward by the UK Historic Building Preservation Trust aimed at preserving the original site for future generations.
The foundry was established in 1570 and has been based on Whitechapel Road since the 1750s. Throughout its long and illustrious history, it has produced the bells for Big Ben and the Liberty Bell. During the Second World War, the Foundry was temporarily repurposed to manufacture submarine parts for the Admiralty.
During his speech, Mr Desai highlighted the importance of retaining this renowned piece of local heritage in the face of the rapid change and growth that the East End is currently undergoing. He also underlined the significance of the Bell Foundry’s close proximity to Altab Ali Park, another key local historical site, which was named to commemorate the eponymous young Bangladeshi man murdered in a racist attack in 1978.
The developer, Raycliff Capital’s, plans to redesign the Foundry as a themed hotel, have faced a backlash locally. A petition aimed at preventing the scheme from being given the green light by Tower Hamlets Council has attracted over 20,000 signatures so far.
The UK Historic Building Preservation has put forward its alternative plans for the Bell Foundry, proposing to purchase the site from the developer at market value to subsequently rejuvenate it as a working foundry with modern machinery. The East End Preservation Society and East London Mosque have also thrown their weight behind the concept of using the space to provide facilities to support the local craft industry and generate apprenticeship opportunities.
Local London Assembly Member, Unmesh Desai AM, said:
“The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is a vital local heritage asset and has remained a constant throughout Whitechapel’s rich and varied history over the last 500 years. I would like to thank the East London Mosque for their support and for hosting the meeting.
“It would be senseless to see this site transformed into a private themed hotel, when it can still offer so much to the local community. Once it’s gone, it’s gone.
“Significantly, the Bell Foundry is situated near to Altab Ali Park. The preservation of both of these sites, in such close to proximity to each other, has helped bring a focus to Whitechapel’s older and contemporary cultural identities.
“I’m fully behind alternative plans to reopen the site as a working Foundry, upgraded with modern machinery. This will both preserve its long heritage, whilst offering crucial apprenticeship and employment opportunities to the next generation of local people”.
Notes to editors
- More information about the history of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry can be found here;
- More information about the Save Whitechapel Bell Foundry campaign can be found here;
- The petition against the current plans to redevelop the Whitechapel Bell Foundry into a themed hotel can be accessed here;
- Unmesh Desai AM is the London Assembly Member for City and East (including Barking and Dagenham, Newham, Tower Hamlets and the City of London).
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