Kirkgate’s Cockermouth Heritage Group is showcasing our local history in monthly illustrated talks at the Kirkgate Centre. With stories of our buildings, traditions, industry, talks have included the history of the local railway and of Moota Camp. One of the above images is of a Mahjong set made by Harry Dressler, a German Prisoner of War at Moota Camp during …
The Kirkgate Centre has certainly came a long way over the years… Thanks to the dedication of the community and staff, the centre has continued to thrive. Most recently we have had new windows installed which has improved the experience within the Egremont room. Thank you to Lord Egremont, the Lottery Awards for All Community Fund, and the Hadfield Trust …
This wonderful project encourages you to step out into nature as Dorothy Wordsworth would have herself over 200 years ago. Not sure how to begin? The National Trust has designed a walking and cycling route map, please see the links on our MAKE THE JOURNEY page Dorothy Wordsworth was inspired by her natural surroundings throughout her life, leading her to …
Can you help us raise money for the Kirkgate Centre? During the pandemic much has been developing within the Kirkgate to keep the centre up to date and serving the community’s needs. We have had an anonymous donation which has paid for half of the building to be painted, finally saying good bye to our glossy pinky/purple! We are now …
A lively Cockermouth charity with ambitious plans for the future is looking for a new chair to lead its Board of Trustees. Kirkgate Arts and Heritage runs Cockermouth’s Kirkgate Centre entertainment venue as well as a host of other arts and heritage activities throughout West Cumbria. The previous chair, Marion Bowman, is retiring after 8 years on the Board and …
Cockermouth’s community and entertainment venue, the Kirkgate Centre, has raised £17,000 to replace 13 of its large ground floor windows. The new windows have been custom-made by local firm Thomas Armstrong to the high standards required by the Conservation Area regulations that cover the historic centre of Cockermouth. ‘During the lockdowns of the past two years we have been working …
Two new Trustees and a Company Secretary have been appointed at a popular Cockermouth charity. David Thomas, a retired NHS Finance Director who recently moved to Cockermouth, has joined the Board as Honorary Treasurer. Helen Hardy, Science Digital Programme Manager at the Natural History Museum in London, will help develop Kirkgate’s local history collection. Cockermouth resident Rob Higgins, a solicitor …
A class of excited school children have followed Dorothy Wordsworth’s life’s journey from Cockermouth to Dove Cottage, Grasmere. On a special trip last week organised by Kirkgate Arts and Heritage, All Saints’ Primary School Year 6 children aged 10 and 11 travelled through the Lake District to the cottage that Dorothy and William Wordsworth shared and where they both wrote …
A Cockermouth charity is calling on the government to provide more support to community arts and entertainment venues hit by the rising numbers of Covid cases. ‘Small venues such as the Kirkgate Centre which are so important to small towns like Cockermouth have had nearly two years of struggling to survive,’ said Chair of Kirkgate Arts and Heritage Marion Bowman. …
Dear Editor, Dorothy Wordsworth’s rare achievement (Editorial, 19 December 2021) as the other great writer in the Wordsworth family and an early environmentalist is the focus of a year-long celebration of her life in the town where she was born on Christmas Day 250 years ago – Cockermouth, Cumbria. The centrepiece of the project, supported by our local councils, the …
