HARVEY'S FOUNDRY, HAYLE, CORNWALL

Harvey's Foundry was one of two foundries at Hayle that together made the town the steam pumping-engine production capital of the world. At its peak 80% of the world's steam pumping-engines came from Hayle and the collapse of the industry in the mid 20th century inevitably caused the rapid decline of the town.

The aim of the Harvey's Foundry project was to find a way of conserving the surviving buildings on the site and in doing so create a much needed economic and social regeneration opportunity for the town. The Prince's Regeneration Trust established a partnership to develop a proposal to achieve this and the Harvey's Foundry Trust was subsequently formed. The Prince's Regeneration Trust organised planning days for key stakeholders including the local council and the community, and has been a key driver to securing funding packages and steering the phased developments of the project.

Project Development

Phase 1 of the project involved the restoration of the most prominent building, the former Drawing Office, that fronts on to the main square at Hayle. This created office space and a visible sign that regeneration had begun on site.

On vacant land a new 8,000sq ft office building was erected using appropriate materials to a modern design. This provided space for small local businesses, now employing 70 people and bringing in rental income to support The Trust. Phase 1 involved nearly £2m of grants from a cocktail of funders.

Phase II was to restore the Foundry Farm buildings to 16 craft/art workshops, three of which are live/work units for the specific use of people working at Harvey's. Phase II cost £2.3m.

Phase III is being planned at present and will involve the restoration of the Foundry Barn and associated stores to provide more business and community facilities with visitor facilities on the site.

Since the start of the project the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape has been added to the list of World Heritage sites and the regeneration of Harvey´s Foundry is considered to have made a significant contribution to the industrial heritage of the region.