Representatives from the business and tourism community came together this week, for the official unveiling of the final designs for The Sill, Northumberland’s proposed £11.2m national Landscape Discovery Centre.

Following a public consultation and refinement led by partners Northumberland National Park Authority and YHA (England and Wales), the stunning photo-realistic designs and animated fly-through footage featuring a tour of the new building, were launched at an unveiling hosted at Bardon Mill Village Hall close to the current National Park centre at Once Brewed.

The designs will now be taken into the planning stages of the development, with an outcome predicted by the summer.

The designs created by award-winning architects Jane Darbyshire and David Kendall, have been refined down to the final detail demonstrating materials to be utilised in the construction phase, from its dry stone walling to innovative ‘whin sill’ roof, reflecting the natural habitat of Northumberland National Park – a design concept that developed from public consultation and feedback on initial design ideas.

The building is set to be at the forefront of sustainable design with local woodchip heating, photovoltaic canopies and solar thermal water heating.

After extensive public input which highlighted the importance of a building that sits sympathetically in the landscape, the new designs are reflective of the concept ‘inspired by the landscape and of the landscape.’ With some 1,700 people in total inputting their ideas via a series of open consultation events, one-to-one meetings, focus groups and activity sessions, the project team is proud to announce a concept which the whole community and a wide partnership of interest has been invited to help shape.

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Since the last consultation event in autumn 2013, an innovative form of interpretation design created by Edinburgh based design consultants Bright 3D, has also been progressed, with an overarching theme ‘hidden in plain view’ shaping plans for the exhibition design space and exploring different aspects of the environment. The centre will house state of the art education facilities, superfast broadband, five external activity areas, serviced office accommodation for outdoor activity businesses, areas for retail of local products and a local produce cafe.

The launch venue – Bardon Mill Village Hall – which has synergies with the project as the UK’s only earth-sheltered village hall, features its own ‘green roof’, a key component of The Sill designs, which boast a fully accessible ‘whin sill’ centrepiece, created out of the unique and rare whin sill vegetation, offering awe-inspiring views of the Northumbrian countryside and the first of its kind for the UK. If plans are approved and funding for the project successfully achieved, The Sill’s vision is to create a hub which will open up the landscape of the whole of Northumberland National Park and offer substantial economic benefits to the region, with a £3.35m contribution predicted in its first year alone, and an exciting ‘shop window’ for the rural businesses in and around the Park.

Tony Gates, Chief Executive of Northumberland National Park Authority said: "I am delighted to announce the final designs for The Sill which will now be taken into the planning stages of the project. In just a short space of time, we have consulted people at 130 meetings and our design team from architects Jane Darbyshire and David Kendall have created concepts which are both sympathetic to the environment and inspiring in their vision.

"Over the course of this, the development phase of the project, which has been backed by the Heritage Lottery Fund, we have invited members of the public to contribute to the design process, and their feedback and ideas have helped to shape the design you see before you today."

(MH/IT)