Huddersfield Civic Society members explore Halifax

Huddersfield Civic Society members on their visit to Halifax

A fully booked walking tour of Halifax town centre provided an opportunity to learn about its history, developments and recent changes.

The July evening walk in Halifax, hosted by Halifax Civic Trust and led by chairman Alan Goodrum and David Glover, explored both historic gems including the Piece Hall and Square Chapel as well as a number of outstanding newer developments. These included the library combining the Square Congregational Church with a striking contemporary extension, Westgate Arcade and the Trinity Academy, converted from the former library.

Alan touched on opportunities and threats, including vacant buildings such as the Victorian Halifax Building Society premises, other late C19th structures, and possible future plans relating to the Borough Market and Halifax Town Hall. Comparisons with Huddersfield emerged, not least the fact that Calderdale Council has worked on various initiatives without the benefit of an overall masterplan, unlike the town centre blueprint for Huddersfield which is driving forward future developments.