Casting a bell at Whitechapel Bell Foundry in July 1933
We were appalled by the disgraceful decision of Tower Hamlets Council in November to grant permission for change of use from bell foundry to boutique hotel. This destroys any future for the Whitechapel Bell Foundry as a working foundry, reducing centuries of our history to a side-show for tourists in a quirky bell-themed hotel.
It is imperative now that the Secretary of State call in this planning application, taking it out of the hands of Tower Hamlets Council and holding a Public Inquiry. Last month’s farcical planning meeting revealed that the national and international significance of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry render it too important for its fate to be decided by the local authority.
With the forthcoming General Election imminent, we have to move very fast. We need as many people as possible to write to Secretary of State immediately. Use your own words and give your personal opinions but be sure to include the key points listed here. Read the guidance below and write today, then forward this to your friends and family, encouraging them to do the same.
HOW TO WRITE EFFECTIVELY TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE
- Address your letter to Robert Jenrick, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government.
- Ask the Secretary of State to issue a ‘holding direction’ which means that planning permission cannot proceed.
- Ask the Secretary of State to call in the planning application for the Whitechapel Bell Foundry and hold a Public Inquiry.
- Point out that the hotel planning application causes ‘substantial harm’ to a very important heritage asset.
- Emphasise the significance of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry and the very controversial nature of this proposal, locally, nationally and internationally.
Anyone can write, wherever you are in the world, but be sure to include your postal address and send your letter by email to
PCU@communities.gsi.gov.uk
or by post to
National Planning Casework Unit
5 St Philips Place
Colmore Row
Birmingham BP3 2PW
The Bell of Hope in Manhattan was cast at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry and presented by the Lord Mayor of London to the people of New York on the first anniversary of the 9/11 attacks
You may also like to read about
The Fate of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Nigel Taylor, Tower Bell Manager
Four Hundred Years at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Pearl Binder at Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Dorothy Rendell at Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Hope for The Whitechapel Bell Foundry
A Petition to Save the Bell Foundry
Save the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
So Long, Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Fourteen Short Poems About The Whitechapel Bell Foundry
