Hidden history of Preston community centre could save it from the bulldozers

A group of Preston residents is attempting to secure special status for a community centre in Ashton in order to give it a future.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

The move is designed to protect the facility known locally as The Star, which has been closed for almost two years after Lancashire County Council stopped using it as a base for family and wellbeing services.

A campaign at the time to save the building was unsuccessful, but locals are now celebrating after the authority agreed to withdraw it from sale just days before it was due to go under the hammer at auction - and could have ended up being flattened for housing.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Friends of Tulketh Hall are now working with other local organisations to get the site listed as an “asset of community value” by Preston City Council.

The Star in Ashton has been pulled from auction (image courtesy of Tony Worrell)The Star in Ashton has been pulled from auction (image courtesy of Tony Worrell)
The Star in Ashton has been pulled from auction (image courtesy of Tony Worrell)

That would put a six-month block on any future plans to sell the land for development so as to allow grassroots groups the chance to raise the funds needed to purchase the plot.

Archaeological advice has also now shed light on the possible historical significance of the location on Tulketh Crescent. Tulketh Hall stood on the land until being demolished in 1959, but there may also have been a “medieval predecessor” nearby - and even a motte and bailey castle.

It is thought that any remains are more likely to be found under the car park and green spaces on the site than beneath the community centre itself.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jeremy Rowlands, from the Friends group, thanked County Hall for hearing their plea and said that they were pleased to have “raised the profile of this important part of Preston's history”.

“We intend to uncover this and leave the footprints of the past ancient buildings within a new community garden space.

“We think this, coupled with a much improved and reinvigorated Star, could become a beacon for the area and Preston in general.

“Especially in these difficult times, resources such as these are so precious - and wellbeing outways financial considerations sometimes,” Jeremy added.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Star had been home to a decades’-old youth club before the building became one of 19 shut by County Hall in 2018/19.

A spokesperson for Lancashire County Council said: "We have had quite a bit of commercial interest in this site, but we've also heard from local people who are keen to keep it as a community asset. We've taken it off the market so these options can be explored fully."

Preston South West county councillor Gillian Oliver, who previously campaigned for the venue to be spared, welcomed the move.

"Since 2018, when the Conservative administration decided to close The Star, Ashton people have been battling to save it from the developers. School children have written poems, scouts have been to cabinet meetings and businesses have calculated what it would take to rescue it.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"But now a last minute historical intervention seems to have won an eleventh hour reprieve. We are hopeful we will ultimately win back The Star for the people of Ashton," County Cllr Oliver said.

Jeremy Rowlands added: “The Friends of Tulketh Hall would like to thank the county council for withdrawing the former Star Youth Club from public auction and providing us with the opportunity of getting the centre back into community use. We are working with Preston Community Network, The Foxton, The James Mercer Group, Ashton and Riversway PACT and The Guides Association to secure a long term future for the site, which works for the whole area.”

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.