Workshops on a range of skills are on offer while the restoration work is being done [@vi_olo]

A DILAPIDATED hall in Upper Street where West End productions once held rehearsals is hosting heritage building workshops while the building is restored.

People with no experience of carpentry, roofing, plastering or brickwork can pick up these skills in new sessions at the Sunday School Hall, next to Union Chapel.

Cristina Carrasco, who is participation manager of the project at Union Chapel, told the Tribune that the workshops are taking place alongside the building’s own restoration, so every topic being taught is directly related to the conservation efforts.

She said: “It’s nice to bring people back into the space we’re going to reopen.

“This is the first time we’ve brought people in. It’s been very successful because it’s an opportunity to open doors for new audiences that are usually not represented in heritage and chapel audiences.

“We have a very diverse group of people, intercultural, intergenerational, and of different backgrounds.”

William Fuller, director of Fullers Building, which is leading the restoration, construction and the workshops, said: “As an industry, we do need to massively recruit people. This is a small example of getting people on board.

“If this was happening every day it might produce 30 people a week. We need hundreds, thousands.”

The Sunday School Hall will open in late 2025 and the workshops are still available for booking.

You can learn more about the project by visiting: https://unionchapel.org.uk/projects/news-views/heritage-building-workshops-sunday-school-stories