© John Munday 2010

New Plaques for Roman Bathsite unveiled!
3rd July 2009 Castleford
Mr Eric Crossland unveils, in a ‘Romanesque’ ceremony plaques marking the site of Roman Baths. The plaques were kindly sponsored by Nestlé’s of Castleford.

Press Release- Henry Moore Square. October 2008
In partnership with the Arts Council England, the local community and Wakefield Council is to commission an art installation for the recently refurbished Castleford Town Centre.
The process endorsed by the Castleford Town Centre Partnerships last meeting will see a new piece of artwork created for the new Henry Moore Square by autumn 2009. Local and national artists will be invited to submit outline designs for the artwork to a panel made up of residents from the local community, representatives from the Partnership, Arts Council and Wakefield District Council.
A shortlist of artists will be invited to present more detailed designs to the panel before the general public are consulted in helping to decide which artist and artists design they would like to see worked up and installed in the Henry Moore Square in the town centre.
Cllr Mark Burns-Williamson, Chair of Castleford Town Centre Partnership (CTCP) said "The art installation will enhance the new town square that was designed to create a safe, clean and user-friendly open space for events, such as specialist theme markets, festivals, and somewhere for visitors to the town centre to meet and enjoy their surroundings. They will be able to watch children from the local schools and performers take part in regular activities. As part of the Castleford Project it was always intended to include something extra as part of the plans".
In parallel with the process, the Council, alongside the Town Centre Partnership, will kick start a campaign to get the new town centre square formally recognised as a tribute to a famous son of Castleford and arguably the countrys greatest ever sculptor, Henry Moore. This will involve lobbying of Royal Mail and the local traders to officially change the address of that part of the Carlton street to Henry Moore Square. New street signage will also soon highlight the square. Cllr Burns-Williamson continued It is important that Castleford continues recognise its culture, history and heritage, something that local people are immensely proud of as well as new structures like the Castleford footbridge which is attracting lots of interest from this country and abroad."

CASTLEFORD's spectacular new multi-millon pound footbridge has finally has got it's grand opening. TV's Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud joined Wakefield Council leader Peter Box for the opening of the new S-shaped bridge across the River Aire on Friday 4th July 2008.
The ambitious structure is the most striking of the Castleford Project schemes to completely revamp the former pit town.Designed by Renato Benedetti of McDowell+Benedetti, the bridge has already been shortlisted for the prestigious Prime Minister's Award for Better Public Buildings Construction is by Costain.
The Castleford Project is the focus of a major forthcoming Channel 4 series presented by Kevin McCloud.
Children from local primary schools linked hands across the bridge to mark its opening.
Wakefield Council Leader, Peter Box: " This is an historic moment for Castleford as we open this wonderful new bridge. It represents the culmination of strong partnership working and an unwavering community commitment to help bring such a project to fruition. I'm also delighted that even before being opened it has been short listed for such a prestigious award. The bridge will be a positive new focus for visitors to Castleford. It will help us attract new interest to the town and open up the potential of the town's riverside area."
Terry Hodgkinson, chair of Yorkshire Forward said: "Promenades are more usually associated with Victorian times in our seaside towns rather than Castleford.”
"But Renato (Benedetti] has designed not only a river crossing, but a place to wander, to meet and greet and to reflect on the town's past and to vision it's future on a piece of creative modern art that is fit for a 21st Century Castleford. It is there for the benefit of all, to enjoy and savour. Yorkshire Forward is delighted to have been a part of the strong partnership that has delivered this iconic renaissance project."
Alison Drake from Castleford Heritage Trust added: " Since the beginning when we first chose Renato this has been a goal for the community to achieve. It is about connecting the community with the river and river side. The design has fulfilled all our ambitions.”

CASTLEFORD’S OTHER BRIDGE - STRIKING NEW DESIGN BY DSDHA AT “TICKLE COCK BRIDGE”, CASTLEFORD, OPENED:
The Castleford Project is an initiative to support the regeneration of a former West Yorkshire mining town as part of a major new Channel 4 Television Series. DSDHA won first prize to develop a new urban landscape and public space at what was known as Tittle Cott Bridge which acts as the main pedestrian gateway into the town for over 10,000 (a serious over estimate by the way!) people a day.
Even though well-used, the place was ignored and unloved and its poor quality made an uninspiring entrance into the declining town centre – where, unlike the rest of the country - shops did not even open on Sunday.
Having taken time to consult the public, DSDHA’s Deborah Saunt and Sam Potter initiated radical improvements to the derelict underpass and narrow pathways, and instead created a well designed public space where people could meet comfortably and no longer have to huddle up close to one another as they filed through the darkness. DSDHA worked in collaboration with the innovative artist Martin Richman and he has been responsible for new lighting and a flock lining to the concrete structure – echoing the location’s more popular name of Tickle Cock Bridge. Working with a local historian anecdotes were unearthed about the ribald goings on and cherished relationships that grew out of late-night assignations at Tickle Cock Bridge….and that Victorian prudery had eradicated by naming it Tittle Cott Bridge, thus sanitising a key part of the town’s popular culture.

Photographs by Martine Hamilton Knight:

Meanwhile, DSDHA have developed the design to involve completely rebuilding the existing 1890s underpass as well as creating new public space. It includes an multi-facetted and generous seating shelter with room for people to rest, along with and open plaza and green space which replaces overgrown wasteland and tumbledown walls.
Built on an extremely tight budget and with the challenging logistics of working under a live railway line, the project challenges one pre-conceptions of how the less significant places in our town’s deserve well designed infrastructure to compliment the more prominent projects that regeneration attracts. Here, everyday life is improved for thousands on an intimate and immediate level, working in tandem with the new town square and market place improvements– and the good news is that the shops in Castleford are now opening on Sunday…
The design has been developed with the support of engineers Jane Wernick Engineers and Max Fordham Partnership.