A crumbling historic tennis pavilion in Yorkshire has been included in the Victorian Society’s Top Ten Endangered Buildings List for 2024. The former Bramcote Pavilion in Scarborough dates from 1885 and is a rare physical reminder of the earliest days of the sport.
The pavilion was commissioned for the North of England Lawn Tennis Club from local architect John Hall, who subsequently designed an Arts and Crafts veranda-style bungalow which featured changing rooms for both sexes. The courts it once served played host to championship-level competitions as well as providing a venue for local players.
However the disused Grade II listed building is now fenced off and is showing signs of serious dilapidation following a recent unsuccessful planning application seeking consent to demolish it and use the site for housing. It is currently owned by Scarborough College, an independent school.
Restoring Bramcote Pavilion would be an education in itself
Now it has been added to the Victorian Society’s annual list of what it regards as the most endangered historic Victorian and Edwardian buildings, nominated by the public.
Society president Griff Rhys Jones said:
“I am reeling. How can we not find a proper new use for this elegant testament to the history of tennis? Like all good old buildings, it is an education in itself. It has a story. It teaches continuity, local achievement and fun history.
“The very act of caring about its preservation should be an exemplary teaching tool. Neglect and indifference set a hugely bad example to young people.”
Following the failed attempt to secure approval for demolition, the college invested heavily in a state-of-the-art athletics track immediately adjacent to the building. The track was officially opened last year by Olympic medallist Steve Cram.
Limited size should help this rescue
Campaigners at Scarborough and District Civic Society have also been pushing college bosses to act over the pavilion.
Victorian Society director James Hughes said:
“Many endangered buildings present issues that are more or less intractable. Often the scale of a building – and, correspondingly, of the investment required to save it – is such as to represent an insurmountable challenge.
“Yet in the case of the Bramcote Tennis Pavilion we have a building that is by its very nature diminutive. While this does not mean that rescuing the structure should be a simple matter, it should nonetheless make it rather easier and, given its enormous importance, it is the very least it deserves.”
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