Winter Gardens restoration

The Council is progressing an exciting project to bring the unique Winter Gardens back into a sustainable use. 

The Grade II*-listed landmark is a national heritage gem, the UK's last surviving Victorian seaside cast iron and glass winter gardens, and it requires significant national investment to repair and restore, supported by a robust business plan for reuse.

The ambition is to save, restore and reimagine the Winter Gardens at the heart of Great Yarmouth's regeneration and daily life, as a year-round visitor attraction that makes the most of the unique building, its seafront location and its horticultural heritage, complementing the recently-restored Venetian Waterways and the new Marina Centre under construction.

Bid to National Lottery Heritage Fund - Heritage Horizons Awards scheme

In February 2020, the Winter Gardens was announced as one of just 12 projects shortlisted to apply for a share of £50m from this competitive national pot, with £9.9m sought.

Following further project development work with conservation specialists, the Council submitted to the next stage of this multi-stage application process in February 2021, seeking project development funding. The Council hopes to hear the outcome in mid-summer. If successful, this will unlock funding to develop the full application.

Activities and functions survey

To support their application, the project team undertook a four-week survey, which closed on 15 January 2021, to find out a bit more about what residents and visitors might want to see and do in the restored Winter Gardens, the sorts of activities, functions and attractions it could be used for.

In total, 2,365 residents and visitors took part. It was particularly encouraging to see an above-average response from young people, who made up 13% of respondents. Critically, responses from all age groups show a very high level of support from the community for the potential of the Winter Gardens restoration to enhance Great Yarmouth as a place and support the year-round economic vitality and community wellbeing, which will really bolster the bid against stiff national competition.

Project activities

As the restoration project continues, keep up to date with progress by visiting the dedicated Winter Gardens pages.