Windmill's sails to be removed due to damage

A Grade II-listed windmill is set to have its wooden sails removed due to structural concerns.

Whitburn Windmill has been fenced off for months after a storm damaged it in winter, causing some of the wood to come loose.

South Tyneside Council said the sails will be removed in October and its "immediate priority" was to "make the structure safe".

There is no timescale for when the sails will be restored but residents are campaigning to secure funding to allow this to happen as soon as possible.

Whitburn Windmill was built between 1790 and 1796 and was last restored in 1991, according to Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum.

The group's vice-president, Steve Lavelle said the windmill was "one of the most photographed structures definitely in South Tyneside, actually even in the North East".

"It's a shame because it's an iconic structure, but it would lose its identity without the sails," he said.

But the council's lead member for finance and resources, councillor Susan Sybenga, said: "The immediate priority is to make the structure safe.

"Once the sails have been removed, we will work with specialist contractors to determine the most appropriate future steps."

Lavelle said he did not want to see the sails put in storage before funding for the restoration was secured.

He asked: "Once it comes down, how long do we have to wait until funding becomes available?"

The group is working with the local authority and has applied for National Lottery Heritage Funding.

Reform UK's Sybenga said the council would "explore all funding options once tender prices have been received".

Lavelle said he was trying to rally community support to strengthen any funding application.

"I thought, let's strike while the iron's hot here, because you know we hear horrible stories with things going in storage, getting damaged, getting lost and then the length of time between dismantling it and then trying to get the funds together.

"So if we do it now, while the crisis has emerged, I think it's going to have a far better future," he said.

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