Historic England ‘disappointed’ by the spat over Hopwood Hall

Date published: 10 February 2025

The ambitious idea to restore Hopwood Hall to its former glory ended in tears for the community – and Historic England are the latest to share their disappointment.

The Grade II* listed hall has become the focus of a spat between Rochdale Council, who own the building, and Hopwood DePree, who was leading on the redevelopment.

The Hollywood actor moved from California to Middleton a decade ago in a bid to restore the ancestral home for which he’s named.

Back in 2017, excitement was building as the council entered into an ‘exclusivity agreement’ with the American – who vowed to restore the 1420s hall. That exclusivity agreement came to an abrupt end on 31 October last year.

The council said the US-born adopted Middletonian had not made enough progress and wanted to speak to other investors, which the exclusivity agreement prevented.

This came as a shock to Historic England, who have invested £368,000 into the scheme. The government body has been supporting the community-led project and is concerned for the future of the hall now plans have changed.

A Historic England spokesperson said: “We are disappointed to hear of the recent change in plans for Grade II* listed Hopwood Hall’s future. Hopwood Hall is a place of significant historic importance which holds exceptional value for its local community.

“We are very supportive of the recent progress made at the site by local volunteers. After a long period of decline with no investment or interest in the site, we saw a community group give up their own time to maintain the hall and grounds and drive forward bids for funding.

“Our investment in the hall has always been based on a community-led solution and our expectation is that it will have a sustainable future which celebrates its historical significance and its place within Middleton’s community. We have received confirmation from the local authority that the works covered by our repair grant will be completed.

“We will follow further developments and consideration of options for its future with close interest.”

 

 

Mr DePree has been left flabbergasted by the council’s move. He believes he has a ‘legally binding agreement to purchase Hopwood Hall’, something the council disputes.

He added that all the work over the last seven years has come at ‘significant personal cost’ to him – an estimated £581,000. As things stand, Mr DePree’s vision for the historic building is in tatters.

This dream he created instigated a community effort, powered by dozens of local volunteers, to spruce up the hall. Initially work on the gardens and the main exterior of the building was sorted, but there were grander plans in mind, which Mr DePree gained planning permission for in 2022.

The masterplan for Hopwood Hall’s future included an outdoor cinema screen; space for education workshops; a gift shop; a heritage trail; a wedding and events space; and a 25-bedroom hotel. That was in addition to structural restoration; a new access road; and a car park.

 

 

Once the exclusivity agreement came to an end, the site was locked off to the volunteers – creating anger and confusion. What was once a harmonious relationship between the council and the local volunteers became sour.

Middleton residents were ‘appalled’ when they were told they couldn’t access the site. Hundreds of locals flocked to Smalley Memorial Hall for a public meeting on November 20 that saw a number of the ‘Friends of Hopwood Hall’ group deliver passionate speeches on the situation.

At the public meeting, the volunteers made their case that they wouldn’t continue their efforts at the hall without Mr DePree at the helm, despite the council saying they want to keep them in the loop. The campaigners have even started a petition urging the council to reverse their decision.
 

Read more: American star cheered onto stage by ‘outraged’ community, after being dropped from Hopwood Hall plansPublished: 26 November 2024

In response, the council said a number of health and safety breaches led them to close off the site. As the owners of the building, any issues on the site is the council’s responsibility.

Moving forward, the council is preparing to start work soon on vital roof repairs on the building at an estimated cost of £600,000. Some £100,000 has been spent by the council on a feasibility study to explore how the historic asset can be brought back into use for the benefit of the community.

 

 

As for Hopwood DePree, he is currently weighing up a legal challenge, believing he has a contractual option to purchase the hall which he claims to have exercised.

He said: “For years I have personally funded many efforts that have enabled the Hopwood Hall Estate rescue project to progress.

“The funds I have spent do not include any of the thousands of hours of my time. Rescuing a derelict building is expensive and requires a huge commitment but I was willing to take on that role as a partner with Rochdale Council.

“’Invest in Rochdale’ is their slogan. That is exactly what I did, moving over to Rochdale Borough from the USA, because I trusted the council and believed in the community with all my heart. It is now hard to believe that any council would then turn around and treat us in this way. Wow, what a life lesson this shocking experience has been.

“In my opinion, Rochdale Borough Council is not capable of taking care of Hopwood Hall Estate as evidenced by the complete dereliction they allowed the historic Hall to fall into under their ownership.

“At this point, I cannot commit to working with Rochdale Council, Rochdale Development Agency or Hopwood Hall College until there is a full investigation into what led us into this situation.

“A top priority for me is our incredible team of community volunteers who have been ‘kicked to the curb’ and treated with complete disrespect. The volunteers have worked tirelessly to help rescue Hopwood Hall and the detrimental impact this sudden unexplained lock-out has had on their mental health and well-being appears to have been disregarded by those organisations, whose actions run counter to the very community which they are supposed to serve.

“The volunteers and I are in touch regularly and I will be ensuring that there are activities for the volunteers which we can all enjoy to keep spirits high during this challenging time.”

 

 

 

A spokesperson for Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Hopwood Hall is grade II listed manorial hall which is owned by the council and has been out of use for a number of years.

“In 2017, the council entered into an options agreement with Hopwood DePree which gave him the option to buy the building for a nominal fee if he could produce a commercially viable business model to secure the long-term future of the hall, alongside a detailed planning permission.

“Although this agreement has been renewed a number of times since 2017, a viable business case and funding strategy has not been forthcoming, and so the council’s cabinet has made the decision to not renew the options agreement.

“The council sees Hopwood Hall as a very important part of Middleton’s heritage and wants it to play a key role in the area’s future. Over the last seven years, to support the restoration of the hall and protect its long-term future, the council has funded and commissioned a series of repairs to the building and, alongside other public bodies like Historic England, has invested almost £1.7m into the building.

“As a council, we have a duty to protect public money and important, council-owned assets like Hopwood Hall, and ensure they have a viable future which will benefit the wider community.

“For that reason, we have commissioned independent financial consultants to assess the business model proposed by Hopwood Productions and they concluded that these proposals would be loss making and unlikely to be able to secure future public or private funding.

“As Hopwood DePree has not been able to produce a viable proposal, despite having had seven years to do so, and having been given advice and support from the council and Rochdale Development Agency throughout that period, in order to protect the public monies invested to date, we now have a responsibility to explore alternative options.”

Leader of Rochdale Borough Council, Councillor Neil Emmott, added: “Hopwood Hall is a local historic asset which means a great deal to the people of Middleton and indeed the wider borough.

“Something as important as this is about much more than one person, however well-intentioned they may be. Public assets are owned by our residents and we cannot allow them to transfer to a private individual without a great deal of care.

“Mr DePree was asked to meet a number of conditions when we entered into our agreement with him. We would be failing in our duty to protect our historic assets if we didn’t hold Mr DePree to the terms of this agreement.

“We know that many local residents have put their heart and soul into Hopwood Hall’s restoration as volunteers on the project. We’re very clear that we will continue to involve those volunteers and the wider community in any future plans.”

George Lythgoe, Local Democracy Reporter