BBCOn Thursday Sir Keir Starmer commented on plans to demolition a bus stop in Norfolk. It may not be a topic you would expect a prime minister to discuss, but the Sheringham bus shelter saga found itself escalating all the way to the top of government.
What started with a consultation about a new travel hub for the Norfolk coastal town, led to protesters camping inside the 1950s structure in Station Approach for nine days and Sheringham Town Council holding a meeting to discuss the issue.
The town council has now withdrawn support for the shelter’s redevelopment and Norfolk County Council has ceased its work at the site – but how did we get here and what will happen next?
Sheringham Town Council owns the land the shelter sits on in Station Approach, but the site is controlled by the Norfolk County Council.
The shelter features a mural of a steam engine travelling through fields of poppies – a tribute to the resort’s railway heritage.
Norfolk County Council said the site did not meet modern accessibility standards and was “unsafe”.
From 2-26 May, Norfolk County Council ran a public consultation on a proposed £580,000 redevelopment of the land for a new transport hub, which would see the shelter demolished and replaced.
On 14 October the county council confirmed that work would begin on 27 October.
However, by the middle of November, opposition to the plans became apparent.
Katie Hart, who lives in Sheringham, started a petition on 19 November to save the shelter – which has since gained more than 4,000 signatures.
By 1 December, protesters had started to camp at the shelter overnight to resist the demolition.
On 8 December, bailiffs were sent to remove them and were unsuccessful.
The bailiffs were then halted until the outcome of an emergency Sheringham Town Council meeting on 10 December.
The town council ultimately voted not to support the shelter’s demolition, after a narrow vote of six councillors to five.
Norfolk County Council, while saying it was “disappointed” with the vote, agreed to stop work and withdraw from the site.
Date spot
As the situation developed, many people shared why they cared so much about the bus shelter.
After launching her petition, Ms Hart said: “It’s used, it’s respected, there’s no vandalism on it, which I find quite remarkable. We’ve maintained this well, as a community.
“We’ve looked after the artwork inside. People respect it.”
Liz Withington, Sheringham councillor at North Norfolk District Council, said: “We were laughing on Saturday saying we were prepared to have Christmas lunch in here.
“For some people it might just be an old bus stop, but it’s a whole cultural history of Sheringham in that bus stop.
“We’ve had people coming up to us and saying, ‘I had my first kiss on my first date with my husband in there’.”
Chris Pearman, a protester who slept in the shelter, said: “I believe in this bus shelter. My boss has kindly given me a split shift today, and I’m back at work at 3 o’clock until seven, and I’ll be back here this evening.”
‘It will be better than anything new’
Mandy Sellick, 53, who is disabled and partially sighted, said the shelter would be better for her than the redeveloped one that was planned.
“It’s a beautiful bus shelter,” she said.
“It’s art deco, it’s warm, the new one coming up is flimsy, you can’t get wheelchairs in it. The seats are impractical, the new one won’t serve its purpose as well as this one has,” she added.
Rob Emery, 55, said the style of the shelter must be protected, adding: “It’s 1950s, it’s art deco style, there are only a handful of these left in the country,” he said.
“There are some people who feel very strongly in the town about preserving this bus shelter,” he added.
Mr Emery said the town council’s vote of support shows “local democracy still matters”.
During a visit to Norfolk on Thursday, Sir Keir Starmer said he was “not surprised” people have strong views on the shelter and Norfolk County Council should “listen and respond” to them.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said residents had “made their views known” and urged the county council to “get on with the job”.
After confirming it would withdraw from the site, a Norfolk County Council spokesperson said: “A key element of the proposed scheme was to widen the footpath outside the existing bus shelter, which is currently one of the main pinch points in the area.
“Without the ability to create this essential additional space, the scheme cannot go ahead as planned. The wider footway was necessary to reduce congestion between waiting bus passengers and pedestrians moving along this busy section of pavement.
“Because this pedestrian safety concern will now remain, we will need to review future arrangements for bus services at this location in order to solve the issue.”
