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A PROJECT to develop the clock tower in one of the town’s most historic buildings into a new tourist attraction is gathering pace.

Listed building consent, planning permission and a building warrant to install safety barriers on a walkway around the clocktower at the Tolbooth have been secured and the Forres Heritage Trust who own the building has also received some further funding.

It is hoped the works will be complete by September with a view to opening the attraction to the public shortly after.

The latest successful funding of £11,301.60 was secured from The Beatrice Partnership Fund and will be used to restore the Tolbooth clock and install the safety barriers.

Already, new access stairs which lead up to the walkway have been put in place and as George Alexander, chairman of the Trust, explained as the project is nearing completion: “We are delighted that we are now in the last phase of this project to open the walkway around the clocktower which will give visitors a unique insight into the building but also wonderful views over our historic town.

“We are extremely grateful to have received this latest funding from The Beatrice Partnership Fund and delighted that Moray Council has now issued the building warrant which will allow us to get the safety barriers installed. Once this is done, we will be in a position to open.”

Previously, the Forres Heritage Trust which also looks after Nelson’s Tower, received £20,000 in funding from the Berry Burn Community Fund towards the project. That money has been used to make repairs around the walkway and to carry out extensive pointing of the stonework around the clock tower.

George added: “Clearly the Tolbooth is a historic building so we have to ensure that any works we carry out are done so in keeping with the building.”

The old wooden stairs which were removed by volunteers revealed signatures which it is believed are of workmen who worked on the tower since the early 20^th century.

George Alexander, explained: “We were able to remove the stairs quite easily and in doing so we revealed the signatures. There is always some little gem that you come across when carrying out renovations in a building with such historical significance.”

The project has already received £9375 from the Town Centre Regeneration Funding which was allocated for ‘alterations to the outside gallery around the clock tower.’

A nine-year-old boy stood for over an hour in the rain to make sure he was the first person to visit a north east monument after it re-opened for the first time since the Coronavirus pandemic hit.

Nelson’s Tower in Forres opened on Saturday. It had not been open since it closed for the season in September 2019.

And Teddy Gadalla who was a regular visitor to the Tower before the pandemic made sure he was first in the queue.

He said: “I was very excited when I found out it was opening. I used to visit it every other week and I have missed it. I still came up to Cluny Hill whilst the Tower was shut, but I was excited to be able to go up the Tower again.”

Teddy who attends Drumduan School visited the Tower with his grandma Nahed Gadalla and she added: “I got a call from his mum saying he was excited about it re-opening so he dragged me up the hill. He wanted to make sure he was first so we came up early.”

Teddy and his grandma climbed the Tower with Forres Heritage volunteer Michael Ellison who also allowed him to help raise the red ensign which signified that the Tower is open.

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Despite standing in the rain to secure his spot, the sun shone once Teddy reached the top of the tower.

Michael said: “I have been volunteering with the Trust for four years. It’s great to be able to help people see the view and share the Tower’s history. It was also great to arrive on re-opening day to a steady queue of people. It was quite emotional raising the flag for the first time in almost two years. It’s great to be back.”

Also visiting the tower was Laurie Piper, Chief Executive of Moray Speyside Tourism.

He said: “I am delighted that Nelson’s Tower is open again. It was great to see a queue of people waiting for the doors to open and the Heritage Trust volunteers so happy to welcome visitors back. Visit Moray Speyside were pleased to support the Trust and its volunteers to re-open one of the most prominent visitor attractions in Forres.”

The Forres Heritage Trust is using the Moray Speyside Check & Protect app to securely check in visitors with one simple sign-on.

The tourism organisation also supported the Trust with advice on how to re-open safely.

He said: “I am delighted to see Nelson’s Tower re-open and to see the volunteers back welcoming the visitors. It was great to see people excited for the monument to be open again. Moray Speyside was more than happy to support the Trust and its volunteers to re-open one of the most prominent visitor attractions in Forres.”

The Forres Heritage Trust is using the Moray Speyside Check & Protect app to securely check in visitors with one simple sign-on.

The tourism organisation also supported the Trust with advice on how to open safely.

The Tower which stands on Cluny Hill in Grant Park will open Friday to Monday 2pm-4pm until the end of September.  

To find out more about Nelson’s Tower and volunteering with the Trust please visit: www.forresheritage.co.uk

Nelson’s Tower is set to re-open later this month for the first time since the Coronavirus pandemic hit.

The Tower has not been open since it closed for the season in September 2019.

But now, the Forres Heritage Trust which looks after the Tower has said it is looking forward to welcoming back visitors.

The Tower which stands on Cluny Hill in Grant Park usually opens every day from the start of April until the end of September, but now will open Friday to Monday 2pm-4pm from July 31.

The Trust is also hoping that more volunteers will come forward to help welcome visitors.

Peter Haworth who co-ordinates the volunteers said he was delighted the Tower was opening for part of the season: “We are very excited to be opening up again and whilst we may not have the wealth of overseas tourists that the tower usually attracts, we are looking forward to welcoming those holidaying at home and locals who have missed being able to enjoy the views from the top.”

He added: “A number of our volunteers have decided they can no longer commit to doing stints at the Tower so we are also appealing for more people to support us so we can spread the bulk of the work. We only ask our volunteers to do one two-hour session a month, so it’s not too time consuming, although if people want to do more that is fantastic. All our volunteers are given training and an information pack on the history of the Tower. It’s really fulfilling, and you get to meet so many different people.”

George Alexander, chairman of the Trust said: “Whilst we could have opened sooner than we are, we take the safety of our volunteers and visitors very seriously and it’s only now that we feel that we can open the Tower.

“Some fellow Trustees, ably assisted by other volunteers, have worked extremely hard to find a way to get the Tower open. We have had support from Moray Speyside Tourism who have visited the Tower with us to make sure that we are putting all that we can in place to make the Tower a safe place to visit.

“We will have a track and trace, people will be required to wear masks and the Trust will be providing disposable gloves. The gloves are required as there is a rope ‘banister’ which goes up the staircase to the top of the Tower and it is not possible to wipe this down in a way that we would be happy with.”

In 2019, over 3302 people visited the Tower which was Erected by public subscription, as a memorial to Admiral Lord Nelson.

A historic photo exhibition which is usually held in the Tolbooth will this year be done online.

The Forres Heritage Trust usually hosts two four-day events in May and September showcasing a wealth of historic photos curated by volunteers Ray Mills and Ross Dalziel.

However, in 2020 the exhibitions had to be cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Now, with the May event also not being able to go ahead in the historic building, the Trust has decided to put a small collection online.

Ray Mills who has been supporting the Trust with the exhibitions since 2011 explained: “Last year, both exhibitions had to be cancelled and unfortunately, at least for next month’s event we are still in the same position, so with the support of Claire Doughty who helps the Trust with publicity we have decided to put four collections online.

“It’s certainly different to how we have done things in the past, but myself and Ross are pleased that we are able to showcase some of the pictures that the Trust now has in its possession.”

The albums which will be shown include the Forres Cycling Club, the Royal Visit in August 1961, a collection from the Rev Alan Smith and Forres Academy.

Ray added: “There are around 20 pictures in each album and these are just a small sample of what is contained within the Trust’s hard copy archives and usually displayed at their exhibitions.”

The pictures will be available on the Forres Heritage Trust website from May 5, and the albums will remain on the website and be added to over time.

George Alexander, chairman of the Forres Heritage Trust which owns the Tolbooth and also looks after Nelson’s Tower said: “We are delighted that we are still able to share a small selection of the Trust’s pictures and I thank Ray and Ross for their hard work in pulling this together. Of course we will miss the interaction with the visitors who get so much joy of being able to visit the Tolbooth and talk with the volunteers about the images, but for now, hopefully this exhibition will still please many.”

George added: “We do hope that come September we may be able to invite people back into the Tolbooth for the second exhibition of the year, but at the moment we are just waiting to see how things progress.”

To view the exhibition from May 5 visit: www.forresheritage.co.uk/photo-exhibition

Santa’s helpers have been busy creating a festive trail to encourage people to get out and about in the run up to Christmas.

Following on from the success of its Halloween trail, the Forres Heritage Trust has now launched a Christmas themed hunt with kids young and old being asked to search for the 12 Days of Christmas.

Taking the lead on the project are Trustees Sandra MacIver and Ainsley James.

Sandra who set up the Halloween trail said: “We are absolutely over the moon with the response we got for the Halloween trail which was really simple and was actually pulled together very quickly. We had such great feedback on our Facebook page and people were happy to share their pictures of themselves and their children taking part in the activity. There were a number of people who even dressed up in Halloween costumes and we are hoping that people feel the same way for the Christmas trail and have a bit of fun.”

Ainsley added: “The Christmas trail will run in a similar way as the Halloween one. We have laid out 12 pictures depicting the well-known song 12 Days of Christmas and all people have to do is try and find them all. It is just for fun. The idea is to get people out and about, remind them that Forres has such a beautiful park and get them up to Cluny Hill and around Nelson’s Tower.

“Like many tourist attractions, the Trust has been unable to operate as normal this year, so this is just a gentle reminder that we are still here, working away in the background and that we still want to support our community in the hope that will be reciprocated when we can re-open.”

The Christmas Trail which starts at Mather’s in Grant Park launched on December 1and the pictures will remain in place until just after Christmas day.

The Trust hopes that people will take part and share their images to the Facebook page at @forresheritage and use the hashtag #FHTChristmas2020