Member Article

Harrogate entrepreneur completes school house conversion with bank funding

Harrogate entrepreneur Mark Hinchliffe today announced the completion of the local iconic Sunday Schoolhouse at Grove Road, Harrogate in to a luxury dwelling with funding from Barclays.

The Sunday Schoolhouse, which was originally built in 1896 at a cost of £2356, has been used until fairly recently when the Church decided to sell and move elsewhere in Harrogate.

The first phase has been completed in a 26 week timescale.

Mark Hinchliffe, who bought the schoolhouse and chapel earlier this year, has completed phase one of the development by converting the 3500 sq ft property into a luxury residence which will shortly be going on the market.

The conversion, which may also feature on Channel 4’s Restoration Man shortly, has been a labour of love with many of the materials sourced locally to retain the original charm of the building.

Phase 2, which is the conversion of the Chapel into a luxury residence for him to live in will commence shortly.

Mark Hinchliffe said: “This has been an ambitious project right from the start and I was determined to use quality fittings throughout and retain as many features as possible. Barclays provided funding for the conversion and I’m now looking forward to my next project converting the chapel next door.”

Phil Whitaker, Real Estate manager for Barclays who provided funding for the deal said: “It’s great to see the conversion completed on time and to Mark’s high standards. It’s been a pleasure working on this deal and we’re looking forward to working with Mark on his next project.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .