Charity to downsize after 180-years in Nottingham

The Nottingham Mechanics Institute, was established in 1837 as an educational charity for factory workers

A charity which has been running for more than 180 years says it is downsizing and selling its building to a university.

The Nottingham Mechanics Institute was one of many organisations across the country which helped educate British factory workers during the Industrial Revolution.

The branch was established in 1837 and eventually became a social and educational facility.

But it has been under threat for the past 50 years, according to manager Adam Carlton, who said it was now in the process of selling its building in North Sherwood Street, to Nottingham Trent University (NTU).

The charity moved into its current home in 2003, next to Nottingham Trent University's Design and Digital Arts building, which opened in 2024

The charity opened its own hall in Milton Street in the city centre in 1845, where a TK Maxx store stands today.

Various famous literary figures visited the hall and performed for large audiences, including Charles Dickens, Mr Carlton said.

He said one story told from the early days of the charity was that Dickens had performed a number of times but on one occasion, when the audience was not paying attention, he returned to his hotel and "got drunk".

Other high-profile visitors to the institute included Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, who led British expeditions to the Antarctic.

'Back to traditions'

Mr Carlton said the charity was once one of hundreds of mechanics institutes across the country, but is now one of only two - the other being based in Ipswich.

Its current building - which it moved into in 2003 - was largely used by outside agencies which hired out its rooms up until last year.

But Mr Carlton said the charity was "trying to go back to [its] roots" in the last year, by running a number of educational courses which are open to all, from history courses to photography.

"We've gone back to the traditions of the Nottingham Mechanics Institute, which is a base for education," he said.

Today, the charity has 160 members - mostly elderly women - who attend activities, courses and social gatherings at the institute.

"It's a great place for them to sit down with people who want to learn about the same things as they want to learn about and have a cup of tea and a bite to eat with them afterwards in the restaurant downstairs," he said.

The charity was housed at Birkbeck House in the 60s, which was demolished in 2005

However, despite its rich history, Mr Carlton said the charity had been "under threat for 40 or 50 years".

"We've got rooms that are too big, we've got a heating bill that's going up, we've got to staff it. Everything about the building is just expensive," he said.

Now the charity is looking for a new, smaller base, where it can fulfil its original mission statement - "to look after people in Nottingham and educate people in Nottingham," Mr Carlton said.

"We're going to look for somewhere smaller that will enable us to start again and allow us to grow slowly," he said.

Mr Carlton added he hoped the charity's next building would have the historic "facade" its previous homes had.

A spokesperson for NTU said: "We are in the process of purchasing the Nottingham Institute of Mechanics building in North Sherwood Street with plans to use for additional teaching and office space."