Reading black history mural to be restored in flats plan

The 36m-long mural on Reading Central Club features paintings of prominent people from history

A black history mural will be restored as part of a new housing plan, developers have said.

The 36m-long artwork on the side of Reading Central Club features paintings of prominent people from history, including Terrance "Jeff" Allamby.

The building has been closed since 2006 and Reading Borough Council initiated a process to sell it off in 2018.

There are now plans to replace the two-storey building with a four-storey structure, and restore the mural.

The mural's artist said his work "gave voice to Berkshire's black community"

The artwork was at the centre of protests in 2017 after Reading Borough Council sold the club building to a private developer, leading to fears over the mural's future.

As well as Mr Allamby, who was killed in Reading in 1996 after an alleged drug gang dispute, the artwork features other key figures in black history, including Harriet Tubman, Olaudah Equiano, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Toussaint Louverture and Bob Marley.

Artist Alan Howard has previously referred to his creation as a "unique cultural product of national significance" which "gave voice to Berkshire's black community".

The developer said the mural would be protected before work starts

Before work begins, developer Red Line Land Ltd said the painted face of the mural wall would be "protected from even minor damage", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It said the artwork would be covered in a protective padded layer, boarded over with construction grade plywood and stabilised with a steel frame.

The new building would be four storeys with 17 flats, two of which would be classed as affordable housing

The new building would contain seven one-bed flats, seven two-bed apartments and three three-bed flats.

Only two of the 17 apartments would be designated as affordable which is below Reading council's requirement for 30% of sites with 10 or more dwellings to be affordable housing.

The building would have no car spaces, due to its proximity to the town centre, but would include 20 bicycle spaces.