TWO Portakabin buildings have been erected next to York Minster as part of its £5m Centre of Excellence project.

The temporary buildings, which went into place this morning, will house minster staff for 72 weeks while the Minster builds its world-leading facility in Stoneyard.

The Portakabin buildings will feature advertisements promoting the facility.

From February 1, the entire Works department will leave the current Stoneyard in Deangate to allow demolition works to begin.

Other staff will be located elsewhere in Deangate or the lodge on Queen’s Path. The management team will move to the buildings on the site that has recently hosted the Winter Village and other pop-up events.

Once the new offices and welfare are built, the Portakabin buildings will be removed and the area re-turfed.

The centre, which received planning approval last year, will provide training in the heritage craft skills vital for the ongoing repair and conservation of the Minster.

The Centre of Excellence is the pioneer project in the York Minster Neighbourhood Plan, an ambitious masterplan ratified by City of York Council in June 2022.

The centre  is expected to be finished by mid-2024.

A Technology & Works Hub will be one of the two new facilities of the Centre of Excellence.

York Minster has also submitted a planning application to City of York Council to sustainably convert and refurbish 1 Deangate in the Minster Precinct into offices and welfare facilities for its Visitor Experience staff and volunteers.

The building is currently being used as temporary facilities for some of the Stoneyard trades, and will continue to be used as such during the redevelopment of its existing facilities.

If approved, the conversion of 1 Deangate will enable the Visitor Experience team to be housed together, helping the minster further enhance its welcome to over 700,000 visitors annually.

With plans for the building to be fully insulated and equipped with roof-mounted solar slates and air-source heat pumps, the proposals support the objectives of the Neighbourhood Plan, which the Minster says have been developed with sustainability at its heart.

Alex McCallion, Director of Works and Precinct at York Minster, called the arrival of the Portakabin buildings an exciting milestone in the delivery of the Centre of Excellence. They form part of the enabling works ahead of construction starting in the Spring.

He also welcomed the plans to redevelop 1 Deangate, particularly its Net Zero element, which, if approved will deliver energy from solar tiles, a fully-insulated building and air source heat pumps.

Dan Ibbetson, CEO of Shepherd Group and Portakabin says the Minster has innovative ways to support the future of construction.

"Heritage craft skills will play a huge part in honouring the past while preparing York and the Minster for an exciting future," he added.

For more information about the York Minster Neighbourhood Plan, visit: https://yorkminster.org/about-us/master-planning/.