by Emma Grove

The Island’s historic dockyard has been added to a worldwide list of at risk heritage sites.

Sheerness Dockyard is one of just six sites in the British Isles and 93 sites worldwide to have been placed on the World Monuments Fund’s World Monuments Watch for 2010 list.

The aim of the list is to raise awareness of the sites and involve people in their regeneration and development.

Other sites on the watch include Machu Picchu in Peru and the Phajoding Monastery in Bhutan and other temples, churches and walled cities from around the globe.

The dockyard was nominated for inclusion on the list by Will Palin, secretary of Save Britain’s Heritage and Justin Webb, who both live in Naval Terrace; the unaltered Georgian terrace in the dockyard which is facing potential development.

Mr Webb is in the process of forming a Sheerness Dockyard Preservation Group which will aim to work with the World Monument Fund to raise awareness of the site and promote it.

He said the group is not against development but they want it to be done in a sensitive and appropriate way.

Mr Webb said the heritage of the Island is in his ancestry; when he researched it he discovered his father’s family came here in the early 19th century, and that the only reason would have been to work at the dockyard.

He said: “It is a unique collection of buildings and for me it’s like a full circle; my family helped build it, my father and grandfather worked in the dockyard and now I’m hopefully saving it for the future.

“I’m ecstatic it has been accepted onto the list. It’s a long road but we have got the right people to show that it’s a lovely place.

“Lots of people have ignored it for so long so hopefully the World Monument Fund can do something about it.”

Paul Glock, marketing manager for Peel Ports which owns the Port of Sheerness, said: “We are interesting in maintaining the heritage buildings within the docks and will work with the various groups to achieve this.

“We are trying to do our utmost to bring a variety of buildings back into use.

“A building by itself not used will degenerate.

“Part of our wider regeneration plan is finding a heritage solution.”

To find out more about the Sheerness Dockyard Preservation Group, visit http://www.sdpg.org.uk/

Georgian heritage

Sheerness Dockyard as it is today was designed, constructed and completed in 1815.

The entire complex of Georgian style docks, boathouse and structures were built in one major phase of construction.

The site is a combination of grade one, two and two star listed structures as well as its Georgian architectural heritage, economic history of the port and its military and naval history.

The Dockyard has served as a port for large vessels and an important point of defence against naval attacks since Roman times. At present it is a commercial port.