Image: A proposed design for the entrance to Anti-Apartheid Legacy Centre of Memory and Learning
The ceremony marks the start of construction for the £3.5m centre in th former HQ of the exiled African National Congress
A new centre telling the story of anti-apartheid history has begun construction with the ceremonial breaking of ground.
Plans were first announced last year for the £3.5m Islington-based project,‘The Anti-Apartheid Legacy: Centre of Memory and Learning’, which will be based at the former headquarters of the exiled African National Congress (ANC) in London.
It is expected to open next year, and to provide a permanent base to explore the history of the movement, the South African liberation struggle and the UK’s central role in this history.
Ground was broken in an event attended by Dr. Debbie Weekes-Bernard, London’s Deputy Mayor for Communities and Social Justice, and trustees of the Liliesleaf Trust UK, which is leading the project, Professor Chris Mullard, Lord Peter Hain, and the His Excellency, J.N. Kingsley Mamabolo, the South African High Commissioner to the UK and Northern Ireland.
The project has to date been funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Mayor of London’s Good Growth Fund, but The Liliesleaf Trust UK, said it is still short of its required target to complete the capital redevelopment.
Professor Chris Mullard, Chair of the trust, said: “We’re grateful to our funders and supporters for making this project possible. The Centre will reduce inequality, promote inclusivity, and empower communities.
“After engaging over 60,000 people in five years, the Centre will be a permanent home for our work, making the history of anti-apartheid solidarity accessible and highlighting how collaboration led to social change.”
