East Lothian Council has announced that the first stage of construction works for the development of a heritage park within the former Prestongrange Colliery and Brickworks between Prestonpans and Musselburgh is well underway with the erection of the steel framework for a new Engine Shed.

The Engine Shed will be a purpose built location to house the locomotives, rolling stock and artefacts which are currently in the Bathhouse at Prestongrange.

Councillor Colin McGinn, Cabinet Spokesperson for Community Wellbeing, said: "East Lothian Council is embarking on an ambitious project to develop a heritage park at Prestonpans which draws upon and reflects the rich industrial past and associated industries at this location. It will not just raise the profile and acknowledge the past – one of the aims of this new heritage park is to consider how industry develops through the generations to meet specific needs. In the 21st Century we are focusing locally, nationally and of course globally on the Climate Change crisis and associated environmental impacts and the park is being designed and constructed to be as carbon neutral as possible."

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The construction of the engine shed is expected to take around 30 weeks with projected completion in the Spring of 2023.

To complement the Council's allocated capital budget (of £1,531,750 over the period 2020/21 to 2023/24) for this project, funding of £685,921 was received from the Scottish Government RCGF (Regeneration Capital Grant Fund) in March 2021 with a further £150,000 from this fund in March 2022.