'We live in city overlooking UK's most dangerous prison - it's changed so much'

Wakefield (Image: Getty)

The barbed ligament walls of 1 of Britain’s scariest maximum-security prisons predominate the skyline of the metropolis of Wakefield.

The city, celebrated arsenic the country of humanities medieval battles and its rugby league club, has successful caller decades go synonymous with Britain’s astir unsafe criminals aft becoming the UK's first-ever ultra-high unafraid unit successful 2001.

Serial slayer Harold Shipman was kept determination earlier helium took his ain life, and it is presently the location of paedophile and erstwhile Lostprophets vocalist Ian Watkins arsenic good arsenic of prolific killers Levi Bellfield and Roy Whiting.

But a £20million concern awarded by the Department for Levelling Up past twelvemonth is acceptable to inject a caller lease of beingness backmost into a metropolis that had go tally down pursuing the closure of ember mines successful the country successful the 1980s.

Local nonmigratory Jon Kitchen told Express.co.uk: “It is great, truthful overmuch has been done already successful the city, it’s astir unrecognisable to 10 years ago.

The metropolis has a breadth of past including Sandal Castle, built successful the 12th Century (Image: Getty)

The metropolis has already seen important concern successful caller years (Image: Getty)

“We person Trinity Walk with new, modern shops and aged buildings being turned into thing useful.”

The city, built connected the stream Calder, blossomed successful the aftermath of the concern gyration arsenic the waterway allowed factories to import materials and export goods with ease.

Whilst the city’s solid and textiles industries are agelong gone, galore of the buildings remain, a awesome of what erstwhile was and what could yet be.

One of the projects acceptable for regeneration is the translation of Rutland Mills, the derelict Grade II listed gathering being turned into a “creative industries destination” connected Wakefield’s waterfront called Tileyard North. 

It is hoped the concern volition promote tourists to sojourn sites specified arsenic Newmillerdam (Image: Getty)

Councillor Denise Jeffery, Leader of Wakefield Council, said: “It is incredibly bully quality that we person the go-ahead for the translation of BHS and for the last signifier of the Tileyard North development.

“We privation to supply the services that radical request and the occupation opportunities that this territory deserves.

"This concern volition person a truly affirmative interaction connected the metropolis centre, providing much reasons for residents and visitors to travel to our precocious street.”

The city's architecture is already a large gully for tourists (Image: Getty)

The program hopes to spot a 135,000 quadrate feet originative industries hub, abandoned mill buildings repurposed into commercialized bureau space, leisure opportunities specified arsenic restaurants and a boutique hotel.

The backing besides hopes to make a edifice adjacent to the city’s Westgate bid presumption to instrumentality vantage of the nonstop links to Leeds and London and promote tourists to travel and enactment longer successful the city.

It is besides hoped that the city’s residents volition payment from the backing with the Kirkgate country being transformed into a prime edge-of-city-centre neighbourhood.