Ballater station back on track following multi-million pound restoration

Morgan Sindall Construction has handed over a high-profile, multi-million pound project to restore Ballater Old Royal Station in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

The company was appointed to the project through Aberdeenshire Council’s Main Contractor Framework after the original station was almost completely destroyed in a fire in May 2015.

The listed building is located near Balmoral Castle and was historically used by the Royal Family during their visits to the area. Although the station ceased operations in 1966, for the last 15 years it has been leased to Scotland’s national tourism agency, VisitScotland, for use as a tourist information centre and a museum celebrating the station's history.

The building’s principal elevations have now been reinstated, matching the original Victorian architecture, including a restoration of Queen Victoria’s waiting room.

There is also a new library and larger exhibition space added to a visitor information centre and restaurant.

Stuart Parker, managing director of Morgan Sindall in Scotland, said: “This was a highly complex project that required attention to detail and specialist skills in order to bring the building back to life following the fire while maintaining the original heritage features.
“Our team has worked very closely with Aberdeenshire Council, Historic Scotland and Cairngorn National Parks to ensure the accuracy of all of the external detailing, some of which had to be hand carved on site.
“We’re thrilled to see the station restored to its former glory and look forward to it continuing its function as a stronghold of the area’s cultural history and tourism industry for many years to come.”

Aberdeenshire Council will now begin the fit out of the building, which is expected to reopen to members of the public in the summer.

• For more information about this news release please contact Ellie Riddy or Jonathan Daly at Influential on 0161 804 1400 or email [email protected]