The North Eastern Railway extended Durham station in the early 1870s and this work included the construction of a waiting room for ladies travelling first class. Long under-used, the space was suffering from water ingress and deterioration before the Ouseburn Leisure Group took the room on and created a new bar serving the station. Described by one of the National Railway Heritage Awards judges as ‘a first class scheme for a first class waiting room’, the restoration work was given the Hendy and Pendle Commercial Restoration Award at the 2018 National Railway Heritage Awards at a ceremony held in London on 5 December 2018. The plaque was officially unveiled by sponsors Sir Peter Hendy and Sue Pendle at Durham on Friday 18 October.
