She’s over 100 and, not surprisingly, starting to look her age.

Now Wigan’s Edwardian town hall is set for a facelift.

Over the next 12 weeks specialist contractors will carry out repairs to the distinctive red terracotta facade of the former mining college in Library Street that has, for the past eighteen years, been at the centre of the borough's civic life.

Work will start on the Hewlett Street side on September 29 and move to Library Street from November 3.

The council says disruption will be kept to a minimum and access should be maintained at all times.

The listed building, which dates back to 1903, was recently surveyed and some of the terracotta found to be in urgent need of repair to prevent pieces from ‘spalling’, or breaking away.

A council spokesman said: “The town hall’s terracotta facades are what gives the building its distinctiveness. The survey showed that in some places there is a danger that pieces could come away and potentially be a hazard to passers by.

“While the contractors are doing the urgent repairs they will also assess the condition of the remainder of the terracotta work.”

The work is being done in partnership with NPS (Wigan) and specialist contractors Maysand.

Wigan Town Hall factfile

  • Wigan Town hall owes its origin to the town’s once dominant coal industry and unlike other northern town halls wasn’t originally built for council use.
  • Opened by the Countess of Crawford (of Haigh Hall fame) in 1903, it provided a new home for the expanding Wigan Mining and Technical College.
  • The college developed out of the Wigan Mechanics Institute, and by the turn of the century was regarded as one of Britain’s top places for training mining engineers.
  • As the nation’s pits dwindled, the demand for specialist engineers reduced, and other departments of the expanding technical college moved in.
  • By the end of the 1980s, Wigan College of Technology needed larger premises. At the same time the council was looking for more offices and following a complex series of moves Wigan’s ‘new’ town hall opened in 1990.
  • It received the royal seal of approval in November 1991, when excited crowds lined Library Street to greet the late Diana, Princess of Wales, when she performed the official opening.
  • The town hall today contains much to fascinate visitors who are interested in Wigan’s proud history. The walls of the Charter Suite function room display replicas of ten royal charters granted to Wigan since it became a borough in 1246.
  • The striking atrium - a former brick courtyard now converted into a stylish room for functions and weddings – includes plaques bearing the names of former mayors, rectors and other dignitaries from medieval times.
  • Also on display in the town hall are important pieces from Wigan’s civic regalia, including ceremonial swords, maces and halberds.

With its original stained glass windows, the former assembly hall turned council chamber provides an impressive backdrop for civic decision making.