Today’s visit to Sunderland by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge offered a great opportunity to celebrate the amazing transformation our city has undergone in recent years.

There was a real sense of community spirit as crowds welcomed the couple to the former Fire Station in High Street West -; now an amazing arts hub with dance, drama, heritage and bistro facilities.

Projects such as this prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Sunderland’s best days are not behind us, but most definitely still to come. Our city is well and truly on the cultural map.