An historic drinking fountain gifted to the people of Fenton 163 years ago will be moved to a new location.

The stone fountain donated by industrialist William Baker has stood at various sites in the town since it was first installed in Victoria Square in 1861, most recently on a grass verge in City Road.

During the construction of the Sutherland Court and Beardmore Court flats the fountain was removed and put into storage. Now, Stoke-on-Trent City Council is set to install the fountain at its new home on Baker Street.

But anyone hoping to use the fountain to quench their thirst will be disappointed – the fountain will not be connected to the water mains and so will be purely decorative. According to a planning application, the council believes that due to its style and age, the fountain will be 'well suited' to the location within the Albert Square conservation area.

The application states: "One on the main buildings within this zone is Fenton Town Hall which was commissioned by William Baker whose family thirty years earlier had gifted the drinking fountain to Fenton. The relocation of the drinking fountain onto the proposed site and into the conservation area strengthens the visible ties of the Baker family and the Pottery firm to this area."

Potteries Heritage Society agreed with the proposed location, but said that it could see 'no justification for its reinstallation as a decorative, rather than functioning, fountain, as William Baker intended. The application has now been approved by council planners.

The Bakers are often described as 'the family who built Fenton'. William Baker, who ran the family's pottery factory, financed a number of the town's buildings, including an infants school, Fenton Athenaeum and the vicarage.

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