THE restoration of Barnsley Civic’s mosaic floor has won a prestigious award.

The Grade II-listed building is located in the heart of the town centre, and has received major restoration work over the past year.

Isa Celik, of Opus Tile Restoration, was handed the challenge of restoring the beautiful mosaic flooring for the benefit of residents for years to come - and his work saw him pick up a trophy at The Tiling Awards.

He said: “As a mosaic and tile restorer it is always a great pleasure to be part of a community project.

“We would like to think we have contributed to Barnsley Civic restoration in many ways.

“Before any restoration could begin it was our duty to study the existing mosaic floor in detail for a better understanding of the original craftsmanship and their mindset.

“Although the mosaic floor was installed in the late 1800s, it has strong connections and similarities with Roman mosaics.

“Italian craftsmen would have been brought over for the work and have been familiar with the principles seen in ancient Roman mosaics which were used to create aesthetically pleasing and congruent lines which they then applied in their own way on this specific floor at the The Civic.

“During the structural repair we have not used any modern tools with the exception of a vacuum cleaner.”

Dan Winder, the CEO and artistic director at The Civic, added: “We were excited to work with Opus Tiles to repair our Italianate floor tiles.

“For over 100 years, generations of Barnsley folk have marked the passage of time across our beautiful floors.

“As we look to our upcoming sesquicentennial celebration it is wonderful to bring this hidden layer of history back to its former glory.”