SCHOOLCHILDREN will be encouraged to “write their own story” at the house where the Brontes were born.

The famous literary family is synonymous with Haworth.

But the Thornton property where the siblings were born and lived before the family's move is now in public ownership and will be used for school visits, workshops and literary events.

There will also be a cafe and holiday let bedrooms, furnished to reflect the personalities of Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte.

The Market Street terraced house has been taken over by Bronte Birthplace Limited, which has raised more than £650,000 – a community ownership fund has had grants from Bradford 2025 and the Government’s Levelling Up fund, and a share offer attracted more than 700 investors.

A refurbishment is due to start soon and the aim is to open the property in January, 2025, for Bradford’s year as UK City of Culture.

The public is invited to look around the house at an open day on Sunday, April 21, between 11am and 4pm.

Steven Stanworth, vice-chair of Bronte Birthplace Limited, says: "When the Brontes lived here this was a vibrant, busy house, with six children, and it still feels like a happy family home.

“We want people to live and breathe it, with a combination of visual and tactile experiences.”

An education programme, Be More Bronte, will begin this year, and schoolchildren will be invited to contribute to an ‘ambition wall’.

Gillian Wilson, a headteacher, will run trial education projects.

She said: “I brought a class to Thornton; we stood outside the house and they said, ‘it’s just like my street’. They were expecting a grand mansion.

“Discovering that these three girls came from a small house, and overcame many barriers, is hugely inspiring. So many children see their own barriers as insurmountable. To walk in the footsteps of the Brontes plants a seed of ambition. What they learn here will run through the curriculum.”

Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne were all born in the house. The Grade II* listed building has had various uses, most recently a cafe, and has been empty for four years. Saving it is the culmination of a two-year campaign.

Christa Ackroyd, from the campaign, says: “We want people to sit by the parlour fireplace where the girls were born, be immersed in this house of ambition and be proud of the social changes the Brontes were part of.”