James Gray, a resident of Hexham, raised concerns about potential damage caused to the historic railway station in the town.
Mr Gray, who uses the station most days to commute to work in Newcastle, said he saw a Network Rail worker in uniform repairing the building’s stonework by ‘injecting a horrible grey sealant’ to fill in gaps.
It is a Grade II listed building, according to Historic England.
The grey sealant used in the stonework, which Mr Gray said has damaged the building (Image: James Gray) “This is an important historic listed building which has been both defaced and damaged for no good reason,” Mr Gray said. “The sealant will have to be removed before re-mortaring.”
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “This was a temporary measure taken to address an issue with vermin. We are working with our colleagues at Northern on a longer-term solution.”
The sealant used in the building’s gaps (Image: James Gray) Mr Gray replied that using this sealant was ‘inappropriate and insensitive’.
“Using a dark grey sealant to fill holes in the stonework and mortar joints in the sandstone of a historic listed building in the heart of Hexham was wholly inappropriate and insensitive.
“It was also ineffective against vermin since – if that was the intention – only some holes were filled. Removing it will likely cause further damage to the stonework. If the holes had been filled with an appropriate mortar in the first place this could all have been avoided.”