The £6.2m building, called the Pencil Works, is funded through the Stapleford Towns Fund. It has been designed to offer high-quality facilities to support the town aims of becoming a great place to visit, work and do business. Stapleford was awarded £21.1m from the Government to generate improvements across the town.
The building is projected to create 50 jobs and 1,000 square metres of new retail, leisure and office space.
Plans include a creative makers’ space for specialist craftspeople and artists, three retail units for food/drinks outlets, public toilets, and disabled parking and bicycle storage on the ground floor, and flexible office space for small businesses on the first floor.
Subject to planning permission, work would get underway in winter with completion in late 2025.
The architect’s visualisations are subject to change as plans develop over the coming months in partnership with local people. A formal public consultation on the plans will take place in October 2024, including a drop-in event for local people to meet the team and ask questions.
Paul Sweeney, Director, Robert Ellis Estate Agents, said: “The Pencil Works will become an iconic landmark building in the centre of the town.
“It will deliver a much needed 21st century commercial space for a variety of businesses which will provide a synergy to the existing commercial enterprises in the town, increasing business to business activity, and becoming a destination that attracts people from the local community and further afield who will spend time and money in Stapleford.
“The creative space will be something not seen before in Broxtowe. It will provide artisans an outlet to work and collaborate with others. The front lends itself to businesses to provide an outdoor cafe/bistro vibe and will flow into Walter Parker VC Memorial Square, providing a more usable outdoor space for markets and events.”
Ian Jowett, Chair of Stapleford Towns Fund, said: “The Towns Fund is all about helping our town get back on track and this is one of our largest projects that aims to support local businesses, artists and creators, and create jobs.
“Though this investment we can offer the very best facilities and something different to other towns. We want to give people a reason to come to Stapleford for work, leisure and pleasure, as we know this will really help to boost our local economy.”
The inspiration for the name has been taken from Stapleford’s historic F. Chambers & Company Limited Pencil Works factory which resided on Broad Oak Drive from 1915 until 1973. The company was the first to manufacture cosmetic pencils for Boots in 1931. While they sold their business in the 1990s, the Chambers’ family still produce pencils in Stapleford.
