Facelift brings 21st century style to Sheffield’s historic Globe Works

A facelift has brought 21st century functionality and style to one of the Sheffield’s most famous and historic buildings.
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Globe Works, at the gateway to Kelham Island, is a Grade II listed property dating back to the birth of the Industrial Revolution.

The ground floor facelift has created five offices, three private conference rooms, a breakout area, kitchen and sports shower room.

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Award winning design and fit-out specialist OVO Spaces were brought in by the site’s owner, Matthew Davison of Davison Property Investments, for the improvements.

The facelift has brought 21st century style to Sheffield’s historic Globe WorksThe facelift has brought 21st century style to Sheffield’s historic Globe Works
The facelift has brought 21st century style to Sheffield’s historic Globe Works

“We were basically given free rein to design and visualise how the space could work, with a video walk through presentation which has subsequently been used to market the property and attract new tenants,” said OVO Spaces chief executive David Baldwin.

The work retained original features such as oak beams, cast iron structural columns and a late1900s security safe that is now a coffee table in the meet and greet lobby.

“OVO Spaces is based in one of Sheffield’s best known historic buildings, the Terminal Warehouses in the Canal Basin, so we have experience of what is needed to make these historic properties fit for business purpose while satisfying the requirements of modern building regulations, listed building planning restrictions and all other statutory requirements,” said David.

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“By taking the Globe Works space back to its shell, we were able to carry out a very sympathetic refurbishment, retaining the building's natural beauty.”

Partly due the digital marketing document and the work carried out by OVO, the building has now welcomed Simon Tillyer and his team from Vouch Online Ltd, a specialist tenant referencing company.

Globe Works was built in 1825 for the tool manufacturers Ibbotson and Roebank and is believed to be the world’s first purpose built cutlery factory.

In the 1970s, Sheffield Council called for the building, with its imposing frontage overlooking Penistone Road, to be removed from the register of listed buildings so it could be bulldozed to make way for an urban motorway.

That plan never materialised and the building survived years of neglect to be converted into office space in the 1980s.