University of Sheffield spent £1.8 million rebuilding Henderson’s Relish factory

A sum of £428,000 was spent on professional fees; £493,000 on enabling costs; and £968,000 on rebuilding costs.

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An additional £400,000 was spent on demolition of the ancillary garage and construction of a retaining wall.

The work was initially planned to take 40 weeks, but was extended to 68 weeks.

The university was granted planning permission in April 2022 for the site to become a public space. There were previous plans for the building to be used as a café, pub, or restaurant.

In the planning permission application, the university said: “Although owned by the University of Sheffield, the building is intended to be for public use, not just for students, creating a diverse space for visitors and offering job creation opportunities.”

Rachel Parham, relationships manager at the University of Sheffield said: “The work to preserve the fabric of the building, which has included an entirely new roof and a rebuild of half the structure using the original bricks, is now complete.

“In December 2021, we had to remove a building to the rear of the site due to structural damage from severe adverse weather, and so our project to preserve the fabric of this building - the ‘House’ - was to ensure this iconic piece of Sheffield’s cultural heritage would remain for many years to come.

“Now that we’ve been successful in the preservation, we are considering the future use of the building, and further details will be announced in due course.

“We’re really pleased with completed works which meet the overall planning aim summarised in the Conclusion section of the Design, Access and Heritage statement within the planning application: ‘The overall aim of this proposed work is to stabilise the condition of the building and create a safe and stable site that can then be developed further for reuse at a future stage.’

"As noted on page 8 of the same document ‘it is envisaged that a further application will be required for the further development of the site’.”