Dewsbury Arcade
The Dewsbury Arcade is a beautiful shopping centre, which has been a focal point in the town centre since the late 1800s. However, it has now stood empty for more than 7 years.
We purchased the building in 2020 - one of the first steps towards the Dewsbury Blueprint - and the regeneration of the arcade became one of the blueprint's key focuses going forward.
The plans
The renovations happening now will enable the arcade to reopen as the UK's first community-run shopping centre, leased and managed by the Arcade Board - a community business formed specifically for this purpose.
Once renovated, the arcade will have 16 small shop units and four larger ones, as well as six upstairs studios which could be used by artists, as office spaces or for events.
One of the most recent features of the renovation that is taking place is internal work beginning on the first sample shop unit to showcase potential retail space, highlighting the possibilities for business. This includes the installation of a new boiler and, mechanical and electrical systems.
Together with the Arcade Board, we want to fill the arcade with independent local traders, along with a new, high quality food and drink offering. These plans will work really well with the neighbouring Dewsbury Market - another key focus of the blueprint - and other local traders, driving more footfall into the town centre.
We also want to restore and maintain the Grade II Listed building's historic architecture, future-proofing a piece of Dewsbury's history whilst bringing the much-loved shopping centre back into use. For this reason, we're thrilled that William Birch & Sons are undertaking the construction work - they're a Yorkshire-based company who specialise in working with beautiful heritage buildings.
Key milestones so far of the Arcade renovation include the installation of new steel trusses that will provide strong, long-lasting support for the roof and new Velux windows to provide more natural light.
Iconic new stone 'Arcade' lettering has also been restored on the Marketplace side, underpinning the building's historic importance to the town.
Roofing work on both the Marketplace and Corporation Street sides of the arcade is complete with only minor guttering works remaining and three critical support columns have also been replaced in the former Moneypenny unit.
Additional works on block and beam flooring in the Marketplace bookend units, shopfront restoration, and stone repairs are ongoing.
Funding
This work is funded by £4.5million from the National Lottery Heritage Fund , grants from the Dewsbury Town Board and West Yorkshire Combined Authority, support from the government's Getting Building Fund , and capital funding from the council.
Once reopened, the shopping centre will be managed by the Arcade Board without further financial input from the council.
