Birmingham architect with design £16m conversion of Cadbury HQ

BIRMINGHAM-based architect Bryant Priest Newman has been appointed to redesign the historic former headquarters of Cadbury’s in Bournville.

The £16m project to redevelop Franklin House into 79 one and two-bedroom apartments, including four penthouse suites featuring internal courtyards, will see BPN Architects working closely with local developer Court Collaboration to transform the 1960s commercial building into ‘The Franklin’, a collection of modern residences in the Birmingham suburb.

Richard Newman, lead architect on The Franklin and partner at BPN Architects, said he was excited by the potential of what is such a prominent building in the city.

“By transforming a former office space, we have been presented with many design opportunities that we wouldn’t have been able to factor into a new-build,” he said.

“We’ve been able to use the large floor plans to create a real sense of openness in each apartment while maintaining spacious bedrooms and including separate storage spaces. We’re also retaining the high ceilings, adding a sense of opulence to the apartments, a feature unseen in new-builds due to the cost.

“We’ve also been able to look closely at the building to incorporate a large amount of the original features including its spectacular ‘Festival of Britain’ 1950s balustrade which spans the wide staircase.”

Anthony McCourt, director at Court Collaboration, which purchased the building in a joint-venture with Hong Kong-based Headland Developments on behalf of its Chinese investors, said: “BPN Architects brings a huge amount of experience and vision to The Franklin. Richard and his team are using their experience of similar redevelopment projects to help us realise our vision to create beautiful homes in this important building.

“BPN Architects has worked tirelessly to transform the exterior of the property from something that looks like a tired, 1960s office block to something residential and modern, without losing any of its character. It understands how the building’s heritage fits in with the Bournville community and is working to incorporate as many of the original design elements as possible. It is this attention to detail that will enable us to create truly unique homes.”

BPN Architects is working across all of Court Collaboration’s development projects including the £10m redevelopment of Sutton Coldfield’s Council House.

Work on The Franklin commences in April and the project is due for completion in early 2016.