Sheffield Old Town Hall: Planning permission approved

After being empty for the last thirteen years, Sheffield City Council announced on Tuesday that Sheffield's Old Town Hall will be renovated.

This comes after a campaign from the group Friends Of Sheffield Old Town Hall, who have been calling for the restoration of the building for over five years.

"We have worked very closely with the developer to make sure we preserve the building as much as we can," said Cllr Mazher Iqbal, Cabinet Member for Business and Investment at Sheffield City Council.

Developing a building of such historical significance in the city is a huge honour

"The detailed work that we have already undertaken on this building shows how much pride we have in making sure it was not demolished, but preserved and restored."

The Old Town Hall was built between 1807 and 1808. Many of its traditional features typical of 19th century architecture have remained, but are in desperate need of renovation.

"I intend to retain the features of the building, including restoration where it is needed,'' said Efe Omu of Aestom, the local Sheffield developer of the Old Town Hall.

"Developing a building of such historical significance in the city is a huge honour. I am thrilled to be able to breathe new life into the building and it is my mission to be sympathetic to its importance to Sheffield."

In 2013 the Council launched the 'Rediscovery of Castlegate' project, which aims to make the area a thriving hub in Sheffield once again. The restoration of the Old Town Hall will play a prominent part in this.

"Over the next ten years, we want to see it develop into a vibrant hub of life - both reflecting the city's past and embracing the city's future, '' said Paul Houghton, head of Grant Thornton Sheffield and chair of the Castlegate Partnership.

''The Old Town Hall is a vitally important element of this development, and we welcome the consent which will breathe new life into this fantastic old building."

Brittany Holder