A church could be turned into flats as new plans are revealed
PLANS to bring an historic former Tamworth town centre church back into use as flats have been revealed.
A planning application has been submitted to Tamworth Borough Council for the change of use of the former Tamworth Central Methodist Church in Aldergate to residential to convert it into six apartments.
The proposals for the currently vacant building seek to provide “modern, contemporary dwellings” and “enhance the general locality by the provision of two bedroom high quality flats in a modern, secure development”.
The main building and two storey rear part was constructed in around 1886 and has been subject to minor external and signficant internal alterations during the last 50 years.
The building is locally listed. There is a large church organ which is Grade II listed and would have to be carefully disassembled by a specialist and removed from the building.
The church was in use until May 2022 when the Methodist congregation vacated the premises and moved to another church in Leyfields.
A statement within the application reads: “The church became surplus to the requirements of the Methodist Church in May 2022 and they put the building for sale. The client purchased the site via an online auction in May 2023 with a view to converting the building for residential use.
“Following the purchase a pre application meeting was held on site on 13th September 2023 with the client, architect and Andrew Davies, planning officer, during which brief outline proposals for the redevelopment of the building were discussed.
“Apart from residential the building has limited alternative commercial uses such as offices or restaurant/ hospitality due to its lack of parking provision within the site, access to and space for deliveries et cetera.
“Since becoming surplus to the requirements of the Methodist Church the site has now been vacant and unused for around 18 months. The building and general surroundings do not yet show any signs of serious deterioration except for some overgrown bushes and weeds et cetera which are becoming unsightly.
“Unoccupied buildings can suffer from accelerated deterioration due to lack of heat and maintenance et cetera. Bringing the building back into use as a residential scheme would preserve a locally listed building from future decay.
“Tamworth Borough Council should welcome proposals to bring the building back into use by converting this sustainable town cente site into residential use.
“The proposals seek to provide modern, contemporary dwellings within the existing building and enhance the general locality by the provision of two bedroom high quality flats in a modern, secure development close to all town centre amenities in line with the Local Plan.”
The applicant is Tommac Building Services while the agent is Architecture Design Development Limited.
For more search 0356/2023 on the planning portal at https://planning. tamworth.gov.uk/northgate/planningexplorer/generalsearch.aspx.