The Roundhouse, Listed Grade II*, is one of Birmingham’s most interesting, and iconic, industrial heritage buildings. A pioneering partnership between the Canal & River Trust and the National Trust, with funding from the NLHF Heritage Enterprise programme, has brought it back to life through an innovative blend of heritage and enterprise. The 19th century canal-side building has been transformed into a hub from which to explore the city by foot, bike or water. 

The horseshoe-shaped building, a real landmark in the city, was built in 1874 by the Birmingham Corporation and originally used as stables and stores; serving as the base for the City’s lamplighters and the horses of the Public Works department. The refurbishment project has given the building a brand-new purpose, offering visitors the chance to see the city differently through a range of sustainable volunteer-powered guided and self-guided city and canal tours. The Kayak tours of the City’s Canal network are especially popular.

The project involved the extensive restoration of the building including urgent conservation works to the roof; major internal structural repairs; the relaying of part of the cobbled courtyard to provide universal access; stripping back previous inappropriate alterations; reservicing and improving energy efficiency; and reconfiguring the building to accommodate its range of new uses. 

The reopened building is a thriving home to local businesses and enterprise. It includes a visitor centre, café, kayak hire, facilities for volunteers and shared working space. In addition to a permanent exhibition explaining its history, there are spaces for temporary exhibitions linked to community events and festivals.

To create a vibrant day-to-day culture there has been a focus on building a permanent community of users working on site. This has resulted in dedicated workspace provision for the NT and the C&RT client bodies combining with a shared working space available to the local community. The management strategy for the site is supporting a growing network of volunteering opportunities. It is hoped that it will attract 50,000 people a year, both from the local community and visitors from further afield.

Local independent businesses operating from the refurbished building include Sustrans, a charity dedicated to make it easier for people to walk and cycle, and Johnathan’s in the Roundhouse, a restaurant and tearoom whose customers can enjoy everything from an exceptional barista coffee & slice of cake to a sumptuous quintessential afternoon tea or a relaxing three course Sunday lunch.

The National Trust has relocated their Birmingham Office, becoming an ‘anchor tenant’.  Their new office includes a ‘touchdown’ style open plan working space that is used principally by NT staff based in the Midlands – but is a popular base for their national staff too. There are no ‘owned’ desks – all working areas support Agile work modes of project interactive, social interactive, focussed work and formal meetings – with an adjoining meeting space.  

A flexible space with carefully considered ‘smart’ furniture, was created by designing clean, simple joinery additions whilst respecting the existing industrial space. A contemporary take on the historical horse stalls creates beautifully crafted oak divisions, soft furnishings and plants provides working spaces and is proving to be a very popular regional hub and an exemplar for other National Trust Office refurbishments. Staff are encouraged to make the most of the unique location by going for walking meetings along the canals.