94-98 English Street, Dumfries
Converting a Town Centre Building
This project involves the conversion of the upper floors of
a neglected town-centre building in Dumfries to create two new residential
units, a large six-bedroom flat and a separate one-bedroom flat.
The property sits within the Dumfries Conservation Area and occupies a constrained site that stretches between English Street to the front and Shakespeare Street to the rear. Rather than a single coherent building, the site is formed from a series of historically distinct structures that have been combined and altered over time.
A key part of the design process was understanding how the different parts of the structure related to one another, and how they could be adapted to form coherent, well-planned homes while retaining the character of the original fabric.
The proposals focus on bringing the long-vacant upper floors back into use whilst allowing the ground floor commercial use to continue uninterrupted. Access to both residential units is taken from an existing close, with the original stair reused for the larger flat. The six-bedroom flat is arranged as a shared home suitable for professional or student occupation, whilst the one-bedroom flat provides self-contained accommodation within a previously unused attic space to the rear.
Externally, changes are deliberately limited. New openings are confined to existing or previously altered locations, with an emphasis on repair and consolidation rather than alteration. The works include replacement windows, masonry repairs, renewal of plumbing and heating services, and thermal upgrades to improve the building’s performance.
The project demonstrates how complex, piecemeal town-centre buildings can be carefully adapted to provide much-needed town centre housing. Planning permission and Building Warrant have been secured, and the client is now progressing the project towards construction.
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Project Details
Location - Dumfries, ScotlandStatus - Consents Granted
Structural Engineer - Finite Engineering