Reviving Shrewsbury Flaxmill

The brief for this project called for an exemplar of sustainable refurbishment to support the next 100 years of use for a building with a particularly innovative design heritage.

Opened as a flaxmill in 1797, it was the world’s first iron-frame building and has been described as the ‘grandparent of skyscrapers’. Its combination of cast iron beams and columns, brick arches, and cast iron ties made its construction fireproof, while large windows admitted natural light for its numerous employees. A century later, it was converted into a maltings through a second state-of-the-art design, with windows either blocked up or made smaller, boiler houses demolished, a timber hoist and new tower added, and a large kiln built.

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios have conserved the enduring elements of both uses to provide four floors of flexible working space, while cleverly weaving in a contemporary layer to accommodate a visitor centre and café.

Join us to hear the story behind this project, winner of the RIBA West Midlands Building of the Year 2024 (sponsored by EH Smith) and a RIBA National Award 2024.

This event is organised by the RIBA North West Conservation, Heritage & Sustainability Group and is funded by the RIBA Local Initiative Fund.

Arrival from 5.30pm for a 6pm start. Refreshments will be served.

If you have any special access requirements or any questions about attending, please don't hesitate to get in touch: [email protected] / +44 20 7307 3838

About the speaker

Geoff Rich is an Architect and Partner with Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, based in Bath UK. He takes a leading role in the practice’s heritage, creative re-use and regeneration work. Geoff is a member of Historic England’s Historic Places Panel, a UK Design Council Expert, and Chairman of the Fabric Advisory Committee for Exeter Cathedral. He is a guest lecturer on sustainable development for the Commonwealth Architects Association, a Visiting Professor at the University of the West of England, and a regular lecturer at several UK universities including Bath and Oxford. Geoff is a Winston Churchill Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and a Lethaby Scholar of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. His recent projects include the oldest iron-framed buildings in the world at Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings for Historic England, and the major renovation of Bath Abbey. Previous schemes include projects for Windsor Castle, Hampton Court Palace, The Roman Baths in Bath, and the regeneration of Middleport Pottery. Internationally, his work includes projects for National Museums of Ireland, the Tourist Burma Building (Yangon), Umm Qais (Jordan), and the Shashpul Caravanserai at Bamiyan (Afghanistan).

F urther information

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios is a British architectural design firm, established in 1978, with offices in Bath, London, Manchester and Belfast. The firm is known for its pioneering work in sustainable design and social design agenda.

https://fcbstudios.com/

For more information about the RIBA North West Conservation, Heritage & Sustainability group, or to get involved please contact [email protected].

Host or Publisher RIBA North West