This letter of objection was sent to Derby City Council by our Vice-Chairman Ian Goodwin on the 30th of June 2026.

Dear Sir or Madam,

Objection to outline planning application ref. 26/00042/OUT: a mixed use development on the Derby Assembly Rooms site.

Derby Civic Society objects to the current outline planning application for a phased mix use development, comprising a hotel, office building and a community building.  We recognise the importance of revitalising the Market Place and the wider city centre, but we do not accept that demolition of the Assembly Rooms has been justified, nor that the alternative of refurbishment and reuse has been properly tested against the current proposal.

Our objection is based on the points below, which draw on the Society’s previous correspondence with Sam Dennis dated 5 June 2026 and on the Society’s long-standing concern for the civic, cultural and architectural future of this important city-centre site.

1. Demolition should not be permitted before the replacement scheme is certain

The Assembly Rooms should not be demolished unless and until the replacement development is certain to proceed. In our view, any permission must include a robust condition preventing demolition until all three replacement buildings have detailed planning approval and until signed building contracts are in place for their construction. A development agreement alone would not provide sufficient assurance that the city will avoid a cleared site, stalled works or prolonged inactivity in this highly sensitive and prominent location.

The current application is in outline. The most important decisions about detailed design, delivery, phasing, access, servicing and heritage impact would therefore be deferred to later reserved matters applications. There is a real risk that the proposed Made, Works and Hotel buildings would not come forward together, leaving gaps in the Market Place and Full Street frontage for an extended period. That risk is unacceptable for a site of such civic importance.

2. Refurbishment and reuse have not been properly assessed

The Council’s position appears to proceed on the basis that reuse is no longer a realistic planning option. Derby Civic Society does not accept that conclusion. A refurbishment scheme for the Assembly Rooms received full planning approval in 2019 under reference 19/00898/FUL, although that approval later expired. The existence of that consent is material because it demonstrates that a reuse approach was previously considered capable of approval in planning terms.

The Society has put forward an alternative approach based on refurbishment of the existing building and retention of its civic and cultural role. We understand that the proposed community uses within our refurbishment concept closely mirror those within the current Made proposal. On that basis, the business case comparison should not simply dismiss refurbishment; it should test it against the same operational assumptions, including car park income, retail rental income, performance income and other historic and projected revenue streams.

3. RAAC, asbestos and building condition are not decisive reasons for demolition

The Society accepts that the presence of RAAC in the roof structure is a serious issue and that it must be addressed. However, RAAC replacement is a refurbishment challenge, not automatically a reason for demolition. Our previous response allowed a substantial provisional sum for roof replacement and associated structural works, including repairs to the concrete frame and car park structure.

Similarly, if asbestos has now been removed, it should no longer be relied upon as a reason for rejecting refurbishment. We also understand that existing services have already been stripped out, which is consistent with the installation of new modern mechanical and electrical services as part of a refurbishment scheme.

The building’s deterioration, including water ingress and glazing failure, should not be treated as a justification for demolition without full scrutiny. Much of the worsening condition appears to have resulted from the building remaining closed and under-maintained. A proper structural engineer’s report should be obtained and published before any conclusion is reached that the reinforced concrete frame cannot be reused.

4. The refurbishment option may offer a quicker and more economical route

The Society’s refurbishment proposal is intended to be a basic but high-quality refurbishment of the existing building fabric, appropriate to an iconic civic building of its period. Our indicative budget is approximately £50 million, including replacement of the RAAC concrete, with an estimated contract period of around 24 months.

By contrast, the outline redevelopment proposal carries significant programme risk because it depends on demolition, reserved matters approvals, detailed design, contractual arrangements and the separate delivery of three new buildings. We consider that, properly assessed, refurbishment could add only a limited period to design work while potentially saving a substantial period during construction. It should therefore not be dismissed as causing delay without a transparent comparative programme.

5. The Assembly Rooms still has a civic and cultural role

Derby Civic Society does not accept the assumption that a large performance space is no longer required in the city centre following the opening of Vaillant Live. The Assembly Rooms has historically served a different and important civic purpose: a venue for professional and amateur orchestras, bands, schools, youth music, Derby Arts Festival, Sinfonia Viva, pantomime, graduation ceremonies and other community-based cultural activity.

These activities stem from the local community and are central to the Assembly Rooms’ civic mission. They require a city-centre venue of adequate scale and accessibility. Smaller performance and cultural spaces in a new development would not necessarily replace that role. The cultural, educational and civic value of the existing building should therefore be treated as a material part of the planning balance.

6. Access, parking and viability concerns remain unresolved

The Society remains concerned about the access and parking arrangements associated with the proposed new buildings. The existing Assembly Rooms car park can serve the Cathedral Quarter and the Assembly Rooms throughout the day and evening. By contrast, the current outline proposal appears to provide no equivalent parking, limited drop-off facilities and unresolved access arrangements for disabled users and servicing.

We have also been advised by local chartered surveyors that there is no clear evidence that a national five-star hotel operator or Grade A office developer will currently commit to Derby on the basis assumed. Before outline permission is granted, the Council should demonstrate that the proposed mix of uses is deliverable, viable and supported by credible market evidence.

7. The Council should retain control of its civic asset

The refurbishment of the Assembly Rooms would allow the City Council to retain control of its own asset, to phase work if necessary, and to use its own financial arrangements rather than relying on a developer-led approach. The Society is concerned that a development agreement may not provide the same certainty as direct building contracts for each element of the scheme.

At the very least, the planning authority should require clear safeguards that prevent demolition before replacement construction is fully secured, funded, programmed and contractually committed. Without those safeguards, there is too great a risk that Derby will lose the Assembly Rooms without any guaranteed public benefit in return.

8. Conclusion

For the reasons set out above, Derby Civic Society respectfully objects to outline planning application ref. 26/00042/OUT. We ask Derby City Council to refuse the application, or at minimum to defer determination until a transparent, like-for-like assessment has been undertaken of the refurbishment and reuse option, including structural evidence, programme comparison, whole-life carbon implications, cultural value, access and parking, deliverability, viability and a full business case.

If the Council is nevertheless minded to grant outline permission, Derby Civic Society asks that any permission include an express condition preventing demolition until all reserved matters and detailed approvals for the three replacement buildings have been granted and legally binding building contracts, with agreed implementation timescales, are in place.

Yours faithfully,

Ian Goodwin
Vice-Chairman
For and on behalf of Derby Civic Society