News: Fast-growing franchised pizza brand targets Rotherham

A young successful UK pizza chain with a rapid popularity growth in the market looks to be heading to Rotherham.

A vacant unit on College Street in Rotherham town centre would be brought back into use, if plans are approved.

An application has been submitted to Rotherham Council on behalf of Caprinos Pizza, an award-winning brand that offers Italian American cuisine with menu items suitable for adults, children, and to share with family and friends.

Offering "joy in each slice," Caprinos is one of very few pizza brands offering a Halal menu across all of its branches.

The plans are for a change of use for the 980 sq ft unit from a café restaurant to a restaurant and hot food takeaway (sui generis).

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Agents, Smith Surveyors, have the property listed as under offer, having advertised the rent at £15,000 per year.

The application, drawn up by planning consultants, Mason and Marlowe, states: "The property was a restaurant called Jo & Anna’s Zapiekarnia, with a menu that includes burgers, fries, pasta and steak dishes, plus Sunday dinners and English breakfasts. The new owner is Caprinos Pizza. The proposal is for a change of use from café restaurant to a restaurant and hot food takeaway."

From a single store in Didcot in 2014, Caprinos Pizza now operates over 120 stores across the UK, with additional locations in Ireland and Pakistan. The Rotherham move is part of plans to open 20 new UK stores in 2026 and reach 200 UK outlets by 2030.

The chain’s range of pizzas, includes the Asian Classic Mix with tandoori chicken, Vegetarian Supreme, and Caprinos Special featuring tandoori chicken and spicy beef.

The menu also includes sides and salads, loaded fries, wraps, desserts, and milkshakes. Recent new additions to the pizza menu include the Firecracker and La Espanola.

The last pizza chain to open in Rotherham town centre was Papa John's in 2018, but that was one of 43 "underperforming" UK stores that closed in 2024.

Caprinos Pizza website

Images: Caprinos / Smiths

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News: Demolition marks end of a chapter in Rotherham regen scheme

Demolition work is well underway to make way for a brand-new community hub in the heart of a Rotherham town.

Planning permission was granted for a new library at Wath in 2024 as part of a scheme that is backed by government funding.

A new two-storey building will be built on the site of the existing library, as part of a £9.9m community and commercial development being delivered by Rotherham Council. Last year a Stage 1 Pre-construction contract was awarded to Tilbury Douglas following a competitive tendering exercise.

The new Wath Library project is set to include a state-of-the-art library building, improved public realm, redesign of the site to enhance connectivity and visibility of town centre offer, and address perceptions of security, provision of a new commercial unit in prime location on the market square to attract new businesses, improvements to facilities for learning, working, and making, and improvements to the car park.

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Demolition work began in February and as it takes place, stage 4 design work is being carried out.

Cllr. John Williams, Cabinet Member for Transport, Jobs and the Local Economy at Rotherham Council, said: “It’s great to see real progress on site. This project will create a modern, welcoming space for the community and play a key role in Wath’s future.”

In May, Rotherham Council's cabinet approved a further £2.04m for the project which secured £9.9m from the government's Levelling Up funds.

A council report set out that detailed contractor pricing and refinement of the scheme following appointment had "identified cost pressures that cannot be accommodated within existing contingencies."

Cost increases were due to an increase in demolition costs of around £800k, largely due to the presence of previously unidentified and significant levels of asbestos.

An increase in construction costs and inflationary increases due to delays in tendering, contractual negotiations, design and cost assessments and additional design fees all added to the rising costs.

An option to stick with the original £9.9m budget was discounted as providing a smaller building footprint and changing to the external design would require a full redesign and new Planning approval, causing significant delays to the project.

The report adds: "The scheme for Wath Library was developed with the aim of transforming this prominent site in one of the Borough’s principal settlements, with high quality place making in order to restore the cultural heart of the town centre, increase footfall, boost the local economy, and restore a sense of pride within the community.

"The scheme includes demolition of the existing library and the creation of a brand-new library to deliver a modern, inviting, and inclusive community facility. The redevelopment is designed to enhance the visitor experience between Biscay Way and the High Street to encourage visitors into the town centre."

Images: RMBC

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News: Vistry submits plans for 785 more homes in Rotherham greenbelt

A planning application has been submitted for the largest single development yet for so-called "safeguarded land" in Rotherham.

Rothbiz has reported on a number of recently proposed developments in Rotherham that are for sites in the local plan that were designated as "safeguarded land" rather than sites designated for housing. The 2018 plan set out that they may be needed in the future and taken out of the greenbelt after the end of the plan period in 2028.

Planning consultants are hoping to convince the local planning authority that the land should be used now to address the borough's housing needs.

Rothbiz reported last year that Vistry Group, the company that builds more UK homes than anyone else, had engaged with agents to begin planning enquiries with Rotherham Council on a large parcel of farm land near Dinnington.

Now an application has been submitted for up to 785 dwellings on 26.28 hectares of agricultural land at Oldcotes Road.

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Savills listed the site near Throapham for sale as development land. Historically in arable use, it is next to a smaller residential development site to the west which is owned by Harron Homes and is under development.

Rotherham Council is no longer able to demonstrate a Five-Year Land Supply given the changes at a national level that have increased housing targets. The target for new house building per annum in Rotherham has increased from circa 560 dpa (Dwellings Per Annum) to 1,111 dpa.

Savills, the agents for Vistry, said in the plans that "speculative planning applications for residential development in sustainable locations represent the only way to realistically meet this clear need for housing.

"The proposed development will make contributions necessary to mitigate impacts on infrastructure that places it above capacity. This would be in addition to payments required via the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).

"Due to the scale of development, there will be a material increase to the use of local services. There are no services where this effects of this would be severe and mitigation measures are possible. Such increases where they exceed the capacity of existing services will be funded through the Section 106 agreement and through the Community Infrastructure Levy."

With two main access points, one via Heathrush Drive onto Oldcotes Road, and one via Leys Lane, plans show a range of house types and sizes with at least 25% affordable housing. The application also includes details of play areas and open space and a SUDS (Sustainable Drainage System) attenuation basin.

Vistry Group website

Images: Vistry / Google Maps

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News: Lloyds bank to return to Rotherham town centre as Halifax name set to disappear

Less than a month after announcing plans to close another branch in Rotherham as part of plans to close 79 branches across the country, Lloyds Banking Group announced plans that will see the Lloyds name return to the town centre.

Rothbiz reported last month that the Rotherham town centre branch of Lloyds is closing on October 15 2026.

The last closure was the Wickersley branch in 2023 with the group saying that most customers are now using the app, online services or phone banking.

An announcement last month said that Lloyds would become the group’s lead brand in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as the Halifax brand changes to Lloyds.

The rebrand will mean that the Halifax branch at Howard Street, the last branch in the whole Rotherham borough, will become Lloyds.

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Halifax and Bank of Scotland have been part of Lloyds Banking Group since 2009. Since early 2025, customers of all brands have been able to manage their accounts across all Lloyds Banking Group branches and customers can already manage all their accounts in a single app or phone call.

There are no immediate changes for customers, and everything will continue to work as it does today.

Existing Halifax customers will start to use the Lloyds app in the coming months and will see their accounts rebranded to Lloyds over time. As part of this change, the Halifax brand will stop opening new accounts.

Jas Singh, CEO, Consumer Relationships, at Lloyds Banking Group, said: "As Halifax changes to Lloyds, our Halifax customers will keep everything they know and love today – the same fantastic app design, the same friendly faces in our branches – even the same sort code and account number. But as Lloyds customers, they’ll get the best innovation and experiences we offer. Our Lloyds customers are already benefiting from a significant investment into propositions like Club Lloyds, Lloyds Premier, Lloyds Ultra and Lloyds Rewards – and now we’re really excited that Halifax customers can bank on Lloyds for more."

The rebrand is expected to take place in 2027.

Lloyds website

Images: Google Maps

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News: Further uncertainty as Rotherham pub goes up for sale

The future of a pub restaurant in Rotherham is still unclear after its owners put the site up for sale.

Rothbiz reported earlier this year on bosses at Whitbread, the leading hospitality business, putting in place a refocused growth plan in the UK to replace all remaining branded restaurants following a review.

The decision created uncertainty for many of the company's sites including The Brecks in Rotherham which is part of Whitbread's Beefeater portfolio and is connected to Premier Inn Rotherham East, part of the UK's biggest hotel brand that is also owned by Whitbread.

Now Whitbread has appointed expert agents Christie & Co to offload a raft of pub restaurants across the UK, including The Brecks.

Expanding its "Accelerating Growth Plan" Whitbread said that 197 branded restaurants would be replaced "with a more efficient and tailored F&B [Food & Beverage] offering for our guests."

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By April Whitbread said that it had already agreed the sale of 51 branded restaurants for £50m and agreed terms for the sale, subject to conditions, on a further 60 sites.

Around 100 remaining properties are being offered for sale as going concerns with trade fixtures and fittings included in the purchase price.

The freehold of The Brecks on Wickersley Road has been given a guide price of £750,000 + VAT.

The particulars for the "Prime Roadside Location" property states that it is an "opportunity to acquire a long-established food-led pub restaurant operating under the recognised Beefeater brand [that] benefits from consistent breakfast, lunch and dinner trade, strong family customer base, established wet and food operation [and] repeat local custom."

It adds that the adjacent hotel-related trade supports breakfast and evening demand for the pub restaurant that has 150 internal and 80 external covers.

The Premier Inn on East Bawtry Road secured planning permission last year for a 4,800 sq ft two storey extension to the east of the current hotel. It would take the total rooms at the site from 62 to 76.

It has been widely reported that all Beefeater pubs will close in September.

Whitbread website

Images: Christie & Co

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