News: Plans emerge for Snail Yard site

Redevelopment plans are finally taking shape for a site on the heritage High Street in Rotherham town centre that was acquired by the local council in 2020.

Proposals involve new offices and residential units replacing a temporary pocket park and a vacant plot.

Rotherham Council purchased the former Primark building in November 2020, using funding from the Towns Fund Accelerator programme after the Government awarded a £1m grant to kick start regeneration projects in Rotherham town centre.

Demolition work took place and the authority had set out to complete a pocket park by September 2021 before targeting the Women's Euros in July 2022. It eventually fully opened in 2026 with project costs of £920,000.

Now plans are being brought forward by Rotherham Council's development partner for the prominent site.

Rothbiz reported earlier this year on details of the projects from social impact developer Capital&Centric, who have been awarded a contract to develop five council-owned sites that could reach up to £100m in value.

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Whilst residential-led plans are being progressed for other sites, for Snail Yard, a smaller-scale, mixed-use development is proposed, centred around a courtyard concept.

Early stage planning documents show two new blocks. A new block fronting the High Street, potentially on top of the current pocket park, would contain 2,600 sq ft of commercial space and four residential units. A second block would create 9,500 sq ft of office space and external deck space. The formation of the blocks would also create a hidden courtyard space.

The plans, drawn up by Urbana planning consultants, explain that the development is "principally commercial-led, bringing a substantial amount of new employment-generating floorspace into the heart of Rotherham Town Centre, supplemented by a modest residential component" that would compliment rather than replace commercial use.

The homes are all set to be four bedroom properties adding larger family accommodation to the residential mix in the town centre.

The plans add: "The proposals seek to reinstate the commercial uses which were once occupying the site prior to its temporary use as a pocket park. In this instance, the proposals bring high street uses back to the High Street, restoring an active built frontage and introducing additional activity, employment and footfall."

New housing and increasing the resident population of the town centre is being used as a way to "support the vitality and viability of its existing and emerging commercial, leisure and community offer."

On the design of the development, and given that the site is in the town centre conservation area and close to listed buildings, the developers set out that the proposals "do not seek to replicate historic development, but instead provide a contemporary development which responds to the established scale, rhythm and character of its surroundings and allows the site to make a positive contribution to the evolving character of the Conservation Area.

"Overall, the proposals represent an opportunity to deliver a significant improvement to the character and appearance of this currently fragmented part of Rotherham Town Centre."

A council cabinet report from earlier this year stated that the scheme is not considered viable without some form of public sector funding and the council is working with Capital&Centric to find gap funding.

Capital&Centric website

Images: RMBC

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News: Rotherham-based bed retailer win national business award

Rotherham's MattressOnline has been named as Online Bed Retailer of the Year at a prestigious industry awards.

The Aldwarke company has an emphasis on technology and has established itself as a pioneering force in the e-commerce landscape as the first mattress retailer to bring next day delivery to the mainstream. It also operates a number of bricks and mortar stores.

The firm's success was recognised at the recent 2026 Bed Federation (NBF) Industry Awards.

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The judges described the category as "exceptionally close" and said: "MattressOnline clinched the title after another year of growth and development, while retaining the agile and collaborative approach at the heart of its operation.

"It saw healthy year-on-year increases in orders, units sold and revenue. It launched 68 new products, 73% made by NBF-approved members, while maintaining a 4.8 Trustpilot rating. Sustainability remains central, with more than 164,000 mattresses saved from landfill since 2015.

"Its community impact was another highlight, delivering almost 1,800 items to over 400 South Yorkshire families through its support for Baby Basics and tackling bed poverty."

MattressOnline CEO, Steve Adams added: "Winning Online Retailer of the Year at the National Bed Federation Awards is a huge moment for everyone at MattressOnline. It recognises the hard work of our entire team who put helping people find the best night’s sleep at the heart of everything they do.

“Buying a mattress is a big decision - and our job is to make that journey simple and reassuring. To, once again, be named Online Retailer of the Year by the NBF, the voice of our industry, tells us we're getting that right. We're very proud, and we're even more determined to keep doing the right thing for our customers - both here in our home of South Yorkshire and to the wider UK."

Mattress Online website

Images: Mattress Online

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News: Rotherham is the blueprint for a new age of industrialisation

The successful regeneration of the former Orgreave site in Rotherham and the creation of the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) has been highlighted as a blueprint for a new age of industrialisation by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

John Healey is the government’s chief financial minister and MP for Rawmarsh and Conisbrough. In his speech at the Labour Party Conference, he said that the site's transformation is "how Britain's industrial past is being remade now for the modern world."

Healey said: "My politics have been shaped by the industrial heartlands of South Yorkshire.

"And the most brutal day of that bitter miner's strike was at Orgreave. Today on the site of the Orgreave pit is Rotherham's Advanced Manufacturing Park, one of the most concentrated areas of innovation anywhere in Britain. It's where South Yorkshire's young people are now working with high-tech systems, making things their grandparents could never have dreamt of.

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"One of those young people is Shaun. Shaun's dad was a local miner, but there were no pit jobs for Shaun. So, he joined the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. He joined as an apprentice. And so, while his dad mined the coal that kept Britain's lights on, above that same coal seem, Shaun is now working on high-tech research for the future of nuclear power.

"Our coal mines are not coming back. But this is how Britain's industrial past is being remade now for the modern world. It's how people are starting to tell each other stories of the future and not the past. And this is a story we can tell across the country.

"This is the new age of industrialisation. This is the new confidence in Britain, lit by this government, driven forward by business. So don't tell me it's not possible to create a new age of British industry. Don't tell me it's not possible to have good growth in every postcode. And don't tell me that people can't hope again."

Healey also confirmed a £300m investment in sites across the country from Rolls-Royce which includes the £21.3m expansion project at its Advanced Blade Casting Facility (ABCF) on the AMP in Rotherham.

In June, Rothbiz reported on the Northern Powerhouse Partnership (NPP) analysis of the AMP and Rotherham which showed that real gross value added (GVA) grew in the AMP area from £111.6m in 2004 to £369.8m in 2022, a 231% increase in real terms, the strongest of any area in the borough by a substantial margin.

Healey's speech started with banter with the Prime Minister watching on: "I know Manchester is a great city, just like Liverpool is a great city, but give me Rotherham any day of the week."

Images: Labour Party / YouTube

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News: Rolls-Royce Rotherham investment is a statement of intent and a vote of confidence

Rolls-Royce has announced a landmark £300m investment in its manufacturing and engineering facilities across the UK.

It includes the previously announced investment in its facility in Rotherham.

Rothbiz revealed last year that the world-leading engineers were planning to invest in Rotherham and in March this year came the the confirmation of a £21.3m expansion project at the Advanced Blade Casting Facility (ABCF) on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP).

Tufan Erginbilgic, CEO of Rolls-Royce, said: "Our manufacturing facilities in the UK are home to the very best of British engineering talent. This £300 million investment is a clear statement of our intent. Rolls-Royce is committed to growing the UK’s advanced manufacturing sector and we are proud to be building infrastructure needed to power Britain's future.

“World-class facilities across the UK will ensure that Rolls-Royce remains a global leader in both commercial aviation and sovereign defence, while supporting thousands of highly skilled jobs both directly and through our supply chain.”

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John Healey MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer, added: "This £300m investment by Rolls-Royce is a powerful vote of confidence in Britain's future and in the economic stability this Government is delivering.

“From Derby and Bristol to Rotherham, Glasgow and Warwickshire, it will back skilled jobs, strengthen our sovereign industrial capability, and help drive growth in communities across the United Kingdom.

“At a time of increasing global competition, Britain must be the best place in the world to invest, innovate and build. Today's announcement shows that confidence in our country is growing and that world-leading British firms are investing for the future.”

The £110m Rolls-Royce facility in Rotherham was officially opened in 2015 and is where turbine blades are manufactured for Rolls-Royce's world-leading aeroplane engines.

With a grant of £2m from from the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), a total of £21.3m is funding an increase in the facility’s capability and productivity, doubling its output of advanced turbine blades – a critical component in jet engines – by 2030.

The investment programme also demonstrates Rolls-Royce’s long-term commitment to the UK, providing multi-year stability to the hundreds of domestic engineering partners, component manufacturers, and small-to-medium enterprises that provide the company with the parts and services it needs to deliver for customers. In 2025 alone, Rolls-Royce spent more than £2.8 billion with UK-based suppliers, with the vast majority spent with businesses located outside of London and the South East.

Rolls-Royce website

Images: Rolls-Royce

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News: Rotherham hotel plans move forward

Further progress has been made with plans to create a hotel in a historic industrial building in Rotherham, five years after an original application was approved.

Rothbiz reported in 2021 that plans had been given the go ahead to convert part of the former Effingham Works on the edge of Rotherham town centre into a 23-bedroom hotel.

The relocation of Rotherham retailer, Fosters Cycles, saw part of the building go up for auction at the start of 2015 with a guide price of £100,000. The 10,000 sq ft property sold afterwards.

Plans to turn the historic building into houses in multiple occupation (HMO) were refused due to its close proximity to allocated industrial and business sites.

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As the amenity requirements of hotel guests are materially different to residents of an HMO in planning terms, permission was granted, subject to pre-occupation conditions around noise and odour mitigation and controls.

Recently submitted plans relating to noise, from applicant, Mr D Butt, have recently been approved by Rotherham Council.

The plans include a Final Noise Assessment and a Sustainable and Public Transport Scheme.

No hotel bedrooms overlooking Beatson Clark glassworks to the north are propposed, all hotel bedrooms overlook the dual carriageway to the south.

The development is set to be called Thames Hotel. The 2020 application set out that: "It is the applicant's intention to arrange his business so that it largely caters for visitors to Rotherham. The proposal would bring back into use what is currently an underused property and require minimal external alterations. The use would therefore bring this building back into use and enhance and preserve the building."

One condition of the planning approval is that it is only for a hotel use for short term guests, as any future long term residential stays (eg more than one month) for use as their main residence is likely to fall within the category of a HMO.

The three storey property called Thames House, makes up a large portion of the former Effingham Works, a rare surviving piece of industrial architecture in Rotherham.

Not a listed building, it is however on the South Yorkshire Local Heritage List.

It was built in 1855 for Yates, Haywood and Co. as an extension to the earlier Effingham Works located to its north-east, following the acquisition of the former Walker's Foundry. The works produced world-renowned stove grates and it was reputed at the time it was built to be the largest factory of its kind in the world.

Images: Mark Jenkinson & son

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