An exciting regeneration scheme in Stoke-on-Trent is on track to transform an industrial area of the city into a multi-million-pound canalside urban hub.

The Goods Yard development will be on the site of Swift House which was previously the old ‘Goods Yard’ station, adjacent to Stoke Railway Station, as it is known today, and aims to bring this once bustling station back to life with a new purpose.

As investment into Stoke-on-Trent continues, the joint venture between developers Capital & Centric and Stoke-on-Trent City Council aims to revolutionise the site and turn it into a cultural and community destination for locals and visitors alike that will include a mix of residential homes, a hotel, commercial office and leisure space, due for completion in 2024.

Our work as Civil, Structural and Transport engineers on the project will see us collaborate with members of the design team to transform the area of the land currently used as a storage warehouse, once a historical goods yard for freight via the railway, into a thriving urban quarter that will bring people together and boost the local economy. Working with Glenn Howells Architects and Landscape Architect, Re-form, the site includes a new build ten-storey residential building providing 174 homes, for which we have developed the structural design.

An existing dramatic fan-arched vault basement will be redeveloped into commercial and market space, with mezzanines and events space, and the current industrial shed above will be dismantled and replaced with a new single-storey commercial pavilion. Our role involved us carrying out a feasibility study to determine the historic loading criteria of the basement structure. This involved an investigation into the original design loads of the basement, and a comparison with the proposed loads associated with the new Pavilion on top to demonstrate a net zero uplift in load, to avoid any strengthening works to the existing masonry structure.

As part of our commitment to our Climate Charter, we also prepared an appraisal of the various framing options available for the new Pavilion, including an embodied carbon analysis of each, using the IStructE’s carbon calculator tool. The basement vault will include a feature entrance staircase, with a focus on natural light through newly-inserted sun tubes at the peaks in the ceiling vaults and  a disused signal box building on site is to also be retained and converted for commercial use

Understanding the importance of the historical value and charm of the existing site and buildings, The Goods Yard will celebrate all we can learn from its restoration process and all we are yet to enjoy in its future as an iconic destination for Stoke-on-Trent and the Midlands.