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Ledbury & District Civic Society

Registered Office:

Burgage Hall

Church Lane

Ledbury

Herefordshire

HR8 1DW Butcher Row House Museum

and Burgage Hall.

Ledbury Multiple Asset Transfer

Feasibility Stage Business Plan

March 2014

A Feasibility Study report produced by Ledbury & District Civic Society with

financial support from The Social Investment Business Group under the “My

Community Rights” programme

Ledbury Town Centre

Ledbury Town Council Offices

Public Conveniences

Heritage Centre

Butcher Row Museum

Burgage Hall

Barrett Browning Institute

Market House

Master’s House

St Katherine’s Hall

St Katherine’s Barn

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Ledbury Multiple Asset Transfer

Feasibility Stage Business Plan

Contents

1. Executive Summary ....................................................................................................... 4

2. Introduction and background .......................................................................................... 5

3. Context of the buildings within the community .............................................................. 8

4. Physical condition of the buildings ............................................................................... 16

5. Options for future use................................................................................................... 18

6. Market appraisal of future use options .......................................................................... 21

7. Benefits of future use options for the Ledbury community ........................................... 27

8. Preferred future use and management of the buildings .................................................. 29

9. Estimated costs of repairs and conversion to new uses and programme ........................ 33

10. Potential Sources of Capital Funding ........................................................................ 36

11. Operational income and expenditure forecast and sensitivity analysis ....................... 39

12. Conclusions and action plan ..................................................................................... 44

13. Appendices ............................................................................................................... 46

Appendix 1 – Steering Group membership ....................................................................... 46

Appendix 2 – Consultants engaged for the Ledbury Places scheme .................................. 47

Appendix 3 – Architects’ report, drawings and estimated programme ............................. 48

Appendix 4 – Conservation Management Plans (work in progress) .................................. 49

Appendix 5 – Report from DCA Consultants ..................................................................... 50

Appendix 6 – Report from Quince Retail Consultants ....................................................... 51

Appendix 7 – Report from Montfort Catering Consultants ............................................... 52

Appendix 8 – Communications Strategy, public consultation, PR and marketing activity .. 53

Appendix 9 – Report from Chiene & Tait on VAT .............................................................. 54

Appendix 10 – Painted Room survey report ..................................................................... 55

Appendix 11 – Dendrochronology analysis ....................................................................... 56

Appendix 12 – English Heritage pre-application advice .................................................... 57

Appendix 13 – Five-year income and expenditure forecast and sensitivity analysis .......... 58

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Ledbury Places Business Plan v.04 as issued; 11/03/2014 4

1. Executive Summary

- This Business Plan is the culmination of the feasibility work commissioned by the Ledbury Places Steering Group, examining the potential for the transfer of six historic buildings in Ledbury in Herefordshire to be managed by a new charitable entity;

- It follows on from the Business Case produced in July 2013, and is part of the overall project funded by the Social Investment Business (SIB);

- The Plan is underpinned by a series of studies and investigations carried out by leading professionals including architects, valuers, surveyors, dendrochronologists, tourism, retail and PR consultants, all of which are appended to the main Plan;

- The key aims of the Plan are: o to scope a number of potential uses for the buildings if they were to be

collectively managed; o to test the viability, appraise the market and consult on the community needs

for these uses; o to assess the benefits to the community of the use of the buildings and their

joint management; o to look in detail at the condition of the buildings and the potential capital

works and budget; o to produce a financial plan showing whether the income from the proposed

uses would be sufficient to cover maintenance and other core expenditure; o to recommend next steps.

- Having explored all these points in depth, the recommendations and conclusions from this Business Plan are that there is a strong case to be made for the joint management of these six significant historic buildings, and that the pooling of the income and expenditure would enable the essential maintenance and other costs to be covered;

- The six buildings are currently in different ownership: Herefordshire Council; Ledbury Town Council; the Barrett Browning Institute; and Ledbury and District Civic Society; having explored transfer options, the recommendation is that the new charitable entity will provide efficiencies of a combined management of the buildings, with the charity taking freehold or leasehold ownership or a licence to occupy, as best suits the current owner of each building;

- There are also clear benefits to the community and to visitors to Ledbury in this collective approach, which would tie in well with the work in progress at the nearby Master’s House, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund;

- The management charity will require a subsidiary to deal with trading activities; this is proposed to take a legal form such as a Community Interest Company to offer opportunities for wider community ownership, bringing benefits of embedding the Ledbury Places initiative within the local community and having potential to play an important role in the mix of partnership funding;

- Overall, the recommendation is that further development work needs to be undertaken as soon as possible so that momentum is not lost, and also to address the uncertainty surrounding the future of several of the buildings.

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2. Introduction and background

2.1 This business plan is the over-arching document resulting from phases two and three of the feasibility work for the Ledbury Places multiple asset transfer project, and follows on directly from the Outline Business Case which was the product of phase one, at the end of July 2013. It summarises the findings from an extensive range of studies which have been undertaken during phases two and three, the reports from which are contained as appendices to this document.

It has been written by David Trevis-Smith and Ian Lush, the two main consultants engaged by the Ledbury Places steering group (the members of the group are listed at Appendix 1 below), with input from other consultants (listed at Appendix 2) and all members of the group.

2.2 Ledbury is a small market town with a fascinating history and some fine buildings, including the six examined in this report for potential transfer from various public and third sector owners to be managed by a newly-formed charity and company limited by guarantee. Ledbury is not especially well-known among the wider population of the UK, or even the West Midlands (in which geographical region it sits), and certainly does not have as prominent an image as places of similar scale and range of places of interest such as Ludlow, Totnes or Hebden Bridge. To quote from DCA Consultants’ report for this business plan (see Appendix 5 for the full report):

“[Ledbury has] a rich and varied offer, but could be said to be a bit betwixt and between.

The town is beyond, and distinct from, the Cotswolds. Though nearer still to the Malverns, Ledbury is not generally identified as a Malverns’ town. Similarly, Ross, Hereford and Hay are all on the river Wye and Ledbury is not generally perceived as a Wye Valley town.”

2.3 The Ledbury Places Steering Group has assessed the wider picture than simply the uses for the buildings, putting them into context within the town and also examining the way in which potential uses would interact with existing businesses and public amenities. The work of the consultants and advisers to the Group has taken into account the social, economic and cultural contexts, and extensive consultation has been undertaken with local people, key stakeholders and other organisations. This public consultation process is outlined in full at Appendix 8, but can be summarised as:

Initial consultation took place in Phase 1 of the project in order to understand the expectations, ideas and thoughts of the residents of Ledbury. This also included a questionnaire to determine local levels of use of the six buildings and to gather suggested possible uses. These were collated into the initial ‘long list’ of possible uses for consideration in the business case. The consistent message emerging was the need to protect these buildings, whilst allowing them to be enjoyed by visitors and residents alike. Improvements to access were considered desirable or essential for future use. The questionnaire was made available online and in paper form at various locations in town, supported by a large display about the project. Steering group members have attended many public events, such as the local Farmer’s Market and public meetings. Phases 2 and 3 have used public consultation to test some ideas and keep people informed of the progress of the feasibility study.

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It has become apparent through the period of consultation that the vast majority of respondents were over 55 years of age and more targeted work needs to be undertaken to gather the thoughts of a younger demographic. Work has started with John Masefield High School and the developing social media presence of the project is addressing this in some part, but the steering group would like to work further with younger members of the local population.

Through Ledbury, there is a deepening understanding of the project and the potential that the feasibility study offers to groups and individuals to help with the future direction and sustainability of these assets for community benefit. The communication strategy is working well to attract different interest groups and individuals who would like to assist and support an on-going project and collaborative approach to service delivery in Ledbury.

Additionally public relations and marketing activity has been undertaken to ensure wide engagement through the local media. These are outlined at Appendix 8, and included:

- BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester Breakfast Show interview with Ledbury Civic Society Chairman Alex Clive on 7 February;

- Detailed articles were published on Hereford Times, Ledbury Reporter, Malvern Gazette, Malvern Observer, Worcester News and Ledbury Community Portal websites, closely based on the press information distributed by the project;

- Extensive social media campaign through Facebook and Twitter, the latter reaching up to 27,000 Twitter users through ‘re-tweets’;

2.4 The overall aims of the scheme for the six buildings are as follows:

- Retain the buildings in community or civic management/ownership;

- Improve community access and benefit;

- Protect and preserve the historic fabric of these important buildings;

- Provide a financially sustainable future for these buildings;

- Meet the current and future needs of the key stakeholders in terms of accommodation and improved service delivery opportunities;

- Support the economic and cultural prosperity of Ledbury and surrounding area;

- Provide better interpretation and access to Ledbury’s history and rich heritage, to tell its story in a compelling and coherent way, and to increase visitor numbers as a direct result of this.

2.5 This latter aim – to improve access to Ledbury’s heritage and to increase visitor numbers – is a key one for the project alongside the ones directly connected with the buildings and their use. The buildings which are part of this project and are already looking to attract visitors (the Heritage Centre, parts of the Town Council offices and the Butchers Row Museum) currently have no more than 30,000 visitors a year, most of whom go to the Heritage Centre, and less than half of whom also visit the Butchers Row Museum. This is further put into context by an estimate that there are at least 400,000 general visitors to

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Ledbury each year – so fewer than 10% are currently directly engaging with the heritage offer of these buildings. (All figures from DCA Consultants’ report, see Appendix 5).

DCA Consultants’ assessment, endorsed by the other advisers to the Group, is that with better information, an enhanced offer, a unified approach and state of the art interpretation, visitor numbers engaging directly with Ledbury’s heritage through these buildings could be increased to at least 50,000-60,000 per annum over the first five years of this plan. As well as boosting direct income to these venues, the ‘multiplier’ effect to the town of this increase in visitors could be significant.

2.6 An equally important aim of this project is to enhance community involvement with the buildings and their uses. At present, with the library service leaving the Barrett Browning Institute, there is uncertainty around continued public access to that building, and there is already very limited access to several of the other buildings in the plan. The people of Ledbury do not fully benefit from nor are they involved with these buildings and the study has examined ways of improving this situation, whilst balancing the need to generate sufficient income to cover the management, maintenance and long-term sustainability of these important buildings.

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3. Context of the buildings within the community

The context of each building covered by this feasibility study is summarised here, with current accessibility having been reported upon by Purcell, conservation architects, Mann Williams, structural engineers, and Martin Thomas Associates, services engineers. The inside front cover of this business plan provides a Ledbury town map showing the location of each building and their close proximity to each other.

The feasibility study work has included the production by Purcell of a Conservation Management Plan for each of the buildings and an overarching Conservation Management Plan for the group of six buildings; those documents are work-in-progress and an important source of detailed information about the buildings and about their context within the community, which is summarised in this section.

Ledbury is an historic market town with a main High Street running north-south close to the eastern edge of the town. The six buildings that are the subject of this “Ledbury Places” feasibility study are located within the historic core of the town, either adjacent to the High Street or on Church Lane which branches off to the east.

Ledbury is famous for its many timber-framed buildings; less well known is the long history of the town, its development as a medieval Borough and links with innovation, craftsmanship and trading: themes throughout Ledbury’s history that continue to be seen in the town centre today. The Heritage Lottery Fund supported Masters House project is an important step towards raising the profile of Ledbury’s rich cultural heritage, focusing on the Saint Katherine’s Hospital and Masters House Complex and the poet John Masefield; the Ledbury Places project has potential to build upon the historical interpretation that is in the process of being introduced by the Masters House project, to cover an expanded history of Ledbury and its cultural heritage, poetry in particular.

The High Street forms the main thoroughfare, with buildings lining either side. These are typically set on narrow plots, with long outbuildings extending to the rear. As well as timber-frame buildings there are many attractive Georgian and Victorian buildings, along with a few areas of modern infill. Dominant building materials are timber framing with white painted plaster infill, and brick. The area around the Market House widens and has a more spacious feel, the result of a 19th century clearance scheme to ease congestion with, set back, the row of Almshouses opposite (part of the Saint Katherine’s Hospital and Masters House Complex). In contrast, Church Lane has a very compact and intimate feel due to its narrow pedestrian thoroughfare. The Market House and the clock tower of the Barrett Browning institute are landmarks within the centre of the town. The High Street and roads around Upper Cross at the south end of the High Street can get quite busy with traffic at peak times. There is generally a steady flow of pedestrians around the town centre during the day and on market days (Tuesday and Saturday) the stalls under and around the Market House give a sense of liveliness.

The “Ledbury Places” buildings are also important to the town for their social value. Locals are proud of the buildings that make up their town centre and enjoy their attractive appearance. Many local people volunteer at the Heritage Centre and Butcher Row Museum and have a passion for the buildings. The Ledbury & District Civic Society is also a key community organisation, a charitable institution devoted to the heritage of Ledbury. These

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buildings contribute towards the important heritage offer that the town has to attract tourists from the local area, nationally and internationally.

Each of the buildings is significant in its own right (see the Conservation Management Plans for details); however, what makes the buildings more important is their group value and the key contribution they make to the special character of the town centre. The buildings are all highly valued by the local community for their appearance, history and as a place of work and leisure, as demonstrated by the enthusiasm and passions aroused by the Ledbury Places project.

3.1 Nos. 1-3 Church Lane – currently the Town Council Offices.

Location: Nos. 1, 2 and 3 Church Lane, at the intersection of Church Street, Church Lane and High Street, in Ledbury town centre. Bounded on the north, west and south elevations by public highways and to the east elevation by adjoining neighbouring properties and rear access yard areas. Entrance doors are located on the north, south and east elevations, with two points of access from each of the three separate parts of the building. Nos 1 and 2 both have access points on the north and south elevations with No 3 having access points on the south and east elevations. The property could therefore be split back into its three constituent parts should a mixed use be determined as the best utilisation of the building in future.

Ownership: Owned and occupied by Ledbury Town Council.

Description: Originally constructed as three separate terraced properties since linked internally to create a single building, with elements dating back to the 15th century. The buildings are constructed of traditional exposed timber frame with rendered infill panels, incorporating a jettied projecting first-floor to the south elevation, overhanging the main entrances. The building comprises a number of different sized rooms with internal floor levels being at various heights accessed from four internal staircases. No 1 Church Lane has a cellar, which the surveyors have been advised was historically used as a magistrate’s jail. Toilets are installed to the north end of No 2, incorporating separate male and female toilets on the ground floor, and to the first floor within the Registrar’s office. A further toilet block is installed within the extension to the east end of the building from No 3, accessed off the Clerk’s office. A kitchenette is installed to the ground floor of No 2.

Designation: Grade II* Listed; the overall property is within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Mixed use as town council offices, meeting room and storage, Approved Premises for weddings (the “panelled room”), office accommodation and storage (including Registrar’s office and Ledbury Poetry Festival office), meeting space, and tourist attraction to historic parts (notably the “panelled room” and “painted room”). No 1 accommodates the council meeting room on the ground floor and on the first-floor the “painted room” which retains its 16th century wall decorations. The ground and first-floor for Nos 2 and 3 are used as office accommodation and the second floor attic spaces are used for storage only.

Accessibility: Circulation in the buildings is very complicated due to the different original floor levels in each building and the retention of their original stair enclosures to provide vertical circulation. The domestic scale of the buildings means that as well as floor levels

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being different across the building, corridors and internal circulation routes are very narrow and winding and there are individual steps between different internal levels.

The complex internal planning of the buildings means that wherever a lift is inserted it will only serve the immediately adjacent spaces and hence to achieve full disabled access above ground floor level would require three lifts plus a number of short ramps to deal with individual intermediate changes of level. Clearly in buildings of this small scale this is neither practical nor desirable.

The construction and planning of the existing stair cases in original locations also makes the installation of stair lifts to give access to upper floors impractical.

Each main entrance on Church Lane has threshold steps preventing wheelchair access to the ground floor at present but alterations to external levels may be possible to achieve wheelchair access to the ground floor spaces although planning of lobbies and internal routes would also have to be altered to allow internal ground floor wheelchair circulation.

According to their future use improvements such as induction loops, visible alarms and ground floor accessible WC’s can be provided in the buildings.

Overall the problems of providing any satisfactory DDA compliant access to 1-3 Church Lane combined with its Grade II* listing, are such that relocation of public uses requiring access to other premises should be seriously considered in preference to expensive and ineffective alterations. Minimal DDA compliant access is achievable without unacceptable levels of change and impact on the buildings original fabric.

3.2 Barrett Browning Institute

Location: Occupies a prominent town centre position in Ledbury on the corner of Bye Street and Homend, diagonally opposite Ledbury Market House.

Ownership: Owned by trustees of the Barrett Browning Institute, currently leased to Herefordshire Council, occupied by Herefordshire Library Services.

Description: The building has three storeys and a clock tower and was opened in 1896; its construction is a combination of masonry and timber framing with tiled gable roofs. The main entrance is currently from a narrow public footpath on Bye Street. The current entrance leads to a small lobby with access to the ground floor library and staircase access to the basement and the upper storeys and clock tower. The first floor is accessed off the stairs with a rear reading room and front office for the librarian, with staff toilet and kitchenette facilities off the landing. The second floor is disused and is formed within the roof space with timber framed dormer windows. The clock tower is accessed via a near vertical ladder through a hatch from the second floor landing.

Designation: Grade II Listed Building situated within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Home to Ledbury Library and due to become vacant in 2015 when the library is relocated to the Master’s House in Ledbury. The library occupies the ground and first floors. The second floor is not used and is in a derelict condition.

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Accessibility: The Barrett Browning Institute is on three floors with a basement. Currently access is off the busy narrow Bye Street via the original main doorway and a short flight of steps. No other access is available so the building as currently planned has no wheelchair access provision despite its use as the local public lending library.

The planning of the Barrett Browning Institute allows the installation of a lift off the current staircase but the dimensional constraints to not allow a full DDA compliant lift – the equivalent of an 8 person lift. This means that wheelchair users can gain access but are not able to turn round 180 degrees in the lift car to allow them to exit in a forwards direction.

In conjunction with the new lift it is proposed that the lobby area behind the existing door is lowered and the steps removed to give wheelchair access direct from the street. This requires minor modifications to add additional steps to the lower flight of the original stairs.

A new doorway is proposed off the Homend to provide access direct to the ground floor main space which allows flexible use of the ground floor and reduces the use of the congested original entrance off Bye Street. The new door also allows independent use of the upper floors.

The renewal of the building’s services will allow inclusion of induction loops, visible as well as audible alarms to improve accessibility. Re-planning and the installation of a lift allows the provision of an accessible WC on the first floor

Preliminary discussions with the local authority planning officer and English Heritage have indicated that the proposed solutions illustrated on drawings prepared as part of this feasibility study are acceptable and subject to detail will achieve the necessary planning and listed building consents.

High levels of DDA compliance are achievable for the Barrett Browning Institute facilitating good public use and access and with an acceptable level of physical impact on the historic fabric and interest of the building.

3.3 Butcher Row Museum

Location: Set back from Church Lane with a courtyard area to the front accessed via a single pedestrian gate. The building is square in plan, with access via a set of steps on the west elevation. Neighbouring properties bound the premises to the east and west boundaries, with the Burgage Hall under same ownership, positioned to the south of the building and utilising a shared access route.

Ownership: Owned and managed by Ledbury & District Civic Society.

Description: A two-storey historic building originally constructed in mid-1600’s, when it was situated in a row of similar buildings on Ledbury High Street, in the town centre. The building has subsequently been re-sited at least two times, having been re-constructed in its current location in 1979. The building is of traditional exposed timber frame construction with rendered infill panels, incorporating a jettied projecting first-floor to the west elevation, overhanging the main entrance; it has open plan rooms at ground and first-floor level.

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Designation: The building is not stated as Listed on the English Heritage Listed Buildings Directory website, but sits within the curtilage of a number of listed buildings and is located within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Museum occupying both floors.

Accessibility: Butcher Row is a very small two room building with the single room on the first floor only accessible by a very steep staircase. It is not accessible at ground floor due to steps at the entrance threshold. The small scale of the building makes insertion of a lift impractical and the tightness of the stair and its gradient also makes a stair lift impractical. Achieving DDA compliance for Butcher Row is therefore unrealistic given the extreme constraints imposed by the building.

Provision of a small ramp at the entrance could give wheelchair access to the ground floor.

Some improvements could be made by the use of a ground floor induction loop, possibly a mobile one, and by using some interpretative device and media to give disabled visitors intellectual if not physical access to the first floor collections.

Access to the first floor could be achievable by re-planning the ground floor sanitary facilities of the adjacent Burgage Hall and the addition of a first floor with a link to Butcher Row through the first floor rear window which is not part of the original fabric of the building. However, the expense is very substantial relative to the provision of wheelchair access to a single first floor room and would require a physical ground floor link between Butcher Row and the Burgage Hall

Minimal DDA compliance is feasible for Butcher Row.

3.4 Heritage Centre (Old Grammar School)

Location: Church Lane, Ledbury with two main entrances off this historic cobbled street and a rear door, not readily accessible, from an enclosed car parking area serving the private properties behind the Heritage Centre.

Ownership: Herefordshire Council, managed by Herefordshire Heritage Services.

Description: A two-storey historic building built around 1480. Its construction is oak timber box frame in five bays with a smoke bay. The timber frame members are infilled wattle and daub giving a traditional black and white appearance.

Designation: Grade II* Listed Building within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Museum to the ground floor and function space to the first floor with kitchen, single toilet and stores to the first floor.

Accessibility: The Heritage Centre is a two story building with access to the first floor via a single narrow staircase. Sections of the floor adjacent to the staircase have been renewed in the 1990’s building repairs project which would allow for the installation of a platform lift to the first floor without loss of original or early fabric. However, inclusion of a new lift would depend on the proposed use of the first floor – a public use requiring a lift and a non-public use such as a holiday let not requiring a lift.

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Continued use of the ground floor for the Heritage Centre would make additions such as an induction loop, better lighting and visual alarms important to incorporate as part of any scheme for upgrading. Minor modifications at door thresholds including the introduction of short ramps would allow wheelchair access to the ground floor facilities.

At present the only sanitary facilities are at first floor level and hence are not accessible. Provision of sanitary facilities at ground floor level would be necessary if the first floor is converted to a separate use and any new facilities should be fully accessible.

Reasonable levels of DDA compliance can be achieved for the Heritage Centre with an acceptable impact on the building’s historic fabric for areas of public use.

3.5 Burgage Hall

Location: Set back from Church Lane, Ledbury. The site is bounded by walls to neighbouring properties to three boundaries, and an open yard area to the south boundary. Access to the building is on foot only. The main entrance is via a cobbled walkway off Church Lane, which leads onto a flagstone paved area passing between a neighbouring boundary wall and Butcher Row Museum. A secondary entrance exists via a walkway between the properties fronting High Street.

Ownership: Owned by Herefordshire Council, leased and managed by Ledbury & District Civic Society.

Description: Originally constructed in 1607 and rebuilt in 1852, the building was restored in 1985 by Ledbury & District Civic Society. The building is constructed of traditional solid wall masonry, incorporating a single-storey extension of cavity masonry construction. The accommodation comprises a main double height events hall with mezzanine viewing gallery and internal balcony at first-floor level, kitchen facilities and an entrance lobby with male and female toilets.

Designation: Grade II Listed Building within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Events hall, meeting venue and available for hire as a private function hall.

Accessibility: The Burgage Hall is essentially a single large ground floor space with ancillary WC accommodation in a small extension. Of all of the public meeting spaces in the six ‘Ledbury Places’ buildings the Burgage Hall provides the most suitable for wheelchair use with only minor alterations being required to achieve full DDA compliance.

The suggested alterations include minor changes to external levels and the installation of ramps to allow direct wheelchair access, the alteration of the WC facilities to include an accessible WC along with the installation of an induction loop, door openers, visible alarms, improved external lighting and signage etc.

The balcony and stage areas have no wheelchair access and provision of access is impractical to these limited areas.

A very high level of DDA compliance is achievable for the Burgage Hall allowing potentially excellent levels of public uses and access and with a minimum of physical impact.

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3.6 Market House

Location: Situated in a prominent position on Ledbury High Street, the main thoroughfare through Ledbury town centre.

Ownership: Owned and managed by Ledbury Town Council.

Description: Constructed early to mid 1600’s, comprises a single open-plan hall at first floor level, supported by 16 oak timber posts off stone padstones. The building is rectangular in plan, oriented north to south, bounded by the public highway to all elevations; the open areas beneath are accessible to the general public. Access into the building is via a timber staircase positioned beneath the building rising to a single swing entrance door.

Designation: Grade I Listed Building situated within a Conservation Area.

Current Use: Town Council meetings, public events and as a tourist attraction.

Accessibility: The Market House accommodation is at first floor level and there is currently no provision for disabled access. The building’s Grade I listing potentially makes disabled access difficult to achieve. However, continued use as a meeting room for Town Council meetings and any substantial new public use would be dependent on lift access being achieved.

A number of options to achieve disabled access have been prepared for consideration and have been discussed with English Heritage and the local authority planning conservation officer. Two options are being developed further both of which involve inserting a platform lift adjacent to the existing stair where a section of the secondary floor joists have been renewed and are not from the building’s original construction. The options vary in that one encloses the ground floor area with a small glazed lobby and the other does not, meaning lobby enclosures would be required at first floor level. The current preference of English Heritage and the local authority conservation officer is for the option with no ground floor lobby meaning the lift and stairs are accessed directly from the covered space beneath the Market House.

In both options the use of a fully accessible (8 person) lift cannot be achieved but with careful planning of the orientation of the lift forward access at ground floor and forward exit at first floor should be possible.

The rise, dimensions, planning and construction of the existing 19th century stair do not allow the installation of a stair lift should a platform lift fail to gain statutory consent.

It has been proposed that a mock-up of the lift alterations might be installed on site at both ground and upper floor levels to allow consultation with local people and consideration of the impact of the proposals.

Upgrading the services of the Market House will provide the opportunity for the installation of induction loops, visible alarms and other improvements to facilitate disabled access and use. The proposals also include a single accessible WC at first floor level adjacent to the entrance from the existing staircase.

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Reasonable levels of DDA compliant access can be achieved to the Market House if the impact of the proposals on its historic fabric and visual appearance can be minimised and detailed so that it is acceptable to the statutory and planning authorities and the local public. This needs to be established and tested through the submission of statutory consent applications for the preferred access option.

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4. Physical condition of the buildings

The condition of each building covered by this feasibility study is summarised as follows, following review by Purcell, conservation architects, Mann Williams, structural engineers, and Martin Thomas Associates, services engineers. See appendix 3 for more details.

4.1 Nos 1-3 Church Lane – currently the Town Council Offices.

The Town Council Offices are generally in sound condition but their continued use to accommodate offices will require consideration to be given to the renewal of the building services in the near future.

Given the Town Council’s decision in principle to move out the most likely option for the future of the buildings will be to sub-divide them again back to their original plan as three separate houses with ground floor retail or commercial premises. Although the buildings are in reasonable repair, this would require extensive services renewal along with the provision of new sanitary and kitchen facilities and alterations to remove links between the buildings and improve the efficiency of their space use. These works will have substantial costs.


The Institute was originally well built and is of robust construction with a high quality of detail. However, lack of maintenance other than the essential over many years now means the building needs a comprehensive programme of works to bring it back into good repair and to meet current standards, legislation and user expectations.


Butcher Row is generally in good condition and needs only minor works to refresh its appearance.


The Heritage Centre is generally in good condition except for a significant structural problem on the main elevation to Church Lane.

There is significant movement in the front elevation possibly caused by weakness in the connections between the bressumer beam and the ground floor structure and spreading of the roof load. The consequence is significant movement at the head of the wall and visible distress in the principal structural posts at the junction with the truss feet and horizontal ties resulting in splitting. There has also been some splint repairs to failed purlins although the date of these is not clear. The removal of the internal cross walls has exacerbated the problems as their removal has meant loss of any lateral constraint. Ongoing monitoring is essential and major repairs will be required to stabilise this movement in the near future.

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Some beetle infestation is apparent and looks live particularly in the south east corner at ground floor level. This needs treatment in the near future.

The main timber framed panelling is in good condition but where new timbers have been introduced the infill panels have shrunk leaving gaps between the panelling and the frame which need to be filled to prevent water ingress and deterioration.

The buildings internal services are serviceable but do not create an environment which allows the building to be used in comfort. Internally the building’s finishes are tired and need upgrading.

Should the building’s use change then considerable works will be necessary in addition to the structural repairs of the Church Lane elevation. These will include re-servicing and internal alterations.

4.5 Burgage Hall

The Burgage Hall is in generally good condition but its finishes and internal décor are conservative. As part of the Ledbury Places project the use of the Hall will increase and its audience widen. Although the building is in good condition and its finishes, achieving a wider audience will mean upgrading the building facilities and its décor to assist in attracting users.

4.6 Market House

The Market House is in good condition with no need for major repair works and only very minor local attention required.

The key issue for the future of the Market House is how to improve its levels of use and its benefit to the local community. Although the building is prominent in the town and is much loved, it is hardly used due to its poor internal environment, the limitations on access and its lack of the most basic facilities. Improvements to the building will be difficult to achieve without any impact on the historic fabric of the building; for example, the installation of a lift or the installation of a WC. A debate is needed on these issues prior to determining any future programme of works although the budgets used in this feasibility study assume improvements will be implemented.

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5. Options for future use

5.1 Introduction/methodology

The initial business case for the Ledbury multiple asset transfer project, completed in summer 2013, identified a number of potentially viable and appropriate options for the use of the six buildings, and at that time linked certain options with individual buildings. Since then, analysis by the architects and other members of the project team and steering group has led to a more detailed assessment of the various uses and their suitability, or otherwise, for each building.

Whilst developing this Business Plan and the options it presents, we have attempted to reach a balance between various driving imperatives, including:

- community benefit; - public consultation responses; - medium to long-term financial viability; - appropriateness of use for the building; - costs of adaptation.

We have also considered, in detail, the current position in Ledbury and the surrounding area, in particular where there are perceived gaps or indeed over-supply of business types and community facilities. Markets have been assessed according to different audience configurations, taking into account the needs of local residents, visitors, workers and others, as well as the statutory responsibilities of bodies such as Ledbury Town Council, one of the partners in the development of this Plan.

Analysing the current uses in detail shows that there is a lot of duplicated, wasted or soon to be vacant space within the buildings. Some of these uses could be consolidated, such as events and functions, into one of the large meeting halls (most likely the Burgage Hall). This would free up the other spaces for alternative uses and could encourage investment into the upgrading of facilities in the Burgage Hall if it was used more frequently.

Extensive consultation has taken place with the key stakeholders (most of whom are represented on the project steering group) and with the people of Ledbury – an outline of the consultation process appears as Appendix 8 below and is summarised in 2.3 above.

A market appraisal of the various uses appears in section 6 below; this section outlines the types of uses identified and outlines how they were then linked with specific buildings.

5.2 Finalised list of uses

During the various phases of the feasibility work the Steering Group and its professional advisers have examined a wide range of potential uses for the six buildings. Some were rejected fairly quickly on various grounds, linked to the suitability for the building types, financial viability or over-provision in the area. Those rejected include:

- Café/tearoom (Ledbury is well-served in this regard, see report from Montfort Catering Consultants at Appendix 7)

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- Full service restaurant (only the Barrett Browning Institute would have sufficient space and again this was not a priority for Ledbury, as shown in the consultation and other local surveys)

- Hotel/bed and breakfast accommodation (none of the buildings would adapt easily to this use, which could also restrict public and local community access to these heritage assets);

- Music/performance use (various considerations, including noise penetration, access, size and lack of parking ruled these out);

- Stand-alone art gallery (mainly rejected on financial grounds and also because there are plans for other buildings in Ledbury to be put to this use).

Having narrowed the list down, the remaining potential uses were then grouped according to types, as follows:

- ‘Heritage/museum’ use (exhibition, interpretation, guided/self-guided tours) - ‘Ledbury hub/welcome/tourist and visitor welcome and information’ - ‘Civic use’ (Town Council offices, Town Council reception) - ‘Community/events use’ (including affordable meeting space for local groups) - ‘Celebrations and weddings’ - ‘Holiday accommodation’ - ‘Commercial letting’ (residential, office, live/work, retail)

This range of uses was felt to provide the best balance to meet the imperatives listed in 5.1 above, in particular between the need to generate sufficient income to cover maintenance, management and other costs, alongside increasing access and community use and involvement with these important buildings.

From the list above, the individual uses were then broken down as follows:

- Heritage exhibition with base for guided/self-guided tours and other heritage-related public activities

- Museum - Town Council office and meeting room (potentially including space for the Poetry

Festival) - Ledbury Hub/tourist information/welcome to Ledbury (possibly co-located with

Town Council reception) - Meeting space (community and commercial uses) - Events and celebrations – including weddings, Poetry Festival and other arts events - Short-let holiday accommodation - Residential letting accommodation (assured shorthold tenancy) - Commercial office accommodation

- Live/work unit with possible retail space

5.3 Uses by building

During phase two of the evaluation process, various uses were tested against the different buildings, looking at physical/practical considerations as well as other issues such as the status of the location and its resonance within the community. By January 2014 we had narrowed the options down to the range shown in the drawings at Appendix 3. These

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drawings and the options planned were then used as the basis for further discussion in January and early February 2014 with the key stakeholders, building owners and local people, leading to the final configuration outlined in section 8 below.

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6. Market appraisal of future use options

It is worth stating at the outset that the over-arching aim of the Ledbury Places project is to maintain a balanced community use of all six buildings, and in particular the Barrett Browning Institute whose use is restricted according to its founding principles and covenant. The market appraisals therefore took place with this over-arching aim in mind, looking to achieve a balance of the imperatives listed at 5.1 above.

6.1 Assessment process

Each option has been market tested as far as is possible and realistic at this stage. Assessments have been carried out by relevant professionals, including commercial estate agents, tourism, culture and heritage consultants, catering and retail consultants and providers of specialist holiday accommodation. Market appraisals have considered the existing provision in Ledbury and the surrounding area for each potential use, the competition (where income generation is a feature of the use), whether there is enough of a gap in the market, and concurrently a market in that gap, and how the uses will contribute to the imperatives listed in 5.1 above. This report presents summaries of the findings, the details of which are mainly contained in the appendices.

6.2 Heritage and culture assessment

The approach in this category taken by the consultants, DCA, is summarised as follows:

6.2.1 We have visited the six heritage buildings and other significant heritage buildings in the town and taken in the wider town offer. We have also visited the local area.

6.2.2 We have familiarised ourselves with Ledbury’s history and sought to understand how this is reflected in its surviving heritage – the buildings that are part of this project, other significant heritage buildings and the townscape.

6.2.3 We have familiarised ourselves with the plans for the restoration of the Master’s House and its conversion to the town’s library, including the planned community activities leading up to and post opening.

6.2.4 We have consulted with key stakeholders, individually and through attendance at steering group meetings. These have included the Ledbury and District Civic Society, the Town Council, the Poetry Festival and Herefordshire Council.

6.2.5 We have made inputs to, and coordinated our work with, the work of the architects and business planning consultants through attendance at steering group meetings and through one to one discussions.

6.2.6 We have sourced and analysed primary data about visits to Ledbury’s heritage sites and to the Poetry Festival and secondary data about visits to Herefordshire (Visit England and Visit Herefordshire). We have commissioned and analysed Arts Council area reports for the 15, 45 and 75 minute drivetimes.

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6.2.7 We arranged and facilitated a meeting of artists to explore how they might be part of the project. There was representation from the Poetry Festival, the Herefordshire Guild of Craftsmen and attendance by artists living in Ledbury and the surrounding area, various of whom participate in hArt and/or are members of Artistree.

6.3 Commercial lettings assessment

Assessment of the market for commercial lettings (office, residential, live/work, retail) was carried out by independent local valuers and agents John Goodwin, who have considerable experience of these markets in Ledbury and the surrounding area; John Goodwin himself is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS). Additionally, advice on commercial retail use has been sought from consultants Quince Retail, experts in retailing within museums and other historic buildings.

6.4 Holiday accommodation assessment

This market has been assessed in discussion with the Vivat Trust, one of the leading operators of holiday accommodation in historic buildings, and who are based in Herefordshire (though operating nationally), and from the experience of the business and heritage consultants. The Vivat Trust is a potential partner in this use of the buildings and hence their proposals were subjected to independent external scrutiny, comparing their proposals with other operators in the market (in particular the Landmark Trust) and, through the work of the business and heritage consultants, looking at the price structure and projected income against similar projects elsewhere in the UK.

6.5 Specific market appraisals

6.5.1 Residential letting

John Goodwin’s assessment of the potential for residential letting is:

The demand for private residential accommodation in Ledbury town centre is generally strong, although town centre properties can have the disadvantage of lack of garden and parking. Two bedroomed houses/apartments tend to attract rentals of £500-£600 per month.

As well as considering potential market values, demand was assessed by John Goodwin and by the project consultants. There is a relative scarcity of high specification apartment accommodation in the centre of Ledbury, particularly in such interesting buildings, and the rental market is a robust one. Occupancy rates were assessed as being potentially very good.

6.5.2 Commercial letting – office accommodation

John Goodwin assesses the market as follows:

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Average office rental values in Ledbury vary according to a number of factors: size of accommodation, quality of accommodation, location, availability of car parking space, length of lease, rating assessment of the individual premises. These are just a few of the issues which will affect rental values. On average rental values in Ledbury for first floor office accommodation tend to be between £6 per sq ft and £10 per sq ft. Ground floor office accommodation would carry a premium and rental values will be closer to retail values which again vary according to the above issues. Location in respect of retail premises is a more major factor together with the nature and width of the display frontage. As an average ground floor retail accommodation tends to be between £15 and £20 per sq ft.

As well as the assessment from John Goodwin, market conditions for the letting of smaller office spaces were discussed with the Ledbury Area Development Trust, one of the members of the Steering Group. LADT rent out office space in the Old Cottage Hospital building in Ledbury, which they successfully converted and opened in 2009. Demand there has been consistently good and the accommodation is fully let, mainly to small business owners who have moved on from working out of their own homes.

6.5.3 Commercial letting – mixed use (live/work/retail)

This is a more difficult market to assess because it is relatively untested and there are no directly comparable units in Ledbury. However, John Goodwin said:

I note that there are possible schemes which have been proposed based on live/work units and with a further possibility of retail use which I am sure would be helpful, but it could equally be an office use or even a consulting room use, for example a therapy of some type. I would estimate the rental value per property for this use as being £8-£9,000 per annum exclusive.

6.5.4 Holiday accommodation

Ledbury has relatively little high quality holiday accommodation available for rental in the town centre and the Vivat Trust have visited the town and the project buildings to assess their suitability to add to their select portfolio of rental apartments. Following discussion with the project architects, Purcell, it is clear that at least two of the buildings would convert well for this use, and would provide attractive and very well-located accommodation.

Vivat have a range of similar properties located throughout Great Britain, and have also carried out a market appraisal for the likely occupancy levels, income and costs, using data from their portfolio and experience of letting high-quality holiday accommodation in historic buildings for more than 30 years. The initial assessment for a two-bedroomed holiday apartment in Ledbury would be for an average (gross) rental charge across the year of c£750 a week. From this would be taken the costs of running the apartment and a management and marketing fee to the Vivat Trust. Based on an average of 70% occupancy (assessed according to the levels achieved at similar properties in their portfolio) this would equate to c£13,500 net income per annum.

Laura Norris, Director of the Vivat Trust, comments:

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Ledbury is a lovely market town of Herefordshire with a timeless, unhurried quality about it. The town has a rich history firstly as an early Saxon settlement before being described as Liedeberge (Leadon Hill) in the Domesday Book. Ledbury has excellent examples of Norman, Tudor, Georgian and Victorian architecture which accommodate, amongst other things, some excellent artisan shops, restaurants and pubs. It sits below the Malvern Hills which offer first class walking for visitors. An additional attraction is the plethora of poets attached to the Town and the annual poetry festival.

For all of the above reasons, Ledbury would be a sought after destination for Vivat Trust guests. From a practical perspective it has good transport links by both road and rail and isn’t that far from either Birmingham or Bristol airports for our overseas guest. It is under 30 miles from our head office so servicing and overseeing guest accommodation would be simple – but it is far enough, and different enough from the properties we have here in Peterchurch in Herefordshire.

6.5.5 Meetings and events

The Burgage Hall is already in active use for meetings, with the main users being local community groups (Probus, various classes, faith groups, charities and so on), the NHS for training events, the Poetry Festival for workshops and performances, and family celebrations and events, including funerals, wakes, birthday parties and weddings.

The Market Hall is used for some of the Town Council’s meetings, for craft fairs and occasional private events, but its use is severely restricted by its poor access (it is on the first floor and can only be reached via stairs) and lack of amenities.

The Panelled Room in the Town Council offices (the building which actually forms No. 1 Church Lane) is a popular venue for weddings and civil partnerships, and the Town Council retains a licence for these events. It has a capacity of up to 40 people.

There are a number of alternative meeting venues in Ledbury of various sizes, including the Feathers Hotel, which has four rooms and can cater for up to 120 delegates. The Pavilion Rooms can cater for up to 200, and other venues include the Royal Hall (part of the Royal Oak Hotel), Gallery Barn, Barn House and Ledbury Town FC, plus various church halls. Not all of these are in the centre of the town, and given the extensive use of the Burgage Hall already, despite its basic facilities and ‘hidden’ entrance, it is clear that there is a real opportunity to build on this, with enhanced facilities and commensurate increase in fees for commercial events and celebrations. This fee increase would be restricted to those activities so that the community uses could be continued at low, and effectively subsidised rates (currently around £12 per hour).

It has been established during the feasibility work and in talking to regular users of the Burgage Hall that both its access and its facilities are currently inadequate. It is proposed therefore to scope the addition of a first-floor extension above the existing single-storey extension, which would create space for facilities such as an office, additional kitchen and Green Room, as well as looking at the configuration of the entrance area and access. Similarly, a modest improvement to the Burgage Hall’s internal specification would enable it to stage arts activities and small-scale conferences and seminars more successfully (and at

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more commercial rates), by adding better lighting, some flexible staging, a high quality sound system, projection equipment, and better seating in the balcony area.

Income from the Burgage Hall is presently around £9,000 per annum. This could easily be increased once the facilities have been improved and with better marketing and a wider range of commercial as well as community clients. Occupancy rates are only around 30% so there is clearly potential for more business both during weekdays and at the weekend. Income could therefore be up to £15,000 in year one of the plan, rising to £20,000 by year five.

Research and consultation with local groups has shown that there is potential for increasing the range of community uses of the Burgage Hall, working with partners such as GP practises (for health advice sessions), local business groups, the Citizens Advice Bureau and other key community infrastructure bodies.

6.5.6 Weddings

The Panelled Room hosts around 40 weddings and civil partnerships per annum, many of which go on to use other locations in Ledbury for their celebrations. Through joint management of the spaces, couples holding their weddings/partnership ceremonies in the Panelled Room would be encouraged to book the Burgage Hall or, exceptionally, the Market House for their parties. The income from weddings alone currently amounts to £9,500 per annum (although costs are high so the surpluses generated are negligible at present). Careful management to bring down costs (by sharing staff with the other buildings), and an enhanced marketing campaign could increase wedding bookings and this could become a useful income source. This is shown also by the successful wedding business run in similar properties both in Herefordshire – at The Grange in Leominster, for example – and further afield, a good comparison being the Grade 1 listed medieval Dragon Hall in Norwich, which derives around 33% of its income from wedding use.

6.5.7 'Heritage' uses – income generating activities

Detailed advice on the potential income from the heritage-related activities in Ledbury and around these six buildings has been put together by DCA Consultants and can be seen in full in their report at Appendix 5. It is clear from this report that with a modest increase in visitor numbers, and better targeting of the income generation potential from these visitors, reasonable sums could be achieved.

The Steering Group has considered the issue of whether to charge for admission to any of the buildings and concluded that this would be counter-productive to the goal of increasing access. Income would instead be generated from the production of both virtual and physical guides to Ledbury’s heritage (the virtual guide being in the form of a downloadable app) which would be available for purchase from the Welcome Hub and from the main visitor venues. Additionally, there would continue to be a modest charge for tours undertaken with the trained Ledbury guides , as is the position now.

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DCA Consultants’ assessment of the potential income from the application/map is as follows:

We do consider that there could be a charge for the wayfinding application/map of between £1 and £1.50. Based on 45,000 to 50,000 heritage visits, this might generate income in the region of £15,000 to £20,000 (this allows for couples and families and some non take up). While there would be a capital cost to creating the application, there should be minimal running costs. Income from the tours is currently relatively small because of the costs of paying for the tour guides, but an increase in visitors could make these more cost-effective, potentially adding a further £3,000 - £5,000 to the overall income per annum; this is not included in the income and expenditure forecast, given the relatively small surplus likely to be generated by this particular income stream and requires more detailed planning in the project development phase.

There is also potential income through merchandise sales from visitors to the heritage buildings and people undertaking the tours. Merchandise would be available for purchase from the Welcome Hub (Ground Floor of the Barrett Browning Institute), one of the Market House or Heritage Centre (whichever becomes the heritage and interpretation centre, see section 8 below) and from the Butchers Row Museum. This has been assessed by Quince Retail, specialists in retail and merchandise at museums, arts and cultural venues, and their views on the income potential can be summarised as follows:

Based on Quince Retail’s comparator data Ledbury’s retail potential would be calculated on a spend per visitor (SPV) circa 50p. However, as there will be three potential buildings that could accommodate a merchandise offer (albeit in two it would be a subsidiary range); there may be grounds to aim higher. Therefore, it doesn’t seem unrealistic to set the bar at the top end of the ‘Regional’ category SPV i.e. 75p.

Another area of potential income related to the heritage of these buildings and the town of Ledbury more generally is what is referred to as ‘leisure learning’ – short courses (often no more than a day) aimed at a non-specialist market looking at aspects of the local area through its crafts, its history, its geography and geology and so on. Several of the project buildings would be highly suitable for this use, which will be explored in more depth during the development phase of the project. In accordance with the philosophy of the Ledbury Places initiative, the aim will be to work in collaboration with any existing providers of this type of adult education within the Ledbury area and to expand the range of courses on offer. No income has been included from this source in the business case at this stage.

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7. Benefits of future use options for the Ledbury community

7.1 Survey data from studies undertaken in 2012 around the Heritage Lottery Fund supported project to restore the Master’s House in Ledbury and its potential uses indicate a strong desire for an information centre for tourists and local residents, acting as a focal point for the promotion of the town and its plethora of activities, which in the event the Master’s House will not be providing. The Ledbury Welcome hub which will be located on the ground floor of the Barrett Browning Institute is intended to address that need directly and to help to promote the many small businesses in the area, thereby boosting the local economy and employment, as well as providing information and box office services for Ledbury’s growing cultural sector.

7.2 At present the ‘Ledbury heritage offer’ is fragmented, as outlined in section 6 above. Similarly relatively few visitors see inside the Market House, and the heritage aspects of the Master’s House have also not been accessible to the public for some time.

By bringing together six key buildings under one central management, and by then linking them with physical and virtual guides and trails, and promoting them alongside the restored and re-opened Master’s House as one entity, visitors will be encouraged to see much more of Ledbury’s heritage and to understand it as a coherent whole. This will boost overall visitor numbers and also income, from donations and from paid tours for groups.

7.3 Ensuring a sustainable and viable future for these key buildings in the town centre will avoid potential vacancies or under-use which in turn can lead to rapid physical degradation, causing blight on the surrounding area. Extra footfall created by increased visitor numbers through the Barrett Browning Institute and the heritage attractions, plus the extra markets, meetings and events, will benefit local retailers and food outlets, as well as adding to the atmosphere and ‘buzz’ of the town centre.

7.4 During the capital phase of works on the buildings opportunities will be created for young people to be trained in building and craft skills, and contractors will be encouraged to take on apprentices.

7.5 The creation of the ‘Ledbury Places Group’ to manage these buildings will create two new permanent staff positions plus contract work for caretakers, maintenance staff and tour guides. Contractors will also be engaged for conference, meetings and hospitality services, and the intention will be to use local firms employing local people wherever possible. The Group will be structured as a registered charity and company limited by guarantee, and will also provide opportunities for volunteers, including as Trustees.

7.6 The Ledbury Places Group will also act as a catalyst for other projects in the town, and will be a first port of call for engagement with the local authorities, local businesses and other key stakeholders, able, through its broad remit, to represent the views of individuals, voluntary sector organisations and business leaders. It will also have an important role in promoting the town and its attractions to a wider audience.

7.7 As part of their study for this Plan, DCA Consultancy has considered the benefits of these proposals to the community in Ledbury and to the heritage of the town. Their full analysis forms part of Appendix 5, but can be summarised as follows:

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The strategy to unlock the potential of Ledbury’s key heritage buildings will have significant benefits for the heritage; it will also have economic impacts for local communities and social benefits for individuals through their participation in, learning about and enjoyment of the renewed facilities and services.

At this stage, we have estimated the following economic impacts that could be generated by the project:

• The project will generate economic effect through its own spending on staff and other expenditures, part of which will be retained in the local economy and have indirect and induced effects as beneficiaries in turn spend this new income in the local economy.

• We estimate that the project will attract at least 50,000 visitors per annum once complete and these visitors will spend money not just in the heritage buildings but throughout the local economy, supporting food and drink, tourism, hotel/accommodation and retail businesses in and beyond Ledbury.

• In total the project could potentially generate direct and indirect economic activity in the local economy of just under £800,000 per annum in its full operation.

• Given this level of economic activity, we estimate that the project will generate in the region of 25 full time equivalent jobs throughout the local economy in full operation.

Whilst not easily quantifiable, the wider economic role of the project could provide a number of significant catalytic and strategic added value impacts in terms of profile and reputation of the town, educational and community development impacts and quality of life for local people. These potential benefits could be considerable and, although not modelled as part of this assessment, will further underline the value of the project

• A reputation for Ledbury as a distinctive heritage town of regional standing and as a creative and energetic place, which in turn may attract other new business to the town;

• Increasing the profile of Ledbury as a visitor destination;

• Promotion of the quality of life in the town, with a more vibrant heritage, arts and cultural offer;

• Promoting well-being; and

• Increasing opportunities for participating in volunteering and in opportunities to learn and develop new skills.

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8. Preferred future use and management of the buildings

The initial thinking behind the Ledbury Places project, and the factor that makes it unusual among other ‘asset transfer’ schemes, was to examine the potential for the transfer of management and ownership for these six buildings to one newly-formed charitable and community-based organisation. This report shows the impact of the transfer of the management of the buildings to a single entity, but issues around ownership are more complex, given the variety of current ownership models. The proposal emerging is therefore a mixed form of asset transfer, involving freehold, leasehold and management arrangements, as best suited to the individual circumstances of each building and owner.

Careful consideration has been given by the steering group to the legal form the new management organisation should take, concluding that the most appropriate is a charity and company limited by guarantee, with a separate trading company to administer commercial operations. It is proposed that the members of the new charitable company comprise representatives from Ledbury & District Civic Society, the Barrett Browning Institute, Ledbury Town Council, and Ledbury Area Development Trust.

It is important that the use of the buildings is assessed collectively so that the maximum community and financial benefits can be derived from their joint management, and this section examines the potential uses identified.

Following extensive assessment by the architects, steering group, consultants and surveyors, and the consultation and market appraisal processes described above, we have now settled on the following options for each of the buildings, subject to further analysis during the project development phase.

8.1 Nos 1-3 Church Lane – currently the Town Council Offices

The Town Council currently occupies these three buildings, along with the Poetry Festival administration who rent some (highly-subsidised) space. The rest of the building is used for broadly heritage purposes (visits with tour guides to the Painted Room), weddings and meetings (in the Panelled Room) and storage.

The project steering group includes representatives of the Town Council, and separate meetings have also been held with the full Council and some of its committees in order to ensure that all members have had the chance to comment on and discuss the plans for possible re-location of their office accommodation, reception desk and meeting space into the Barrett Browning Institute. The Town Council has also benefitted from independent advice on the costs of re-locating, the business case for doing so and the financial impact. On this latter point, it is clear that, given the high level of maintenance and repair costs over the next few years of No 1-3 Church Lane and also the Market House (which they are currently responsible for), the financial impact on the Town Council of re-locating would be a positive one.

There is also the wider issue of the creation of a ‘hub’ by locating the Town Council’s reception desk alongside the Ledbury welcome/tourist information centre presence in the Barrett Browning Institute (ground floor), bringing together all the main information sources

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for visitors, residents and people working and studying in the town under one roof. The co-location of Ledbury’s main civic and voluntary/community sector in one building will also give out a compelling message for the whole town.

As seen in section 3.1 above, the building(s) now known as the Town Council offices were originally three separate residential dwellings, and hence sub-dividing them vertically does not present any major structural nor consent issues. It also gives more flexibility and potential for income generation by allowing them to have separate uses. Two sets of options have been explored at this stage:

Option A:

No. 1 Church Lane. Heritage, meeting and wedding uses – visits to the Painted Room and Panelled Room, meetings and weddings in the Panelled Room.

No. 2 Church Lane. Ground Floor: Commercial Let (retail or office)

1st Floor: Live/Work Studio

2nd Floor: Live/Work Studio

No. 3 Church Lane. Holiday Let (two bedrooms, sleeping four)

Option B:

No. 1 Church Lane. Holiday let (two bedrooms, sleeping four) with voids on Saturdays to allow for wedding use, plus guided tours visiting the Painted Room.

No. 2 Church Lane. Ground Floor: Commercial Let (retail or office)

1st Floor: Live/Work Studio

2nd Floor: Live/Work Studio

No. 3 Church Lane Residential let (two bedrooms)


Ground Floor: as already seen, the Ground Floor of the Barrett Browning Institute will become the ’Ledbury Hub’, providing a full information service for visitors, residents and all local people. There will also be space for merchandise, small exhibitions and leaflets and brochures about the town and the surrounding area, as would be expected in a tourist information type operation. Additionally, the Town Council’s reception desk will be located here, ideally staffed jointly with the TIC/Welcome.

1st Floor: There is generous space on the first floor, including the main room(s) which can be sub-divided into two meetings rooms. This floor will have office space and meeting rooms.

2nd Floor: The main Town Council Offices will be on the second floor, possibly with some space allocated to the Poetry Festival’s administration office.

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Other uses have been explored for this building, but ultimately it is most suitable for its current use, so it will remain as a museum. During the development phase of this project (once feasibility has been completed), considerable work will be undertaken on looking at the heritage interpretation in all the buildings, but most particularly this and the Market House, as it is acknowledged that the collection as displayed currently in the Butcher Row Museum is not up to today’s highest standards.


Although now known as the Heritage Centre, and with that relatively low-key use over the last period, this building has had a number of different uses in its history (see appendices), and provides an interesting and potentially flexible space over two floors.

Ground Floor: Commercial (retail) use, probably a ‘high end’ gallery/shop to retain public access while still maximising rental income

1st Floor: Holiday Let (two bedroom), to be rented separately from, or together with, the ground floor if that also becomes a holiday let, so that if rented together it would be available for groups/families of up to eight people.

8.5 Burgage Hall

As outlined above, this will continue to be used for a mixture of community and commercial activities and events, with some arts use, but will benefit from much improved access and facilities.

8.6 Market House

Ground level: The open colonnaded ground-level area of the Market House is one of the most important visible features of Ledbury’s heritage. It is used to a certain extent for markets but the intention is to enhance and increase that use. Options for the sympathetic installation of a lift are being explored with the key statutory agencies to allow for access for all to the first floor of the Market House, but with the least interference to the ground level area.

Pre-application advice from English Heritage is provided as appendix 12, which expresses support in principle for the provision of a lift and toilet facilities at the Market House, and considers that the scheme proposed is an appropriate response to the demands of the building and the needs of its users, noting that: “If the building does not provide these facilities, it can be difficult to for it to remain cherished by the local community on whom it depends for its long-term future.”

1st Floor: This will become the main heritage centre, freely open to all (both through improved access and by not charging for admission), the starting point for tours (guided and self-guided), and the location of state of the art digital and interactive interpretation

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materials telling Ledbury’s rich history and its story up to the present day. These will be designed and installed in such a way that the space will still be available for use for events in the evenings when appropriate.

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9. Estimated costs of repairs and conversion to new uses and programme

9.1 Condition and Access surveys have been carried out to inform this feasibility study (see sections 3 and 4 above and appendices), scheme designs prepared up to RIBA work stage 3 “Developed Design” based on the preferred uses in section 8 above, and costs of repairs and conversion estimated; this work has been done by Purcell, conservation architects, as lead consultants for the project with contributions by Mann Williams, structural engineers, and Martin Thomas Associates, services engineers.

9.2 The costs of repairs and conversion to new uses provided below are best estimates at this stage based on a visual internal and external inspection of each building; that information will be refined during the project development phase and when relevant sections of each building otherwise hidden from view can be opened-up for inspection.

9.3 All of the buildings are located within a Conservation Area and are either Listed or in the curtilage of Listed buildings. As such, any works to adapt these buildings to a new use or adaptations made in the interests of Equalities Act compliance for their existing use, are expected to require Listed Building Consent and/or Conservation Area Consent prior to any implementation. Preliminary discussions have therefore been held between the design team, the Conservation Officer of Herefordshire Council and, particularly as regards the Grade II* and Grade I Listed buildings, with English Heritage, in the run up to submitting applications for statutory consents.

9.4 A Conservation Management Plan has been written for each of the buildings covered by this feasibility study and taken into account in considering potential future uses and as a guide in developing the scheme designs.

9.5 The cost estimates are exclusive of VAT (Valued Added Tax). The application and potential recovery of VAT on capital works is a complex matter; preliminary advice from specialist advisers via the UK Association of Building Preservation Trusts (UKAPT) VAT Advice Service has been commissioned and will be available at the end of March 2014.

9.6 Contracting the building works on the basis of a single package of work with sectional completion would have financial advantages as a lower overall cost is likely to be achieved than by tendering separately for each building. The downside to this approach is less flexibility in changing design specifications once the building contract has been let, but this is likely to be outweighed by the benefit of cost savings.

9.7 Purcell, the project architects, recommend splitting the contract into two phases. The first phase will involve works to the Barrett Browning Institute and the Market House; this allows Ledbury Town Council to move from the current offices into the Barrett Browning Institute and for the Heritage Centre to move from the current premises (the Old Grammar School) to the Market House. The second phase then involves works to the current Town Council offices, the Heritage Centre, the Burgage Hall and Butcher Row museum. Two versions of a programme chart based on this two phase plan are provided within Appendix 3.

9.8 The first version of the programme chart estimates the building contract first phase will complete in January 2018 and the second phase in December 2018. The two-stage

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decision-making process for Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant applications is a key factor determining the overall timetable; this programme assumes a first-round submission to HLF in September 2014 and a second-round submission in November 2015.

9.9 The second version of the programme chart indicates that an alternative programme is possible, with the building contract first phase complete in August 2016 and the second phase in April 2017. This is made possible if two “critical path” elements of work can be commissioned to start imminently:

(a) detailed design work up to the stage of being ready to invite tenders for the building contract; and

(b) an Activity Plan to research and detail heritage-related activities that will form the basis of the project for HLF support, in conjunction with conservation of the historic buildings; the Activity Plan is usually produced as part of the project development phase work between the HLF first and second round applications but by preparing this Plan earlier in the process it can reduce the time required for the project development phase.

The combined effect of the above would be to enable the first-round submission to HLF to be made in June 2014, the second-round submission in March 2015, and for tenders for the building contract to be invited immediately upon the HLF second-round award decision; hence an overall reduction of 20 months in the estimated programme . The greater depth of supporting information provided with the HLF first-round application would also increase the strength of the bid and reduce project risks from the perspective of HLF’s appraisal, bearing in mind that there is now intense competition for HLF grants with total applications running in excess of twice the available budget.

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Ledbury Places Preliminary Capital Budget

Building Minimum Cost Maximum Cost

Barrett Browning Institue 883,000£ 883,000£

Market House

Retain, add Lift & Re-service 206,000£

Upgrade to Heritage Centre inc Lift & Re-Service 248,000£

Town Council Offices

Retain and Upgrade in TC Use 150,000£

Conversion to Holiday Let & Live/Work/Commercial 364,000£

Heritage Centre

Retain Heritage Centre with FF Holiday Let 268,000£

Conversion for Live/Work/Commercial 373,000£

Burgage Hall 156,000£ 156,000£

Butcher Row

Retain as Existing 25,000£

Add First Floor Extension 78,000£

Totals 1,688,000£ 2,102,000£

Other Costs

Design Fees @ 15% (less RIBA Stage 3 Fees £60,000) 193,200£ 255,300£

Heritage Exhibition Renewal 200,000£ 200,000£

Fittings & Furnishings 180,000£ 180,000£

Street Signage 30,000£ 30,000£

Totals 603,200£ 665,300£

Overall Total 2,291,200£ 2,767,300£

Inclusions Preliminaries

Contingency (10%)

Exclusions Project Management Fees

Interpretation Design Fees

Heritage-related Activity Fees and Costs

Revenue Costs

VAT

Acquisition

Finance costs

NOTE: The above capital budget figures provided by Purcell are draft, pending the final drawings for

RIBA work stage 3 “Developed Design” (the stage of applying for statutory consents).

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10. Potential Sources of Capital Funding

Since the work on the funding sources for the business case in July 2013 discussions have been held with a number of the major funding bodies, and these are outlined below, together with a reprise of the list of potential funders, updated to reflect changes in circumstances since last summer. This section of the report also covers the sums which might be applied for from each funder, where appropriate.

In addition to the capital fund-raising approaches summarised below, discussions are taking place with the current owners of the buildings around any potential repair liabilities and how these might be best recognised; e.g. through partnership funding towards capital costs and/or initial revenue funding, use of a Section 106 scheme, the establishment of an endowment fund towards future maintenance of the buildings, etc.

10.1 Public funders

10.1.1 Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). Preliminary discussions have been held with the HLF’s West Midlands office, and a ‘pre-application’ is being submitted during March 2014. The HLF are the most likely source of large-scale capital funding towards the refurbishment, repair and adaptation costs of the project, as well as towards interpretation, education and outreach. The threshold for an application to be considered by the regional committee in the West Midlands is £2million, over which applications go to the national committee; at present our thinking is that the amount applied for is likely to be over the threshold, probably around £2.3million from the main ‘Heritage Grants’ programme.

10.1.2 Social Investment Business (SIB). SIB is generously supporting the feasibility stage of this project, but also is launching a new capital funding round during 2014. Assuming that this is similar to the one run during summer 2013, applications will be invited for sums between £100,000 and £500,000 – for this project we would probably look for a sum of c£300,000 towards the capital costs of the assets.

10.1.3 Big Lottery Fund ‘Reaching Communities’ – buildings programme. Funding is available through this programme up to 2015 for up to 10% of the capital costs of eligible projects – which in this case could mean around £350,000.

The Big Lottery Fund is also consulting on the launch during 2014-15 of a programme aimed specifically at funding community asset transfers which have social impact, as is the case here.

10.1.4 English Heritage (EH). English Heritage can give grants towards the repair costs of grade I and grade II* listed buildings, but this grant scheme is frozen until the end of March 2015. In April 2015 the current body splits into two, with grant funding being passed to a new Non Departmental Public Body (NDPB) likely to be called ‘Historic England’. As yet it is unclear what levels of funding, if any, will be offered for repair grants so this cannot currently be considered as a reliable source.

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English Heritage’s regional staff have, however, been fully engaged in the conservation and listed building consent aspects of the plan, and are broadly supportive of the aims of the project.

10.2 ‘Social’ lenders

10.2.1 The Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF). The Steering Group intend to apply for an AHF development grant (up to £20,000) during Spring 2014, to assist with the costs of the next stage of the project, including the funding applications.

Once the cashflow for the capital phase has been finalised, and if any significant gaps are identified, it will then be possible to apply for a working capital loan from the AHF of up to £500,000.

10.2.2 Other social lenders include Triodos, Ecology Building Society, Charity Bank, Unity Trust, Co-operative and Community Finance, Impetus and the Social Investment Business. These all offer loans on various different terms, either for acquisition or working capital.

10.3 Charitable Trusts and Foundations – there are a plethora of potential funders among the charitable trusts and foundations, with the best source of information being the ‘Funds for Historic Buildings’ website (www.ffhb.org.uk).

They can be broadly split into larger and smaller funders, with the larger trusts offering grants in six and sometimes seven figures, and the smaller ones typically in the range of £5,000 - £10,000. Each has its own criteria and application procedures and none welcome ‘general’ fundraising approaches or appeals.

10.3.1 The main larger trusts supporting heritage projects include Charles Hayward Foundation, Clore Duffield Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, John Ellerman Foundation, Monument Trust and Headley Charitable Trust (both part of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts), Pilgrim Trust, and Wolfson Foundation. Preliminary discussions have been held with the Sainsbury Family Trusts and the Pilgrim Trust.

10.3.2 Smaller national trusts supporting heritage projects include: H B Allen, Lord Barnby’s Foundation, William Adlington Cadbury Trust, Idlewild Trust, Leche Trust, Mercer’s Company Charitable Foundation, P F Charitable Trust, People’s Postcode Trust, Peter Samuel Charitable Trust, Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation, Trusthouse Charitable Foundation, and Veneziana Fund.

10.3.3 Relevant regional funders include: Marches Redundant Buildings Grant – offering grants of up to £50,000, which could be per building rather than project; and Severn Waste Environmental Fund – up to £20,000 to improve community facilities etc.

http://www.ffhb.org.uk/

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10.4 Fund-raising from individuals

10.4.1 Community Share Issue. Community Share Issues allow people to ‘invest’ in local projects and to become stakeholders, serving both to raise useful capital funds and broaden engagement. There have been many successful schemes run as part of a pilot programme since 2009, including a number in rural areas. Sums raised vary but can often be well over £100,000. The rules on the type of organisation which can issue community shares are currently being revised, and the Steering Group is taking detailed advice on this as it considers what legal entity it will form to run the project and manage the buildings.

10.4.2 Crowd-funding. A relatively new fund-raising idea, Crowd-funding uses online fund-raising techniques to encourage donations from individuals towards a project and is already very successfully used in the cultural sector through platforms such as Kickstarter http://www.kickstarter.com/,

10.4.3 Philanthropy. The Government has put considerable emphasis on encouraging voluntary sector groups to look at traditional models of philanthropy (support from high net worth individuals) as a fund-raising option, along similar lines to those used in the US. However, most support from private individuals for arts, heritage and environmental activities in the UK goes to organisations in London and the South East, and to larger organisations. Nonetheless, fund-raising from private individuals should not be ruled out, especially if there are wealthy people with direct connections to Ledbury or the surrounding area.

10.4.4 Local fund-raising from individuals. Most voluntary sector organisations run their own local fund-raising activities, and some make quite large sums through these. Activities such as sales and auctions, door to door and street collections, sponsored walks etc. can also serve to engage a wider constituency with a project as well as raising money, but they are labour-intensive and require considerable volunteer time

10.5 Corporate support

10.5.1 Partnerships with national and local companies can be highly rewarding and bring considerable cash or in kind benefits. There are few large companies based in Ledbury but a number of successful small to medium sized ones, particularly in the real estate and manufacturing sectors, as well as service industries such as retail and hospitality. Forming relationships with potential corporate sponsors relies on good networks, but the nascent Ledbury Places Group already has strong contacts with many local businesses which could be built on as the project develops.

10.5.2 Consideration should also be given to approaching national companies who operate in the area to see whether they would ‘adopt’ the project as their local charity for a year, which can help to raise both significant funds and profile. Branches of national supermarkets and other retail chains can usually decide locally on what causes they will support and are well worth contacting on this basis.

http://www.kickstarter.com/

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11. Operational income and expenditure forecast and sensitivity analysis

11.1 Preliminary income and expenditure projections for the first five years of operations are provided in detail in Appendix 13 and summarised below for the two options on uses (scenarios A and B) described in section 8 above. A sensitivity analysis shows the effect each year of income being 3% higher and expenditure being 5% higher than the previous year.

11.2 Scenario A predicts a breakeven operating position in year 1, improving to a 6% nett surplus in year 5. However, applying the sensitivity analysis shows that the assumed variations in income and expenditure would push the operation into a small deficit by year 5.

11.3 Scenario B predicts a 9% operating surplus in year 1, improving to a 14% nett surplus in year 5. In this case, applying the sensitivity analysis shows that the operation would remain in surplus with the assumed variations in income and expenditure, the surplus in year 5 being reduced to 8%.

11.4 Purcell have produced estimated building maintenance costs split between: inspections, minor maintenance, and major cyclical maintenance. The first two categories are included as part of regular expenditure in the income and expenditure tables, the latter is shown as “annualised long-term repairs” at the foot of the income and expenditure tables; this is a regular amount recommended to be allocated to a “sinking fund” in order to build-up sufficient reserves to cover major cyclical repair costs as and when they arise.

11.5 Purcell indicate that overall maintenance costs are likely to be significantly reduced during the first ten to fifteen years after carrying out the type of major repair and conversion works proposed by the Ledbury Places project, with average annual costs during that period being approximately half the longer-term annualised average, a cost reduction of around £30,000 per annum across the six buildings. Taking this into account, the income and expenditure projections for the first five years of operations indicate that all maintenance costs can be covered by a nett surplus of income over expenditure. It will be important however that in the longer-term the financial surplus each year is able to gradually increase the contribution into the “sinking fund” and reaches the full amount estimated by Purcell to be necessary from year fifteen onwards.

11.6 It is important to note that these are preliminary estimates of the operating position, at this feasibility stage. The figures suggest that financial viability is achievable, subject to more detailed analysis of income and expenditure during the project development phase. In particular, development work will enable the following income streams to be explored in more detail:

(a) heritage-related activities, based on production of an Activity Plan; and

(b) developing a range of ‘leisure learning’ adult education course.

Scenario A assumptions: Two holiday lets; one live/work let; no private rental; Heritage Centre ground-floor retail let. Year: 5

Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12 Year 5

Income Estimate

Commercial rentals (office

accommodation, retail,

live/work)

£ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 18,552

Residential rental £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ -

Holiday accommodation (based

on two letting spaces) £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 24,996

Civil ceremonies income £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 792 £ 9,504

Meetings and events £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 1,875 £ 22,500

Heritage tours, apps, donations £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 1,250 £ 15,000

Retail income £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 39,552

Service charge income £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ 33,963 £ 33,963

Cumulative sensitivity variation £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ -

Total Income Estimate £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 10,842 £ 44,805 £164,067

Expenditure Estimate

Staff salaries with on-costs -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 3,340 -£ 40,080

Contract and ad hoc staff costs -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 833 -£ 9,996

* Utilities -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 21,036

* Inspections and minor regular

maintenance-£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 32,880

* Security -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 6,000

Marketing and promotion -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 333 -£ 3,996

* Insurance -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 7,212

Licence fees (including civil

ceremonies)-£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 4,524

Organisation legal and

membership costs-£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 83 -£ 996

Costs of sales for civil

ceremonies (Coordinator,

cleaning, repairs and renewals)

@ 33% margin

-£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 6,372

Merchandise stock costs @

55% margin-£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 17,796

Audit and other professional fees -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 250 -£ 3,000


Total Expenditure Estimate -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£ 12,824 -£153,888

Estimated surplus or (deficit) -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 £ 31,981 £ 10,179

Annualised long-term repairs £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - -£ 27,640 -£ 27,640

Balance after long-term

maintenance costs-£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 -£ 1,982 £ 4,341 -£ 17,461

Note 1: Expenditure items marked * are recovered in part by service charges where tenant leases apply.

Note 2: It is assumed a 100% rebate on Business Rates will apply, with tenants paying direct any Business Rates or Council Tax that applies to their part occupation.

Note 3: Figures are exclusive of VAT.

Scenario B assumptions: Two holiday lets: No.1 Church Lane and Heritage Centre first-floor with ground-floor retail let; one private let in No.3 Church Lane. Year: 5


Income Estimate



live/work)

£ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 18,552

Residential rental £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 9,000


on one letting space) £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 26,004




Retail income £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 39,552







* Utilities -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 21,036


maintenance-£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 32,880

* Security -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 6,000


* Insurance -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 7,212


ceremonies)-£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 4,524






@ 33% margin

-£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 6,372


55% margin-£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 17,796











Scenario A assumptions: Two holiday lets; one live/work let; no private rental; Heritage Centre ground-floor retail let. Year: 5

Sensitivity analysis: income 3% increase in Year 5

Sensitivity analysis: expenditure 5% increase in Year 5


Income Estimate



live/work)

£ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 18,552

Residential rental £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ -


on two letting spaces) £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 2,083 £ 24,996




Retail income £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 39,552


Cumulative sensitivity variation £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 1,301 £ 5,377 £ 19,688





* Utilities -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 21,036


maintenance-£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 32,880

* Security -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 6,000


* Insurance -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 7,212


ceremonies)-£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 4,524






@ 33% margin

-£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 6,372


55% margin-£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 17,796


Cumulative sensitivity variation -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 30,778


Estimated surplus or (deficit) -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 -£ 3,246 £ 34,793 -£ 911







Scenario B assumptions: Two holiday lets: No.1 Church Lane and Heritage Centre first-floor with ground-floor retail let; one private let in No.3 Church Lane. Year: 5

Sensitivity analysis: income 3% increase in Year 5

Sensitivity analysis: expenditure 5% increase in Year 5


Income Estimate



live/work)

£ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 1,546 £ 18,552

Residential rental £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 750 £ 9,000


on one letting space) £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 2,167 £ 26,004




Retail income £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 3,296 £ 39,552


Cumulative sensitivity variation £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 1,401 £ 6,147 £ 21,559





* Utilities -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 1,753 -£ 21,036


maintenance-£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 2,740 -£ 32,880

* Security -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 500 -£ 6,000


* Insurance -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 601 -£ 7,212


ceremonies)-£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 377 -£ 4,524






@ 33% margin

-£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 531 -£ 6,372


55% margin-£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 1,483 -£ 17,796


Cumulative sensitivity variation -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 2,565 -£ 30,778









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12. Conclusions and action plan

12.1 At 2.4 above the priorities for the feasibility work being undertaken for the Ledbury Places project, and for the project itself, were outlined as being to:

- Retain the buildings in community or civic management/ownership;

- Improve community access and benefit;

- Protect and preserve the historic fabric of these important buildings;

- Provide a financially sustainable future for these buildings;

- Meet the current and future needs of the key stakeholders in terms of accommodation and improved service delivery opportunities;

- Support the economic and cultural prosperity of Ledbury and surrounding area;

- Provide better interpretation and access to Ledbury’s history and rich heritage, to tell its story in a compelling and coherent way, and to increase visitor numbers as a direct result of this.

12.2 This Plan is the result of extensive consultation and assessment carried out by and on behalf of the Ledbury Places Steering Group, looking at these aims. The objective of a business plan produced at this stage in a project’s development is to establish the likelihood of long-term financial viability for the uses identified for the project building(s) and to reconcile this with the other main imperatives as outlined above.

It is encouraging that the figures as detailed in section 11 do show that the income streams identified should be sufficient to cover the costs of running and maintaining the buildings. This, together with the considerable progress which has been made in identifying the primary needs for capital works to the buildings, gives a sound basis for the next stage in development for the Ledbury Places project.

12.3 The principal conclusions of this Business Plan are therefore that the Ledbury Places project does have the potential for medium- to long-term viability, and that the capital costs are of a scale that would allow for applications to the major funding bodies. These are both encouraging outcomes and should be sufficient for the project steering group to discuss moving on to the next stage in the development of the project.

The key to both of these conclusions, however, is that the six buildings which have been considered in such detail continue to be looked at as one project, and not separately or in isolation. The budget referred to above showing potential financial viability relies entirely on the income and expenditure being amortised across all six buildings, and without this financial viability will be well-nigh impossible.

Similarly there are considerable economies of scale in the capital works programme if spread across the six buildings, and the costs would be much higher if each had to be addressed on its own.

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12.4 Appendix 3 includes a Programme Chart showing a timescale for project development and capital works. The first stage of this is to prepare funding bids, in particular to the Heritage Lottery Fund, and to undertake some further research and consultation work in and around Ledbury, alongside the development of a comprehensive heritage interpretation plan. In order to build on the considerable momentum which has been built up over the last nine months, it is important that this work should be started as soon as is feasible, ideally within the next four – six weeks.

12.5 It will therefore be necessary to look for some short-term development funding so that the steering group (most of whose members are acting in a wholly voluntary capacity) can continue to buy in the support and expertise it requires. An application to the Architectural Heritage Fund for a Project Development Grant should be considered, as well as seeing if any remaining funds from this stage of the development work could be carried forward to cover what otherwise may be a two – three month hiatus.

12.6 The main recommendation from this Business Plan is therefore that we strongly feel the Ledbury Places project has a future, and that it is worth taking forward. This will require the establishment of the new charitable company to manage the project development and ultimately the buildings themselves, and therefore continued discussion and engagement with the building owners and other key stakeholders in Ledbury and the wider area.

12.7 It is nearly 18 months since the original meetings took place between the Ledbury and District Civic Society, Herefordshire Council and Locality, which led to the bid to the Social Investment Business and the establishment of the Ledbury Places Steering Group. During this time much progress has been made in developing plans for the use of the six buildings and in scoping the market for those uses; in learning more about the buildings, their history and their current use; in examining the condition and capital works which will be needed; and in involving the people of Ledbury and the surrounding area and with the key stakeholders in the progress to date.

Ledbury has great potential and the town and its people will benefit considerably from the plans outlined above if it is possible to realise them in full.

11 March 2014

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13. Appendices

Appendix 1 – Steering Group membership

Alex Clive (Chair) – Ledbury and District Civic Society, Barrett Browning Institute Trustee

Cllr Robert Barnes – Ledbury Town Council, Deputy Mayor

Patrick Bodenham – Herefordshire Council

Cllr Allen Conway – Ledbury and District Civic Society, Ledbury Town Council

Mary Cooper – Ledbury and District Civic Society, Barrett Browning Institute Trustee

Karen Davis – Ledbury Area Development Trust/Project Administrator

Cllr Martin Eager – Ledbury Town Council

Tony Featherstone – Herefordshire Council

Stuart Houghton – Ledbury Area Development Trust

Ian Lush – The Architectural Heritage Fund/business consultant

Hannah McSherry – Herefordshire Council

Tony Peake – Ledbury and District Civic Society

Ian Stainburn – Ledbury and District Civic Society, Barrett Browning Institute Trustee

David Trevis- Smith – UK Association of Preservation Trusts/heritage consultant

Suzanne Wenczek – Project Manager

Cllr Terry Widdows – Ledbury Town Council, Mayor of Ledbury

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Appendix 2 – Consultants engaged for the Ledbury Places scheme

Baily Garner – Surveyors (Phase 1)

Bare Learning Bare Synergy – Costs and CDM advice

David Trevis-Smith (DTS Associates) – heritage, project management and business strategy

DCA Consultants – tourism and business planning

Dendrochronological Consultancy Ltd – conservation and dating of listed buildings

John Goodwins – valuations, market appraisals

Herefordshire Council – fund-raising advice, asbestos surveys

Humphreys and Jones - Lynne Humphreys – historic wall paintings surveyor

Ian Lush – business strategy and planning

James Brennan – Surveyors

Locality – governance advice

Mann Williams – civil and structural engineers

Martin Thomas – service and environmental engineering

MFG Solicitors – legal advice

Montfort Consultants (Phase 1 only) – catering and food retail

Orme & Slade Solicitors – legal services

Pippin Consultancy – website design and hosting

Purcells – architects, planning and conservation

Quince Retailing – retail and merchandise

Zebra Media & Communications – PR, marketing and communications

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Appendix 3 – Architects’ report, drawings and estimated programme

These will be sent as hard copy under separate cover

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Appendix 4 – Conservation Management Plans (work in progress)

These will be sent as hard copies under separate cover

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Appendix 5 – Report from DCA Consultants

This will be sent as hard copy under separate cover

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Appendix 6 – Report from Quince Retail Consultants


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Appendix 7 – Report from Montfort Catering Consultants


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Appendix 8 – Communications Strategy, public consultation, PR and

marketing activity

These will be sent as hard copy under separate cover

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Appendix 9 – Report from Chiene & Tait on VAT

This has been commissioned and is in progress, and will follow by the end of March 2014.

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Appendix 10 – Painted Room survey report


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Appendix 11 – Dendrochronology analysis

This has been commissioned, is in progress, and will be completed by the end of March

2014.

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Appendix 12 – English Heritage pre-application advice

The Market Hall - Ledbury Thank you for our meeting at this outstanding historic building to discuss the options for wheelchair access, and in particular the scheme for a platform lift shown in drawings 222, 223, 224, 225 and 226. English Heritage recognizes that any substantial and lasting public use for the upper floor of this building will be very limited if it cannot provide wheelchair access and if it does not have a loo. This is analogous with the situation - well known to us - concerning historic churches, where we always make every effort to enable these facilities to be provided, sometimes with some small sacrifice of heritage significance. If the building does not provide these facilities, it can be difficult to for it to remain cherished by the local community on whom it depends for its long-term future. English Heritage therefore supports in principle the provision of these facilities at Ledbury Market House, and considers that this scheme is an appropriate response to the demands of the building and the needs of its users. In giving this advice we are mindful that the floor in the area of the proposed lift is apparently entirely of late 19thor 20th century construction. We recommend that the casing of the lift shaft would probably best be clad in oak with a natural finish so as to harmonise with the building, and that it should carry on it the date of its construction. All the works here will have to be designed and detailed to a very high standard, and I look forward to further discussions as the project evolves. John Yates

Inspector of Historic Buildings and Areas

English Heritage – West Midlands

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Appendix 13 – Five-year income and expenditure forecast and

sensitivity analysis


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