We are thrilled to share that the National Trust have been successful in being granted change of use and listed building consent for opening Grantham House as a mixed-use community hub. Evans & James were appointed to prepare and submit a change of use and listed building consent application for the Grade I listed Grantham House which sits within the ‘Cultural Quarter’ and Conservation Area of Grantham town centre.
Grantham House, with parts of the building dating from the 14th Century, is one of the oldest substantial houses in Grantham and sits within the Medieval town centre. The House and gardens were transferred to the ownership of the National Trust in the 1940s and until 2018 was rented to private tenants as a residential dwelling. More recently, the ground floor of the house has been used by the Parish Church of St Wulfram as office accommodation and a meeting space.
Working in partnership with St Wulfram’s, the National Trust are opening the site as a mixed-use space to serve the local community and visitors. This includes internal alterations to provide a bookshop, opportunities for interpretation, café and rooms available to hire for local community groups. As part of the proposal the adjacent studio is to become an arts studio leased by Grantham Arts Group. The National Trust will open the 4-acre gardens to the public free of charge, providing an exciting opportunity to provide further access to green space for the local community within the town centre. A programme of events will help cement Grantham House as a valuable community hub.
The vision for the site is:
“Grantham House will provide a green space accessible for the local community, benefiting health and wellbeing.
Grantham House will play an integral role in fostering community connectivity within Grantham and beyond, it will be firmly rooted in the community, providing easy access to green space and a place where all feel welcomed”.
The use of Grantham House as a community asset will allow the building and grounds to be enjoyed 7 days per week and will help foster health, wellbeing and interaction with nature within the town centre. More information about the project and services we provided can be found here
