logo
Former Nottingham office set to be converted into flats

Former Nottingham office set to be converted into flats

BBC News08-08-2025
Plans to convert an office in Nottingham into 118 flats have been given the go-ahead.Nottingham City Council has approved proposals from ALB Group to transform Riverleen House in Electric Avenue, which was previously used for offices, into one-bedroom and studio apartments. According to planning documents, the rise of hybrid working models has made office sites away from city-centre locations "less viable for long-term commercial occupation". The plans stated that converting Riverleen House, which was refurbished in 2015, would help meet Nottingham's housing needs in a "sustainable" manner.
The building was constructed for credit reference agency Experian in 1997, according to commercial estate agents Fisher Hargreaves Proctor.Planning documents added: "The site, currently in office use, is increasingly better suited to residential purposes, particularly in light of changing workplace dynamics following the Covid-19 pandemic."With the rise of hybrid and remote working models, the demand for traditional office space has declined, particularly in peripheral locations."
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Make no mistake, what's unfolding is spiteful class warfare on steroids: JEFF PRESTRIDGE
Make no mistake, what's unfolding is spiteful class warfare on steroids: JEFF PRESTRIDGE

Daily Mail​

time14 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

Make no mistake, what's unfolding is spiteful class warfare on steroids: JEFF PRESTRIDGE

Another day and yet another rumour emerges of an egregious attack on the wealth of Middle England by this tax-grabbing Government. It's enough to reduce grown men and women, the prudent and thrifty to tears. Having just informed us that a more pernicious inheritance tax regime is heading our way, Labour has now indicated that it is looking to impose a new property tax regime on middle-class homeowners. It seems that nothing in our financial armoury – our home, pension and savings – is sacred in the eyes of Labour. It's all there to be grabbed or taxed to the hilt. Although details of the proposed tax are rather sketchy – and Treasury officials are currently remaining schtum – the fact that the story broke in the Labour-supporting Guardian newspaper suggests that this new tax regime has legs. No smoke without fire. The tax, it seems, could apply to those selling homes worth more than £500,000 – and replace the current stamp duty tax which is levied on buyers. Another option is an annual levy on the value of a property – a wealth tax whichever way you look at it. At what rate the tax would be applied is anyone's guess but it would surely be set at such a level that it raised more than the Treasury currently receives in stamp duty (£11.6billion in the last financial year). After all, this is a tax overhaul driven essentially by Labour's desperate need to generate more revenue for the Treasury's coffers, much diminished by the Chancellor's bloated spending and costly U-turns on winter fuel payment and much-needed welfare reform. It's scary – bloody scary. Make no mistake about it, what is unfolding before our very eyes is class warfare on steroids. A spiteful assault on millions of people who through a mix of thrift, sacrifice and damned hard work have built their own financial fortress, only for the Big Bad Wolf that is Labour to come along and attempt to blow it down. While the current stamp duty tax regime is far from perfect, a replacement property tax – whichever form it takes – would bring with it a shedful of issues. For example, if it took the form of a seller's tax, it would surely clog up the housing market even more than it is now. I imagine that many elderly homeowners sitting in sizeable £500,000-plus properties would opt to stay put rather than sell up, pay the tax and downsize. But if it was an annual tax, it could blow a hole in your household budget. Alongside the replacement for stamp duty, Labour is also rumoured to be looking at abolishing council tax and introducing a 'local' property tax which owners, not residents, would pay. This would be based on the value of the home. Good luck there, Rachel Reeves, given that a similar idea (the poll tax) introduced some 35 years ago by a Conservative government led by Margaret Thatcher went down like a lead balloon – and was swiftly abandoned. Of course, there is a strong case for reform of property taxes in this country. But my suspicion is that Rachel From Accounts will use reform as cover to squeeze the middle classes until the pips squeak. As far as she is concerned our homes, pensions and savings are hers to tap for extra tax. Frightening. Beware of the Big Bad She-Wolf.

UK independent space agency scrapped to cut costs
UK independent space agency scrapped to cut costs

BBC News

time14 minutes ago

  • BBC News

UK independent space agency scrapped to cut costs

The UK Space Agency will cease to exist as an independent entity to cut the cost of bureaucracy, the government said on will be absorbed by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) in April government says this will save money, cut duplication and ensure ministerial one leading space scientist said the move would lead to disruption in the short term and the UK losing ground to its international competitors over the long run. Dr Simeon Barber of the Open University feared that scrapping UKSA would lead to Britain's space sector "losing focus"."Around the world countries have been recognising the importance of space by setting up national space agencies, and for the government to be scrapping ours seems like a backward step," he said. UKSA was created 2010 in response to the growing importance of the sector to the economy. The development of small spacecraft, satellites and space instrumentation is a field that the UK excels at, thanks in part due to the agency. Its role is to develop the country's space strategy, coordinate research and commercial activities and liaise with international partners. During its tenure UKSA saw a UK astronaut, Tim Peake launched into space to work on the International Space Station and the development of Britain's own capability to launch small satellites and other small payloads into space from space sector generates an estimated £18.6bn a year and employs 55,000 people across the agency, its budget and activities will now be absorbed into DSIT. It follows a commitment from Prime Minister Keir Starmer to reduce costs and cut the number of arms length government bodies, known as quangos (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations), starting with the abolition of NHS England announced in minister Sir Chris Bryant said: "Bringing things in house means we can bring much greater integration and focus to everything we are doing while maintaining the scientific expertise and the immense ambition of the sector."The merger will see the agency become a unit within DSIT, staffed by experts from both organisations and retaining the UKSA supporters of the space agency, such as Dr Barber fear that this will mean a loss of the agency's dynamic, proactive approach which has proved to be so successful for the UK's space science and its space industry. He said there was a danger of moving to more bureaucratic, less incentivised ways of working, which he said were more typical of government departments, and were the reason the agency was created in the first place."It feels like we're going to get stuck in the mud again," he told BBC News.

JLR opens new energy farm that is the size of 36 football pitches!
JLR opens new energy farm that is the size of 36 football pitches!

Auto Car

time43 minutes ago

  • Auto Car

JLR opens new energy farm that is the size of 36 football pitches!

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has opened a solar farm the size of 36 football pitches at its Gaydon headquarters as part of efforts to increase its energy independence. The 26-hectare, 18MW site can generate enough electricity to power a third of the British firm's base. The site is home to JLR's design, engineering and R&D teams. It is part of a move from JLR to source at least 30% of its global energy use from on-site renewables, while also reducing its reliance on grid energy – and therefore fluctuating energy costs – and improving its environmental impact. A similar project is being completed at its Wolverhampton Electric Propulsion Manufacturing Centre. There, one of the UK's largest rooftop arrays, featuring more than 18,000 panels, will open in the coming months. This will be able to generate around 9500 MWh of energy each year, meeting 40% of the site's needs. Next year, the marque will install 10MW of solar car ports at its Merseyside site. These include canopies and solar walkways – structures like these are quite common in hotter countries, such as Spain. They will mostly provide energy for EV charging. JLR's chief sustainability officer Andrea Debbane said the steps were 'important'. She added: 'They directly reduce our global operational emissions and help move us closer to our net zero goal, whilst delivering tangible value today and for the long-term.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store