City Living | Lifestyle

NEW DEVELOPMENT: Landmark "Victorian Masterpiece" Bank set for Huge Renovation

Bruntwood has submitted a planning application to revive a landmark building in Manchester city centre with more than 150 years of banking history.

By Emma Davidson | February 20th '22

Share this story


Considered a Victorian masterpiece, the Grade II listed building on 38-42 Mosley Street was built in 1862 to house the Manchester and Salford Bank. It was designed by Architect, Edward Walters, who also created the city’s Free Trade Hall. The bank was his last great work and the last extravagant Italian palazzo style building in the city. It’s clad in yellow-grey York stone with tall elegant windows lighting the banking hall inside.  The initial application outlines plans to give the historic site a reinvention as a workspace and leisure destination that incorporates the building’s grand original features, including the palatial double height banking hall and second floor dome room.

Image: Jody Hartley

The plans include refurbishing four floors of office space into a range of suites, creating a new communal lounge, a unique hospitality offering housed in the old banking hall, plus basement wellness facilities including a gym, cycle scheme, showers and changing facilities. The 33,000 sq ft development will look to meet Bruntwood’s 2030 net zero carbon targets and is set to complete in early 2023, according to the proposals. The complete vision for 38-42 Mosley Street will be announced later in 2022, and the site will form a key location in the surrounding cluster of Bruntwood buildings that includes 57 Spring Gardens, York House, Manchester Club, Pall Mall Court and Bloc, Bruntwood Works’ latest Pioneer workspace. 38-42 Mosley Street’s redevelopment will anchor this cluster of buildings to other Bruntwood Works assets around New York Street, including Neo and Faulkner House, further improving this district of the city.

Image: Jody Hartley

Joshua Hancock, Head of Commercial at Bruntwood Works, said: “We’re dedicated to delivering our vision for the modern workspace, creating inspiring places that reflect the thriving city centres where they are located while bringing balance and wellness to our working lives. “With the proposals for 38-42 Mosley Street, we have a unique opportunity to create a one-of-a-kind work and leisure destination in the heart of Manchester; an historic building brought back to life as a cutting-edge workspace.” The building boasts a wealth of period details and will be sympathetically redeveloped by the Bruntwood Works project team, along with architects AXI, Paul Butler Associates as planning and heritage consultant, and Hilson Moran as MEP and sustainability consultant.