Project Details

Completion Date: 2004

Built in 1596 to project civic pride, the Old Market Hall is one of Shrewsbury’s most celebrated historic buildings. After falling out of use in 1995, the Scheduled Monument remained empty for almost a decade. In 2004, Arrol Architects (now called Arrol Green), working alongside Glenn Howells Architects, was appointed to lead the restoration and conversion of the building into an arts cinema and café.

The work required highly specialised conservation knowledge, particularly in addressing the outward thrust of the original roof timbers, which demanded a complex structural solution executed in a way that respected the fabric of the sixteenth-century building. Further works included a complete re-roofing and renewal of the lead parapet, conservation of the heraldic sculptures and the repair of the bell cupola and weather vane. The completed scheme successfully returned the building to the heart of community life and secured its long-term future.