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Friday, December 27, 2013 Express & Star ES 6 www.expressandstar.com Owner of former Sunbeam building to renovate it for housing Jobs and 111 homes on way to factory site it has stood as a depressing reminder of decline and dere- liction for a decade and a half. But now the iconic former Sunbeam factory is being given a new lease of life as homes. And today it can be revealed that 40 jobs will be created over the course of a three- year renovation of the 120,000 sq ft build- ing. New owner Liam Wordley has submitted plans to create 111 homes, with 30 of them set aside to provide supported housing for people with learning disabilities. The remaining 81 will be available to rent on the open market and will be of different sizes. It is expected some will be across two floors. Developers have also revealed they will be re-instating the iconic Sunbeam lettering down the side of the building as part of the renovation. Caring The courtyard of the building will be gut- ted and landscaped to provide a grassed area for people to sit and play sports. There will also be new spiral staircases built. Of the new jobs, 32 will be during the construction phase with many of the others expected to come from the caring profes- sion. The site will also have 110 car parking spaces according to plans lodged with Wolverhampton City Council. Mr Wordley was also behind the redevel- opment of the former Territorial Army drill hall in Stafford Street as student accommo- dation. He said he was talking to registered social landlords about the prospect of them pro- viding the support for people with learning disabilities at the Sunbeam site. The 34-year-old former Exeter Chiefs rugby player said: “There will be around 40 people with learning disabilities catered for with a linked up alarm and call system. “What is currently there at the Sunbeam site is a derelict shell. This project will give it a new life.” The former factory off the Penn Road island has been empty for 14 years. It is not far from where Sainsbury’s has now begun the development of its multi- million pound supermarket. The site also stands at the gateway to the city’s ring road. In its report to the city council, develop- A children’s hospice which is undergoing a £400,000 extension is to further expand, under new plans put forward by bosses. Acorns, which supports youngsters and their families, is looking to create extra facil- ities at its Black Country base. The hospice is now looking to build a sin- gle-storey extension which would accommo- date a wet room in Walstead Road, Walsall. A formal application has been submitted to Walsall Council and a decision is expected to be made by councillors or planning officers under delegated powers early next year. It comes after a £400,000 project to increase facilities at the hospice started in October. The six month project includes the addition of a two storey extension to the existing build- ing on Walstead Road. The new building includes family accommo- existing building. The extension will accom- modate a wet room. “The proposed extension is an appropriate solution to meet the applicant’s operational requirements and is considered to be essential to meet the hospice’s continuing user demands. The design is in keeping with the existing building and the impact of the sur- rounding environment will be negligible.” Ann Smallman, head of care services at Acorns, said: “It will allow families additional privacy with the final care of their child at a difficult and very sensitive time, which we know is particularly importance in certain cul- tures.” Acorns has bases in Walsall, Selly Oak and Worcester. The first was in Birmingham and followed soon after by its hospice in the Black Country in 1999. The Acorns Hospice in Walsall Children’s hospice in £400,000 extension having more work done dation on the first floor with two bedrooms, bathroom, living space and lift access. Families will have access to a ground floor therapy room for complementary sessions, counselling and group work. There will also be a dedicated, tempera- ture controlled storage room for specialist equipment, including beds, in addition to separate work to upgrade the central heat- ing and hot water system and install air-con- ditioning. The new wet room application has been put forward through AT Architects Ltd. A supporting document states: “The pro- posals are for a single-storey extension adja- cent to the reception area at the front of the Report by Craig Hughes [email protected] Heaven 17 will visit for concert Eighties synth pop band Heaven 17 start a new UK tour in Birmingham in February. The Sheffield group, which features founders Martyn Ware and Glenn Gre- gory, will be playing hits including Temp- tation and songs from debut album Penthouse and Pavement in Birmingham Town Hall on Valentine’s Day – February 14 – at 8pm. Tickets are £22.50 from the town hall or Symphony Hall box office. A benefits cheat paying back more than £42,000 of illicit hand- outs at £50 a month would need to live to 125 to clear the debt, a judge heard. Stephen Wilkinson falsely claimed housing benefit and council tax relief on his home in Cannock for more than nine years before he was caught. The benefits were paid to him as a single person, but he failed to tell the Department of Works and Pensions when his partner moved in with him and she had a full-time job. Mr James Bruce, prosecuting, said the claims went on from May 2003 until September last year and involved a total of £42,692. He had promised to repay it at £50 a month. Wilkinson, aged 54, of Brown- shill Road, Norton Canes, who admitted two charges of failing to notify a change of circumstances, was given a four-month prison sentence suspended for a year and ordered to do 150 hours unpaid community work. But Judge Mark Eades told him: “Now the shortfall is £42,000 and you are going to pay it back at £50 a month? It is going to take you 71 years – if you live that long, which you won’t.” Mr Rob Perry, defending, said Wilkinson had been unable to work since 1993 due to arthritis, but his benefits had been changed to jobseekers’ allowance as he was now deemed fit. “His relationship with his partner started, she moved in to his address and he buried his head in the sand.” Benefits cheat needs 71 years to clear debt oN The web 1 Man found dead in stafford street is named 2 Man’s body found in Kidderminster pond 3 Too shiny – festive wrapping paper banned from recycling in Wolverhampton 4 selfridges hits heights as Midlands bargain hunters flock for Boxing day sales 5 Man in hospital after Walsall fire rescue MosT Read and they’re off . . . the post-Christmas sales are under way. Were you one of the early-morning shoppers caught on camera by our photographer? PhoTo choice www.expressandstar.com if you're heading to the sales this weekend - make sure you check out our top ten dresses on the high street. We've teamed up with the gorgeous stars of sleeping Beauty to bring you party dresses fit for a princess. Check out our video with the stunning lucy evans. For more details and other events across the region visit Nativemonster.com should rules over recycling be relaxed to include wrapping paper? 85% of readers said yes 15% said no oNliNe poll results ToP commenteD Too shiny – festive wrapping paper banned from recycling in Wolverhampton “The reason the council is cash strapped is because they award salaries to people who make decisions such as these. Aanybody who sits at the civic centre and has ideas such as these is no more than a quango parasite and a complete drain on resources. They doesn’t deserve jobs.” TV review: Raised by Wolves “I thought it was funny, well written and accents were very good . . . because they all but one of the young actors came from the area! And the one that didn’t is from Birmingham, so not that far ! It’s nice to have any references to the Black Country on TV in a positive light so I truly hope that Channel 4 give it a chance. I can see it going far!” Today’s Poll – Which celebration do you prefer, Christmas or New year? ers J Mason Associates said: “The Midlands is the home to some of the finest industrial architecture of the last two hundreds years and Wolverhampton was a key city in the area. The Sunbeam factory was no exception and the section of the extensive factory that remains is both an important monument to the transport industry and also a prominent landmark in the area. “Working with the existing fabric of the building new proposals will look to retain many of the industrial features whilst com- bining a modern twist to enable comfortable and spacious inner city living that is visually engaging.” It goes on to say: “The iconic ‘Sunbeam’ lettering down the points of the building are to be re-instated.” Renowned The Sunbeam motorcycles that were built there were renowned all over the world and were manufactured at the site in Paul Street and Jeddo Street from 1890 to 1937. The factory also moved into car produc- tion and produced vehicles that were suc- cessful on the racing circuit and driven by the likes of Sir Henry Seagrave. One of the company’s largest achieve- ments included producing the car which broke the world land-speed record at Day- tona Beach in Florida in 1927 after hitting 203.79mph. Sunbeam closed in 1936 and Associated Motor Cycles took over the site in 1937, manufacturing radiators at the factory. Production finished in 1999 with the loss of 60 jobs. Report by Daniel wainwright [email protected] The Sunbeam Factory, in Pool Street, Wolverhampton An artist’s impression of the Sunbeam site development The courtyard section of the landmark former Sunbeam factory site will be grassed and landscaped in the owner’s proposals
