Fuller Long are delighted to have been involved in an exciting new venture in the village of Charlbury, West Oxfordshire. The scheme, named The Curiosities, involves the opening of a co-working space as well as providing a kitchen for the owner to produce home cured meats, which he will sell in local shops and markets. The kitchen will also be used to hold occasional evening classes, specialising in the use of natural preserves in food using local ingredients such as bacon or duck.
The new use will consist of an office at ground floor level where desk space can be rented out by local business owners. The current plan is for a total of 9 desks, which will be available to rent on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, with the forecast that between 5 and 6 people will use these desks on a daily basis.
At basement level the applicant is seeking to install a kitchen where he can cure bacon and ferment vegetables for sale at markets, delis, local pubs and restaurants. The applicant himself will be operating this part of the business as a small artisan producer and it will be run independently from the rental desk space at ground floor level.
There are to be no external alterations during the undertaking of this project, and only limited, minor alterations to the interior. Due to this, we helped our client apply for a change of use of the ground floor and basement of the building from A1 Use (retail/delicatessen) to a part A3 Use (food and drink) and part B1 Use (office).
In addition, due to the listed status of the property our submission included an application for Listed Building Consent which was supported by a Heritage Statement from one of our knowledgeable Heritage Consultants.
Fuller Long were successful in obtaining permission both for the application for Change of Use, and for the Listed Building Consent and so the work needed to prepare for this project is currently underway.
The project has been widely supported by the village community and other local businesses, and we believe that The Curiosities is a lovely addition to the village of Charlbury. It provides a space that otherwise would not be available locally, as well as attracting people to the village who otherwise might not have visited, allowing nearby pubs and shops to accrue more business.
At present, even before officially opening The Curiosities already has 30 local business-owners interested in taking up the co-working spaces. Currently, works to the inside of the property are being finalised so this wonderful space can start to be used by the local community.
If you are in search of expert planning and heritage consultants to realise the potential of your proposed schemes, the Fuller Long team have over 200 years of experience of helping deliver housing, retail and commercial schemes. Call 0808 164 1288 or email hello@fullerlong.com to speak with one of our Consultants today.
