ST Helens Borough Council’s cabinet has approved more than £500,000 of capital funding to progress to the next stage of bringing the Gamble Building back into use.

A meeting was held today, Wednesday January 11, to discuss funding to restore the iconic building in Victoria Square as part of the council’s five-phase property improvement programme for reopening Gamble.

The five-phase programme was formed in October 2019 in hopes of bringing the Gamble Building back into use following its closure in 2017 due to structural issues.

Phase three of restoring the 127-year-old building was completed last summer, which saw external repairs carried out, including new windows, masonry repointing, terracotta repairs, and roof work.  

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The project will now enter phase four, which will see Multi-Disciplinary Consultancy Services undertake RIBA stages two and three, which focused on the concept design and spatial coordination of Gamble Building before the internal works programme is able to commence.

The design activity, funded from the budget pipeline to the capital programme - money earmarked for investment purposes that cannot be used to run essential services - will illustrate how a restored Gamble Building could look, with features including a welcoming ground floor to support a range of events and activities, library and café on the upper ground floor, youth facilities on the first floor and commercial letting space on the second floor, and a new accessible entrance to support town centre regeneration plans.

Councillor Richard McCauley, Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration, said: "Rich in heritage, the Gamble Building is the jewel in the crown in St Helens town centre and it has certainly got its shine back following an extensive external refurbishment.     

"The quality of work is clear for all to see and has been done to a very high standard, from the detail of the brickwork to the terracotta mouldings – it looks absolutely fantastic and I’m sure residents will agree. 

"We achieved a lot in 2022 in the way of regeneration on the back of a global pandemic, and we’re starting the new year as we mean to go on.

"This next stage will allow us to get the exciting designs in place and then we can crack on with internal works, which we know residents are right behind, so the Gamble Building can be reopened and return to its former glory."

A bid has been submitted for Government Levelling Up Fund Round Two to finance the internal works needed to restore the building, with a delayed outcome for which is now expected by February.