A long-running oatcake maker - which supplies the delicacy to retailers including M&S - is planning to move production to a former sports centre in Burslem.

Poveys Oatcakes, which has been running for more than 30 years, is seeking permission from Stoke-on-Trent City Council to change the use of the former Burslem Gymnastics Centre in Newcastle Street to food production.

The council closed the former gymnastics centre in 2023 after revealing it would cost £1.85m to keep the building open. The following year the centre relaunched inside Dimensions Leisure Centre.

A planning statement submitted as part of the application to Stoke-on-Trent City Council said: "Poveys Oatcakes is a long-established company that carries a very good reputation throughout Stoke-on-Trent; through its social media marketing it has also developed a large online following.

"The company supplies oatcake to a number of supermarkets, including Aldi, Marks and Spencer and Heron Foods, as well as smaller retail outlets within the North Staffordshire area.

"The company currently operates out of two sites, which presents operational challenges for the company. This site has been identified by the company as a way of enabling them to consolidate their operations into one location, in turn deriving operational efficiencies to support the sustainable growth of the business.

"New bespoke equipment is to be provided to cook the oatcakes which in turn will generate significant energy saving efficiencies compared to the company's existing operations. The company's overall energy costs are expected to reduce by around 30% – 40%.

"The application proposes the change of use of the main ground floor of the building to provide a mixing room with wash area, production room, cooling area, packaging area, goods storage area, plant rooms, ancillary office, storage, hygiene area, locker room and shower room.

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"External alterations to the building are to be consolidated onto the southeast elevation of the building where it is proposed to demolish a portion of an existing flat roofed structure, and removal of low level brickwork to facilitate the formation of two new access points into the main area of the building which are to be fitted with roller shutter doors.

"The two storey turreted and castellated Arts and Crafts part of the building is to be repurposed internally to provide a reception, ancillary offices, toilets and store room at ground floor, with a further ancillary office, meeting room and kitchen at first floor above. No external changes are proposed to this part of the building.

"Externally it is proposed to remove an area of modified grassland and some existing trees in order to create a new internal access drive and turning area off the existing areas of hardstanding within the site, so as to create a new dispatch area where product will be transferred into / out of the building.

"Only fork lift trucks will enter/exit the building through the new openings that are to be created."

Last year Poveys Oatcakes featured on an episode of BBC show Inside the Factory.

Historian Dr Ruth Goodman described oatcakes as an "unlikely food hero that has been keeping the people of this county going for centuries".

Stoke-on-Trent City Council has yet to make a decision on the application.  

To view the full application, visit the Stoke-on-Trent City Council planning website here. 

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