Another milestone has been made in the redevelopment of the Spode Works, as one of the many buildings in the historic Bottle Kiln Courtyard has been renovated. Taking just 18 weeks to complete the building is now fully occupied.

Building 4L, which has largely been unused since the factory's closure in 2008 was in a state of severe disrepair, with a partially collapsed roof, rotting timbers, broken windows, and asbestos contamination.

However developers Dog & Bone acquired the building in October last year and it has just taken 18 weeks to complete the full transformation.

The building has retained many of the original features and is energy efficient with an EPC A rating.

Exposed brickwork dating back to the 18th century is now displayed, along with the ceiling trusses and two layers of the flooring have been stripped back to reveal the 1939 wooden flooring.

Jeff Nash, director of Dog and Bone Projects which owns the Potbank scheme at the Spode site in Stoke, said: "This project demonstrates how adaptive reuse can breathe new life into heritage buildings while creating jobs and opportunities. 

Inside building 4L at the Spode Works. (Supplied)

"We are seeing strong demand for niche workspaces in sympathetically restored heritage buildings like Building 4L, which shows that there is a bright future for Spode Works as part of Stoke's Createch Cluster. We're proud to deliver this project, which was fully let in advance of its completion, and look forward to continuing our work on similar developments."

Last year Stoke-on-Trent City Council unveiled their masterplan for the former potbank saying it could become the hub for industries of the future. The development of building 4L was fully funded by Dog & Bone and takes their investment into the Spode site to more than £3million.

Ashley Booth, Dog and Bone Group's project manager for the scheme added: "Building 4L is a great example of how we can bring heritage buildings back into use in a way that's both sustainable and sympathetic to their history. By using reusing materials, installing heritage double-glazed units, innovative heating systems and keeping as much of the original fabric as possible, we've managed to create a modern, energy-efficient workspace while preserving the building's character. 

"None of this would have been possible without the hard work and skill of our team of local builders and tradesmen, who have done a fantastic job bringing this project to life. We are excited for the next phase of redevelopment on Spode."

The renovation of building 4L at the Spode Works took just 18 weeks to complete and has helped create 20 new graduate-level creative technology jobs. (Supplied)

On completion of the project all the units were fully let and has created 20 new graduate level jobs. Some of the tenants for the units include Don Mupasi behind VisualDon, a YouTube and CGI content producer with clients such as David Guetta and Coldplay; and VCCP Stoke and The Challenger Academy.

Michael Lee, Chief Strategy Officer of VCCP Partnership and Co-Founder of The Challenger Academy said: "Jeff and Ash have been passionate supporters of what we've been trying to achieve since we moved into the Potbank development back in 2022. The completion of Building 4L marks an exciting new chapter for creativity and opportunity in Stoke. 

"By embedding VCCP Stoke and our charity The Challenger Academy within this cutting edge Createch environment, we're empowering the next generation of diverse talent, ensuring that young people in our community have direct access to the skills, mentorship and career pathways that will define the creative industries of the future."

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