The Old Borough Library, located on Rowley Street, could be converted into flats.

An application has been submitted to Stafford Borough Council requesting permission to change the use of the ground floor of the library from Class E (restaurant) to Class C3 (residential).

In 2020, permission was granted for the Old Borough Library to open as a cafe and restaurant, however this never came to fruition.

The proposal claims that the existing incomplete restaurant partitions would be removed to make space for "nine self-contained apartments" which would consist of four one-bedroom flats and five two-bedroom flats.

Grade two listed since 2015, the building was designed by architects Briggs, Wolstenholme & Thornely.

The Victorian Society recently featured the Old Borough Library on their 'Top ten endangered buildings' list.

Built in 1913, the application describes the library as an example of "high-quality Edwardian civic architecture" which "embodies early 20th-century public library investment".

According to the proposal, no alterations will be made "to any doors, windows, roof elements, brickwork, stone dressings, or façade features. 

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"All works occur strictly within the interior of the building."

The application is currently at the consultation stage.

To view or comment on the application, click here.