Take a look inside Altrincham’s 30,000 sq ft new workspace that has “wellbeing at its heart”

A 30,000 sq ft building in Altrincham town centre has been transformed into a contemporary workspace with “wellbeing at its heart”.

3 Barrington Road, formerly the Southmark Building, has undergone extensive remodelling works by owner Columbia Threadneedle, with a transformation led by local architects Pozzoni and delivered by ADT Workplace.

The works were completed during lockdown and feature a new glazed entrance, reception area and a variety of facilities designed to champion a sustainable lifestyle.

The building has now opened its doors virtually and you can view a tour below:

And we asked James Dickinson and Charlie Williams, representing letting agents Canning O’Neill and Williams Sillitoe respectively, to tell us a bit about Altrincham’s newest workspace.

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: Barrington Road has undergone a complete renovation – can you tell us a bit about the project?

JAMES DICKINSON: It’s been a complete transformation of what was a building that had been part of Altrincham’s street scene for many years. It had been the home of Sesame Bankhall for many years and when they vacated it gave the landlord the opportunity to carry out a comprehensive refurbishment and re-modelling of a 30,000 sq ft office building that was starting to look a little tired.

Pozzoni Architects were appointed along with ourselves and Williams Sillitoe as letting agents and a new scheme was planned and worked up resulting in the creation of a stunning Grade A office building with a unique look and feel. It was decided that what I refer to as a ‘de-furb’ look and feel would work well in Altrincham and the team and occupiers who have looked at the space are all very pleased with the result!

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: The building and location will be familiar to many of us, what facilities do you offer the increasing number looking to avoid driving to work?

CHARLIE WILLIAMS: At 3 Barrington Road we have thought hard about trying to provide more facilities for people who do not want to drive. We have provided showers, changing facilities as well as bike storage and drying rooms, so walking, running or cycling to work is made easier.

Altrincham Interchange is a two-minute walk from the offices so getting the bus or Metrolink is really easy. We have also installed car sharing bays for people who would rather get a lift into work.

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: How well is 3 Barrington Road set up to accommodate our new reality of increased safety measures and social distancing?

JAMES: The managing agents Workman & Partners will be making sure that social distancing and what is now the normal sight of hand sanitising stations etc are located at strategic points around the building. The sheer size of the building lends itself well to social distancing, offices have the space they need to make sure workstations are adequately spaced. Let’s hope that these measures don’t last too long and we can all return to operating as we did earlier on in the year.

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: What kind and size of businesses are you best suited for?

JAMES: The specification and design of the building has been aimed at appealing to a broad cross-section of business sectors. We have received interest from finance companies to insurance brokers and also solicitors and accountants so I would suggest that all types of business could be accommodated in the building.

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: What kind of flexibility do you offer businesses, and how much do you charge?

JAMES: With regard to lease flexibility our clients recognise that in these uncertain times occupiers will be looking for flexibility going forward and therefore they are happy to look at lease length from three years upwards. Our quoting rental is £23.50 per sq ft per annum.

ALTRINCHAM TODAY: At a challenging time for all businesses, with many reviewing how they continue to work more flexibly and efficiently, why would you encourage business owners to consider 3 Barrington Road?

CHARLIE: I think the Covid 19 pandemic has made us all think about where we work, the conditions we work in, the environment we work in and why we all sit in rush hour traffic for a great deal of the day! The office space at 3 Barrington Road is second to none, the de-furb provides inspiring and different offices to the normal conventional office space currently on the market. The town of Altrincham provides so many opportunities for staff to have time out to re-energise such as yoga studios, gyms, coffee shops, not to mention the retail therapy!

JAMES: I think that the last few months have certainly made companies review how they operate going forwards and as much as ‘WFH’ (working from home) has become normal for a lot of staff, business leaders I speak to are now looking at getting their people back into the office in a safe way over the coming months as it becomes safe to do so. It is hard to train people and instil a company culture when everyone is sat in the kitchen or on a sofa at home.

Creating a great office environment will be really important going forward to help retain staff and give them an office they are proud to work in. 3 Barrington Road will give businesses a great base to start building their new office!

For more information about 3 Barrington Road, visit the website contact James Dickinson at Canning O’Neill (0161 244 5500; james@canningoneill.com) or Charlie Williams at Williams Sillitoe (01625 800 066; cw@willsill.co.uk).