What should Britain do with its empty department stores?

From Wolverhampton's Beatties building to Birmingham's former House of Fraser store, the future of two prominent retail landmarks has reignited debate over how vacant department stores should be reused.

In Wolverhampton, the city council is preparing legal action against the owners of the former Beatties building over the condition of the site, while in Birmingham a consultation has opened on proposals to redevelop the former House of Fraser store, better known to many as Rackham's.

Plans for a mix of homes, shops and cafes have been put forward for both sites, but heritage campaigners argue such buildings should be retained and adapted rather than lost.

Catherine Croft, of the Twentieth Century Society, said 20th Century buildings could be valued in the same way as Victorian structures and that many were "really interesting" and worth preserving.

She said changing attitudes towards historic buildings offered a lesson for the future.

"Previously Victorian buildings were lost, before times changed and people decided to save them," she said.

"We need to be thinking forward and realising that the post-war buildings of the 20th Century are going to be the ones we treasure far more in another 50 years."

Dr Mike Dring, of the Birmingham Modernist Society, said the Rackham's building had "a real presence" and had "stood the test of time".

"It's really intact... and with some imagination you could see a real future for it," he said.

Current proposals for the Birmingham site include more than 500 homes, alongside offices, shops, food and drink venues and new public spaces. Developers have said the project could create about 1,300 jobs.

Dring pointed to examples elsewhere in the country where former department stores had found new uses, including Debenhams in Leeds, Bobby's in Bournemouth and Department Ryde on the Isle of Wight.

"It's not only about an aesthetic issue, it's really about how we meet the needs of society much more broadly," he said.

However, he said there were challenges in upgrading the energy efficiency of large buildings and improving access to natural light.

"The government declared a climate crisis aiming for net zero by 2050, Birmingham City Council by 2030, it's not really a choice really, we need to take drastic action if we're going to meet these targets," he said.

In Wolverhampton, the Beatties store was bought by Eden Property Group for about £6.15m in 2024. Plans for shops, restaurants and 300 homes were approved later that year but have since stalled.

Earlier this year, councillors backed plans to use compulsory purchase powers to acquire the locally listed building. This week, the council said it was preparing legal action against the owners because of its "unacceptable state".

While some internal fittings and structures have been removed, the building remains in poor condition and the council has said it wants to remedy that and kick-start its regeneration.

The BBC has contacted Eden for a response.

Croft suggested economic factors were behind the lack of progress.

"Perhaps city centres needed reinventing as places where people live and there would be more custom for cafes and restaurants?" she said.

Dring said opinions on the future of the Rackham's site remained divided, but believed there were "lots of opportunities through bold and enlightened approaches".

"It's a very difficult thing to do, within this, there's people's memories but there's a much bigger question about how we meet our climate responsibilities," he said.

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