Bradford High Point: Renovation of brutalist landmark starts

Work is under way to transform a brutalist West Yorkshire office block which has stood empty for 25 years.

High Point in Bradford, the former headquarters of the Huddersfield and Bradford Building Society, was built in the 1970s for about £1.4m.

The Bradford Civic Society debated in 2018 whether the contentious building should be demolished.

The £11m redevelopment will see the tower block converted into 87 one and two-bedroom apartments.

Contractors have begun working on the building's crumbling concrete and windows after the latest plans to convert the building were approved last year.

They have already removed hundreds of tons of rubble, machinery and miles of pipework, ducting and cabling.

When High Point was built, it was considered to be a beacon of modernity, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The building is an example of brutalist architecture, which was a movement characterised by exposed concrete in geometric patterns.

It is regarded as a reaction to modernism, which consisted of elegant glass and steel structures.

Bradford councillor Alex Ross-Shaw said: "Once a symbol of commercial success, the High Point building has dominated the city centre's skyline for decades."

However, the landmark building has deteriorated while standing empty for the last quarter of a century.

Adam Sims, managing director of developers Circus Regeneration, said: "Without the local authority securing a £2.9m grant from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to enable the viable delivery of this scheme, I don't think we could have done this building the justice it deserves."

Work on the transformation of High Point is expected to finish in 2022.

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