Spode Factory Shop Site Restoration

The Spode Factory Shop site is a local and nationally significant heritage asset. Its importance is by virtue of its legacy; being a pioneer in the pottery industry; having remained on the same site and it being a cohesive survival of a collection of buildings, forming a strong street scene along Liverpool Road along with its connection with the Spode site.

Number 13 Liverpool Road was constructed in 1927, positioned on a prominent corner on the junction of Liverpool Road and Elenora Street in Stoke. The ground floor was originally divided into three independent shops with one shop frontage looking onto Liverpool Road, one frontage on Elenora Street and the third shop overlooking the junction between the two roads being extended some years later in a north-easterly direction along Elenora Street to create 15 Liverpool Road.

The building butted up to the mid 19th-century workshop range at WT Copeland & Sons Ltd. Pottery (Spode Works) which formed the boundary of the site.

The ground floor shops have seen various uses; as a butchers and grocery store and latterly as a bank; the upper floor, with a timber sprung dance floor, was a tea room and held tea dances and latterly as a night club.

In the late 1980’s – early 1990’s Spode purchased the adjoining properties 13 and 15 Liverpool Road and the neighbouring early 19th-century three storey commercial property, 11 Liverpool Road. Following the buildings acquisition by Spode, the ground floor shop frontages underwent a ‘facelift’ to uniform the elevation and a new signboard erected the full length of the three properties. The terracotta faience piers and brickwork stall risers to properties 13 and 15 Liverpool Road were clad in plywood boards and covered with modern tiles. The original shop frontages had previously been replaced with new timber-framed fixed casements within the existing openings.

Externally the Spode Factory Shop works comprise urgent roof repairs to the main building; new lead back valley gutters; careful removal of the temporary timber parapet and reinstatement of the salvaged brickwork parapet and terracotta faience copings, urns and decorative date plaque to the front (north-west) and side elevations; removal of the temporary boards to all first floor windows, timber repairs and reinstatement of timber casements where required and reinstatement of leaded lights and stained glass; structural repair to corroded steel and cracked brickwork; removal of the 20th-century signboard and tiled piers and stall riser; new historically inspired timber shop frontage surrounds; and specialist masonry cleaning to the front elevation