Work starts to convert prominent building into dozens of apartments

Alec Piercy and his business partner Stephen Williams plan to convert St Paul’s House in Chippenham into 24 apartments, to be sold by Connells. The building previously contained offices that sat empty despite being marketed, and will now be redeveloped subject to permitted development. Work has started and the building has been stripped, with the purchase expected to be completed by the end of April and the homes delivered around the end of 2025.

Mr Piercy, from Bristol, told this paper he hopes the project will be a boost for the town. READ MORE: Chippenham Railway Station overhaul plans submitted St Paul's House (Image: Newsquest) He said: “When you’ve got dilapidated office space and a housing crisis the onus is on us to drive as many units into the economy as possible. “Hopefully this will mean people moving into Chippenham and spending money in the town centre.



“If you look at our past work, they will be high quality homes and that’s more valuable than empty office space.” The pair say they specialise in converting old properties into housing rather than building on green sites. Mr Piercy added: “We aren’t a big developer, we’re hyper-local and I don’t like the idea of building on the green belt, so we take pride in converting disused offices.

”.