Liverpool's historic Martins Bank building on Water Street is set to undergo an £83m transformation, with renovation works scheduled to start within the next few weeks. The Grade II* listed former bank headquarters has been empty for 17 years.
The project is supported by a proposed £22m investment from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA). Revised planning applications submitted to Liverpool City Council outline plans to convert the property into Grade A office space, add a ground-floor hospitality venue, and potentially accommodate up to 743 additional jobs.
A landmark of Liverpool's financial district
Built as the head office for Martins Bank between 1927 and 1932, the building is described in Pevsner's architectural guide to Liverpool as "the masterpiece of Herbert J. Rowse [architect] and among the very best interwar classical buildings in the country". Martins Bank merged with Barclays in 1969 and operated as a Barclays branch until it closed in 2009. The property has remained vacant since then.
Plans to restore the building were approved by Liverpool City Council in December 2022. Those earlier proposals, involving majority-owners Karrev, a London-based property investor, and developer Kinrise, aimed to create 140,000 sq ft of offices, a restaurant, and a social space in the former banking hall. The transformation was originally scheduled for completion by 2024, but that target was not met. In 2024, Kinrise confirmed it was no longer involved, and the scheme was delayed until at least 2026.
New funding and revised plans
Karrev submitted new applications last month, backed by £61.5m of its own funding. The accompanying heritage statement, produced in 2022, said: "The principal use will be offices, which means that the alterations to the building will be minimised to the benefit of its historic and architectural interest."
In an announcement released this morning, the LCRCA confirmed a 'major intervention' and its intention to allocate £22m to the project. The funding would come from Mayor Steve Rotheram's £2bn Liverpool City Region Investment Fund, established to support major regeneration projects and attract additional private investment.
Officials believe a refurbished Martins Bank would help address the shortage of high-quality office space in Liverpool city centre, providing room for existing businesses to grow and strengthening the city's ability to attract new employers, investment, and well-paid jobs.
Works expected to start this year
Works are set to begin at the end of this year and are expected to support 150 construction jobs, alongside apprenticeships and work placements. The project will be delivered to BREEAM Excellent standards.
Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram said: "Liverpool is home to more listed buildings than anywhere outside London, but for too long, too many have been left abandoned waiting for a new purpose. Martins Bank is one of our city's great architectural landmarks. The buildings that helped make Liverpool what it is today should be helping shape what it becomes tomorrow."
He added: "Bringing it back to life would not only protect an important part of our heritage, but create the modern, Grade A office space we need to attract new businesses, investment and well-paid jobs. Get that right, and the benefits to our local economy could repay this investment many times over. This is exactly why we launched our £2bn Investment Fund – to get ambitious projects like this off the ground by using public money to attract much greater private investment. With £22m of backing from us helping to unlock more than £60m from the private sector, we can turn one of Liverpool's most iconic buildings into a place that will help make our region the best place in the country to grow up, grow a family and grow a business."
