Bramley Business Centre

In the early 19^th century, one large three storey house occupied the complete site and an Inn traded by Mr Joseph Jowel. He ran a successful business for a number of years but was forced to close when Richhill’s importance declined due to coaches no longer passing through the village. By 1860 two separate three-storey properties are recorded as occupying the site with the present No.38 acting as the local constabulary barracks. It is most likely that 36 and 38 were created by sub-dividing the ‘Inn’ that was recorded on the valuation map of 1837-38.

This is supported by the fact that the combined dimensions of the two 1860 buildings match the earlier inn and that the carriage arch to the upper east side was present in 1837. No 38 continued to act as a police station until approximately 1955. The maps for these periods illustrate an interesting back land of development with a Mews courtyard which has been demolished when it reverted to private ownership. Richhill Buildings Preservation Trust acquired the buildings to act as an exemplar  demonstrating how buildings of this era located centrally within the conservation area of Richill could be saved and restored to provide a viable enterprise to the current village population.

The buildings were successfully restored to provide a self-contained apartment and a series of small start-up business trading spaces. Upon completion the apartment was occupied within two weeks of hand over. The various units followed suite with corporate tenants and remains a vibrant business model.