Will the former Beatties and Rackham’s stores both become flats and cafes?

From Wolverhampton’s Beatties building to Birmingham’s former House of Fraser store, the future of two prominent retail landmarks has reignited debate over how vacant department stores should be reused.

In Wolverhampton, the city council is preparing legal action against the owners of the former Beatties building over the condition of the site, while in Birmingham a consultation has opened on proposals to redevelop the former House of Fraser store, better known to many as Rackham’s.

Plans for a mix of homes, shops and cafes have been put forward for both sites, but heritage campaigners argue such buildings should be retained and adapted rather than lost.

Catherine Croft, of the Twentieth Century Society, said 20th Century buildings could be valued in the same way as Victorian structures and that many were “really interesting” and worth preserving.

She said changing attitudes towards historic buildings offered a lesson for the future.

“Previously Victorian buildings were lost, before times changed and people decided to save them,” she said.

“We need to be thinking forward and realising that the post-war buildings of the 20th Century are going to be the ones we treasure far more in another 50 years.”