Plas Alltran

BTP Architects, in partnership with Isle of Anglesey County Council, has successfully completed the restoration of Plas Alltran in Holyhead, delivering four new affordable apartments for local people.

The £1.5m project has transformed the previously derelict Grade II-listed former doctor’s surgery, which was once listed as one of the ten most endangered buildings in Wales and England by the Victorian Society.

The new one-bedroom homes are designed for single and two-person households and are available for affordable rent. Historic building conservation specialists Recclesia, M&E specialists Hulley, and structural engineers Caulmert worked with BTP Architects to deliver the project over a two year period.

Plas Alltran’s sensitive restoration has preserved much of the building’s historic character, while introducing modern energy-efficient measures to meet residents’ needs.

The project team worked closely with conservation officers and the Welsh Government’s historic environment service, Cadw, to agree restoration methods and materials. Original external walls and slate tiles were retained wherever possible, with lost features such as door mouldings, cornices, and stair spindles carefully recorded and faithfully replicated using traditional methods of craftsmanship.

The listed status of the building meant that windows needed to be preserved, so a standard ventilation system wouldn’t work in this case. Instead, a state-of-the-art Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) system was installed as the most practical energy energy-efficient ventilation system.

Insulated lime plaster was used internally, which provides exceptional heat retention to the building and keeps carbon emissions for the project low.

The restoration not only provides much-needed housing in Holyhead whilst keeping the project low carbon and energy efficient, but has also removed a key historic building from the At Risk Register, which includes structurally unsound and vacant historical buildings.

The development reflects Anglesey Council’s ongoing commitment to bringing heritage assets back into use and creating community-focused housing. The Council wish to thank Welsh Government and CADW for grant funding, without which, this project would not have been possible.