Digbeth is a historic neighbourhood with its heritage rooted in trade, industry, craft and making. It is now a creative hub within Birmingham and home to a rich array of small businesses and activities, including design, making, art, tech, innovation, music, film production, gaming, and education. The ambition is to retain the existing creative community and provide opportunities for existing tenants to grow and expand, while attracting new creative companies to the area that recognise and appreciate the distinctive character Digbeth has to offer.
Today, Digbeth is characterised by its rich and diverse built heritage. The area’s significance is its complex and organic layering of industrial buildings, infrastructure, waterways and street art. The interaction of these elements creates moments of surprise within the urban form and a sense of discovery that is unique to Digbeth. Several of these almost accidental juxtapositions, such as the point the River Rea passes under the Bordesley viaduct, are some of the most intriguing moments in Digbeth, and provide a reminder of Birmingham’s industrial heritage. Many buildings throughout the area have been modified over the years, creating peculiar “imperfections” on the facades of the buildings that add authenticity to the place.
Our framework aims to celebrate these juxtapositions and imperfections, enhance the setting of the existing buildings, and encourage characterful architecture that can contribute to the rich tapestry of the area. In recognition of the diversity of architecture that characterises Digbeth, Studio Egret West have worked with local designers Glenn Howells Architects and BPN Architects to ensure the rich and varied character is retained going forward.
