Cawarden demolishes the former Debenhams building in Derby City centre to help clear the way for a £200 million regeneration project for the Becketwell area.

Cawarden was employed as the Principal Contractor by Derby City Council to carry out the demolition of the former Debenhams retail store in Derby. The purpose was to pave the way for an exciting £200 million redevelopment project being brought to the Becketwell area.

The initial stage of the project required the construction of a comprehensive scaffold, equipped with fan protection and cantilevered sections to ensure the safety of the site. Through a ‘walk under’ scaffold, we maintained pedestrian access to the pavement of Victoria Street and kept the bus stops operational and at the existing locations throughout.

The building’s interior was then completely stripped, including the floors and ceilings that were recycled. The existing services were isolated and modified to accommodate the work, and all necessary permits for roadways and pavements were obtained.

In preparation for the main structural demolition, items of plant and machinery were moved in via a 100-tonne crane.

The four-storey building of the former Debenhams store also had two basement levels and a distinctive curved frontage. The team took great care in demolishing the building’s façade, using one of our high-reach machines and a crane to execute the task. In some cases, sections of the façade were also carefully removed by hand.

To ensure safety and efficiency, we employed various methodologies throughout the demolition process. We also allowed different activities to overlap and be completed simultaneously, which helped to reduce the overall programme time for the client.

On completion of the structural demolition, we broke out and processed the existing ground floor slabs and mapped the foundations to digitally record their location and size. The basement levels were retained for the client and were protected throughout.

All materials removed from the project were reused and diverted from landfill where possible, to achieve a recycling target of 97% of non-hazardous waste.

This project provided Cawarden with the opportunity to showcase our exceptional skills in demolition engineering, as we worked on the large and complex site, overcoming space limitations, and navigating live infrastructure challenges in a busy city centre environment.

The complexities also extended to archaeological attendance and separating shared party walls and re-building them again for the neighbouring church and restaurant.

Daily monitoring was conducted to track the delivery of the contract against the project programme. Cawarden and Derby City Council held regular site meetings accompanied by meeting minutes to review the overall progress of the project, ensure the efficient completion of phased works, manage cost planning, and guarantee client satisfaction.

On August 17th, William Crooks, Managing Director of Cawarden, officially handed the site back to Derby City Council. The event included a walk-around of the site with council officials.

The completion of the demolition work was a significant milestone for the site regeneration. After completing the project successfully, Cawarden was awarded four other major work packages.

Considerate Constructor

We made every effort to minimise disturbances during the work by conducting real-time monitoring of environmental noise, dust, and vibration. We also kept our neighbours informed about the work being carried out through regular contact with our site team and a monthly newsletter. To address concerns about working in such close proximity to the public, we implemented efficient dust suppression measures. Additionally, we stopped any noisy work during funerals at the neighbouring church.

To the benefit of the local community and to maintain and improve the industry image, members of the site team took part in a litter pick around the site perimeter. In conjunction with a Keep Britain Tidy initiative, over 25 bags of rubbish were collected.