SIG Roofing has been at the centre, or more accurately the top, of many of the most impressive regeneration projects currently underway in Hull
Gone are the days when Hull was considered one of Britain’s least attractive towns to live in.
Over the last 20 years, the city has enjoyed a host of redevelopment projects aimed at rejuvenating the centre and upgrading the city’s infrastructure.
The title of City of Culture in 2017 accelerated this drive, with the Council committing £100 million for regeneration projects to spruce up the city in the lead up to 2017 and beyond.
But the redevelopment hasn’t stopped there. The last 12 months have seen a number of exciting projects across the city. Hull’s famous and imposing Guildhall is currently in the middle of an overhaul of its historic roof, with replacement slates set to give its already impressive countenance a welcome facelift.
The first phase of the project, which went to the drawing board in 2019 but has suffered delays due to Covid-19 and the accompanying restrictions, involved the use of 40 tonnes of slate to replace the existing roof tiles. The Burlington stone slate used on the landmark Grade II building was supplied by specialist roofing supplier SIG Roofing and comes from across the Pennines in the Lake District.
The prestigious slate gets its unique appearance due to the geological processes spanning millions of years that went into forming the hills it was mined from.
From the historic to the contemporary, Hull’s up-and-coming Fruit Market district is also involved in a top and tails make-over. The impressive redevelopment has seen the old fruit market around Humber Street transformed from a run-down warehouse district by the docks into a contemporary space occupied by cafes, restaurants, bars, artists’ studios and boutique shops. Included in the £80m transformation of the Fruit Market is the upgrading, or outright replacement, of many of its roofs with SIGA slate, also supplied by SIG Roofing.
In fact, SIG Roofing is a theme that runs through a number of the redevelopment projects going on in Hull today. Operating out of its branch in Anchor Trade Park on Wiltshire Road, the business and its staff have played witness to many of the recent changes Hull has been through.
SIG Roofing Assistant Branch Manager Alex Britton is Hull born and bred. He recalls what the Fruit Market was like before the redevelopment began:
“I remember the old fruit market. It used to be full of boarded up warehouses – not that they were too scruffy, but they were big padlocked buildings which hadn’t been attended to, with paint flaking off and maybe a few broken windows from teenagers being teenagers. That’s really how I remember it.”
This is a far cry from the feel of today’s Fruit Market. Considered a prime Friday night target in the times when we were able to go out, the Market has also transformed into an idyllic daytime destination to sit and catch up over coffee.
“For the past maybe five or six years this has been the place to be, just because of the redevelopment,” Alex said.
“I can’t see that changing any time soon because it’s such a nice place, you’ve got nice scenery, what they’ve got to offer in bars and restaurant is brilliant and when you’re sat outside, you’re looking on to the marina. I’ve never been bored of looking out at the sunset on the marina, it’s just relaxing with a great atmosphere.”
Moving away from the city centre, SIG Roofing has played a major part in several other major projects in Hull. For the last four years, the branch has been supplying roofing materials for the huge housing development around the East Hull area. The Ings Road regeneration is a multi-phase project providing over 700 new homes to the area. Using Sandtoft’s Calderdale Edge, a flat concrete tile with a slate-like appearance, the first phase of the project was completed in 2016. The latest phase is now fully underway and will be ongoing throughout 2021.
Over on the North side of the city, SIG Roofing is midway through supplying a large refurbishment scheme on the Bransholme estate. Once described as Europe’s largest housing estate, the 492 properties at Bransholme will also be re-roofed using Sandtoft Calderdales, with the project expected to be completed this year.
From historic buildings such as the Guildhall to fashionable and modern areas like The Fruit Market, as well as vital housing projects such as those of Ings Road and Bransholme, SIG Roofing has proudly played its part in rejuvenating the centuries-old port city, helping to maintain its place as the vibrant centre of the Humber region.
