Plans for 14 rooftop flats above town centre shop approved

The new apartments will be built on top of an existing three-storey building, which is already part commercial and residential in use

Nadia Lincoln Local Democracy Reporter | Tuesday 19th May 2026 12:40pm

Plans to build 14 new rooftop flats on top of a Northampton town centre shop have been given the green light by the council.

The new apartments will be built as an additional floor above the existing three-storey property at 34 Gold Street, which is currently home to Poundstretcher on the ground floor. 

The upper two floors of the building already contain 31 apartments, which were approved in 2022, having formerly been used as ancillary retail space.

The scheme has been revised from the initial blueprints, which previously proposed 14 one-bed flats inside a zinc-clad box-style structure on the rooftop. However, heritage officers warned that this “unconventional” roof style could harm the All Saints Conservation Area.

Current plans show the development will now offer 12 one-bed units and two two-bed units.  The proposed works now intend to remodel the upper façade of the building to reduce the prominence of the rooftop structure from Gold Street.

WNC’s Heritage and Conservation team said the updated plans “have the potential to enhance the conservation area due to the more traditional frontage to the building” and represent an improvement over previous plans.

Due to the town centre location, no car parking spaces will be provided, but cycle stores will be available on the ground floor level.

Agent for the applicant, Indy Shokar, told committee members that there was an “acute need” for this type of housing within the town centre.

Explaining the application, he added: “You have a roof space which is effectively redundant, so there’s an opportunity to create more appropriate housing within the town centre.

“I would argue that some very dramatic changes have been made to the project to ensure that we do the right thing from a heritage perspective and I think we’ve achieved that.

“What’s there at the moment is nothing really to celebrate and it doesn’t do anything for the conservation area. What this project will do is enhance it in terms of appearance, character and setting.”

The plans were approved by WNC’s non-strategic planning committee at its meeting on May 7.

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