Feasibility Study and Delivery Plan for Haverfordwest Castle

Client: Pembrokeshire County Council

We were commissioned by Pembrokeshire County Council to carry out a heritage feasibility study and prepare delivery plan (including concept sketches) to transform Haverfordwest Castle including the Gaol, Governor’s House (incorporating the Town Museum) and Inner Bailey in to a heritage based visitor attraction

One of the key drivers for the project is the regeneration of the town centre.  The County town is in need of regeneration and the client team recognises that a strong culture and arts focus to town centre regeneration activity has been successfully employed in other locations, both in Wales and further afield.  The development of a heritage visitor attraction will contribute to the distinctiveness and character of Haverfordwest and will be a powerful catalyst for regeneration, acting as a magnate for local people and tourists, and thus boosting footfall and economic activity within the town itself.

Our work included:

  • Research and analysis which lead to the production a statement of significance for the collections and buildings.  This phase also incorporated a review of the residential market place, the tourism market and competitive landscape.
  • An assessment of case examples which focussed on the transformation of castles and heritage buildings was also carried out.
  • Development options of different forms and scales were identified and assessed.  For the preferred development option architectural concept sketches were produced. The level of detail required in the study was to the equivalent of RIBA stage 1.
  • An evaluation of the preferred option help to define the benefits and viability of the project.  This considered ownership, demand and capital investment requirements which lead to a robust financial model setting out income and cost.
  • A delivery plan for the preferred option, which included a visitor attraction business case – incorporating funding and cash flow projections.   The delivery plan set out  a suite of coordinated actions required to deliver the preferred proposal.  The heritage feasibility study and business case also considered the funding environment.

Find out more about the project here.

Update – Working in a multidisciplinary team with Pembrokeshire County Council we latterly supported an application to the Levelling Up Fund.  The application was successful and secured £17.7m, which will be used to support the economic development of Haverfordwest, with a particular focus on developing Haverfordwest Castle to create a vibrant heritage attraction.

Have a look at some of the other castle and fort projects we have worked on.

Contact us
If you have any questions or would like to discuss our work please don’t hesitate to call Richard Linington on 023 9248 1999 or email richard@pslplan.iconofgamers.com