Former Ramsgate Working Men’s Club to go under the hammer

There is planning permission for flats at the former working men's club

The former Working Men’s Club in Ramsgate is due to be sold at auction next month.

The club at 3-4 Chatham Place has planning permission to be converted into eight self-contained flats.

It is among 163 lots listed by Clive Emson, the land and property auctioneers, ahead of its next sale.

The planning allows for six two bedroom flats and a pair of one bedroom flats.

The club was in use for 102 years until its closure in April 2016.

The terraced buildings and railings, built in the 1780s, have Grade 2 listing and are in the Ramsgate Conservation Area.

Architect Corstorphine and Wright  submitted a design statement to Thanet council with the planning application, granted last month, which said: “The use of this redundant community facility for residential use is entirely sustainable. Working men’s clubs on a whole have become less integral in society and less popular in recent years due to the demographic of towns and cities changing.

“Historically, the Ramsgate working men’s club would have been used as a social venue for working class men and women. However today, it is no longer expected that inhabitants of a town will work in close vicinities to their homes.

“Many inhabitants will be likely commuters to Ashford and London, as Ramsgate benefits from its link to the high speed south eastern rail network, and thus is a popular location for commuters to settle.

“Our site is well located within the town, Chatham Place is a desirable street, and is only 0.5miles away from the train station. As such, we anticipate our development in this building would very much appeal to commuters, and therefore is much more sustainable as a place of residence than a social club; especially as the historic value of the building fabric can be restored and retained in this use.”

The freehold guide price is £450,000-£460,000 plus fees.

Dave Henwood, auction valuer, said: “This is an extremely rare opportunity and developers and investors will be interested.

“There is a high demand for housing and flats of this nature are likely to be sought after by those looking to rent or buy property.”

The auction takes place at 11am on December 11 at The Clive Emson Conference Centre in Maidstone,.