Work transforming former TJ Hughes into new science and discovery centre begins today

Work transforming a vacant shop into a science and discovery centre will begin today.

Following months of preparation visitors to the town centre will now be able to see changes being made to the former TJ Hughes building work on stripping out the building and the start of the future Techniquest development take shape.

Spatial Office will begin the works with visible changes to be seen and an exciting couple of months ahead within the heart of Wrexham.

Earlier this year it was announced that Techniquest had secured funding for its re-location to the town centre as well as a complete re-brand – including the organisation’s name.

The £2.8million project includes £1.75 million grant funding awarded by the Inspiring Science Fund and £750,000 from Welsh Government’s Targeted Regeneration Investment programme.

The Inspiring Science Fund supports science centres across the UK, helping them rethink what they do and what they offer to the public. The scheme is co-funded by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and Wellcome.

The property on Henblas Street has sat vacant since 2011 having previously been home to TJ Hughes. Over the summer planning permission to transform the building into an “exciting and engaging space for all explorers” was granted by Wrexham Council.

With work beginning Techniquest will soon be ready to close the current site that it has occupied for 16 years.

Community Outreach Coordinator Vaughan York – who has been engaging with the community throughout the process – said: “It will be great to see people on site and for the building to begin taking shape.

“I am excited to see our future home start to form. We’ve been consulting with as many members of the community as we can, from a variety of backgrounds.

“It’s key that this becomes a science hub for the local communities and boosts not only our own organisation, but those around us within Wrexham.”

Scot Owen, centre manager for Techniquest Glyndwr said: “It’s a strange feeling to finally have work on the building itself begin, with the team having worked so hard to get to this stage.

“I said in the summer just how delighted we were to secure the move and now we can see the hard work put in take shape over the coming months.

“We hope those who spend time in the town centre enjoy seeing the positive changes being made to the building and are as excited as we are to watch it grow into a town centre asset once more.”