Owners plan restoration job on ‘ruinous’ spooky Swansea Victorian town house

Richard Youle, local democracy reporter

It’s the ultimate restoration job but one the owners of this “ruinous” listed building in Swansea are looking to take on.

They plan to convert Danbert House, Morriston, into 11 flats and add a house in the gardens at the rear.

The building is nestled on the corner of Morfydd Street and Glantawe Street, and would have once been a bustling town house.

Not any more. Clad in vegetation and missing its roof, it’s not the sort of place where you’d want to spend a night. You almost expect to see a pale figure hovering in one of the arched window openings.

Design experts SR Engineers, on behalf of Danbert House’s owners, said they aimed to maintain the facade and heritage of the building.

Planning officers at Swansea Council have assessed SR Engineers’s pre-application enquiry and given some encouraging feedback while raising a couple of concerns.
An SR Engineers spokesman said progress was being made now towards the submission of a detailed planning application.

But he said: “It is a difficult design.”

Danbert House was grade two listed by Welsh heritage body Cadw in 1993 as a “well-preserved example of a Victorian town house, rare in Morriston”.

The building was last used many years ago as offices but has become increasing derelict ever since. Fire has also damaged it.

Drawings submitted as part of the pre-application enquiry described Danbert House as being in “a ruinous condition”, with none of the original building plans in existence.

Planning officers said they expected it to be tackled as a “shell restoration” and supported the idea of residential use.

But they said the proposed house at the rear “appears as on odd and awkward” addition. Officers were concerned about its proximity to the main building and the resulting overlooking which might occur.

And they said the internal floorspace of two of the proposed 11 flats fell short of requirements.

The owners would need to submit various reports with a detailed application, including details of car parking and an ecological assessment.

The planning officers’ response to the enquiry said the council considered the scheme to be “broadly acceptable”, subject to the revisions suggested.

“The proposals include the much-needed restoration of this listed building and are therefore welcomed,” said the response.

Proposals were put forward in 2015 to convert Danbert House into 15 flats but nothing further materialised.