Big Towns. Big potential.

We unlock the potential of complex spaces with viable, creative reuse strategies that bring people and purpose back into town centres.

What is a stranded asset?
Learn more about how long-term vacant buildings become stranded — and how we bring them back to life.

In large towns and city neighbourhoods, vacant and underused buildings are more than just an eyesore. They represent missed income, rising costs, and a lost opportunity to deliver for local people.

We help councils, developers, and property owners unlock the potential of these complex or underperforming sites to create places that deliver commercially, engage communities, and support regeneration goals.

At Next Phase, we see beyond the vacancy, dilapidation and complexity. Working alongside our creative partners, Group Ginger, we reimagine overlooked urban buildings as dynamic, mixed-use destinations, places that serve both commercial needs and community life.

From flexible event and food halls to co-working hubs and cultural venues, we create:

• Public-facing venues that drive footfall and economic activity

• Workplaces for makers, freelancers and growing local businesses

• Spaces for learning, creativity and enterprise

• Community facilities with inclusive access and purpose

• Hybrid models that blend commercial operators with social enterprise or CIC leadership

These aren’t template solutions. Each concept is tailored to the town, the people, and the building itself — however unusual, complex, or constrained the site may be.

Our Approach

We specialise in assets that require bold thinking, heritage properties, civic buildings, awkward footprints, or part-let spaces that don’t suit a standard lease model.

Working in partnership with creative collaborators like Group Ginger, we deliver commercially viable, socially relevant schemes through:

• Site and portfolio reviews

• Concept creation for food halls, co-working, creative enterprise hubs, hybrid cultural venues, and more

• Business case development and viability modelling

• Flexible delivery strategies including leasehold, meanwhile use, or CIC-led models

• Tenant curation and operator procurement

• Activation strategies to bring footfall and visibility early

Whether the building is destined for a commercial operator, a social enterprise, or a hybrid mix, we find the model that unlocks its future.

What we create

• Food and market halls with community and event space

• Affordable workspaces for creative and digital sectors

• Cultural venues with retail and hospitality elements

• Hybrid models with CICs managing community-facing activities

• Transitional ‘meanwhile’ uses while long-term plans progress

Our proposals reflect real-world operating conditions, and we bring the partnerships, delivery tools, and governance frameworks needed to get moving.

Why It Works

By blending place-based strategy with commercial expertise, we create solutions that meet multiple objectives:

• Financial viability – schemes are designed to generate income or attract operators

• Community engagement – models include opportunities for local involvement or social enterprise governance

• Planning alignment – projects support ESG, health & wellbeing, and town centre policy goals

• Flexible funding routes – with cases tailored for public, private, or blended investment

• Impactful design – through creative spatial thinking and adaptive reuse

When Commercial Models Need a Community Anchor

In some cases, a purely commercial model won’t deliver the footfall, flexibility, or public value required. That’s where we introduce CICs (Community Interest Companies) or similar structures — enabling part or all of a building to be managed with a clear civic purpose.

We help create or support these entities with:

• Board development

• Operational and governance planning

• Funding applications

• Long-term business viability strategies

The result is a blended approach — a building that may host income-generating uses while dedicating space to local activity, training, creative production, or enterprise.

Ideal For

• Town councils and regeneration leads

• Community groups with vision

• Property-owning charities

• Local cultural or enterprise partnerships