Belper Mills

Supporting the Belper Mills’ regeneration is one of my biggest priorities. 

The mills of the Derwent Valley were the birthplace and engine of Britain’s industrial revolution. This was recognised by UNESCO in 2001 when the valley became a World Heritage Site. Belper’s North Mill is a Grade 1 listed building, and the iconic East Mill is a significant landmark. 

It is a unique and beautiful location, filled with opportunity. 

You can read more about what I have done to support the redevelopment of the Belper Mills below.

In April 2025, I met with First Investments Real Estate Management – the owners of the Belper Mills. We had a productive conversation, and one of the things identified was the need for a public-private partnership to regenerate the site.

This was very positive news. I fed this back to our local community groups, and they were interested in working together and being actively involved in supporting the redevelopment of the Belper Mills.

I won a ballot to ask my first Prime Minister’s Question. With Keir Starmer still in Canada at the G7 meeting, my question today was answered by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.

This was a great opportunity to raise the profile of the East Midlands’ only UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Derwent Valley Mills. This follows my recent work establishing the All-Party Parliamentary Group on UNESCO World Heritage sites, and my ongoing efforts supporting the regeneration of Belper Mills.

It was a pleasure to meet with the minister for heritage and museums, Baroness Twycross, in November 2025.

This was an opportunity to discuss the situation of the Belper Mills, at the heart of my constituency, as well as discussing my priorities as the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Unesco World Heritage Sites.

Baroness Twycross and I want to see progress on the Belper Mills – it has been in disrepair for far too long. Restoring the site to its former glory will bring enormous cultural and economic benefit to communities across Mid Derbyshire and assist in safeguarding our Unesco World Heritage designation.

She is keen to help us navigate the complex protections in place so that we finally do justice to the potential of our precious Belper Mills.

I was ecstatic that the Labour-led Amber Valley Borough Council granted permission for work to commence on the Belper Mills in February 2026.

I spoke at the meeting, giving my support to the regeneration of the historic site.

I have worked more on this than any other issue throughout my time as Mid Derbyshire’s MP – including through countless meetings with people from the community, local authorities, the owners of the site, and the Labour government.

The ruling is a new dawn for these historic buildings, which are key to the East Midlands’ only Unesco World Heritage Site.
The plans set out a journey for how they can be brought back into use. They propose 130 flats, and will enable uses such as shops, a restaurant or café, offices – and space for a museum.

As the preliminary work begins, before more extensive visible work commences, I continue to support efforts to deliver a community-led museum and visitor centre in the North Mill, the oldest part of the site. This includes work to ensure the financial sustainability of such a venture.

Thank you to everyone who has worked to get us to this point. This includes Amber Valley Borough Council, Belper Town Council, EMCCA, Our Belper Mills, Belper North Mill Trust, the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site coordination team, Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust – and the site’s owner First Investment Real Estate Management.

Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust has played a vital role in the preservation and regeneration of heritage buildings across Derbyshire, and it was a pleasure to meet with their new chair, Richard Wood.

DHBT has recently carried out a Lottery-funded community-led survey of buildings at risk, and details of these buildings across the county will shortly be published. They can also be credited with the restoration of Wingfield Station, and apply their expertise and dedication to numerous other valued sites.

We spoke at length about Belper Mills, the upcoming planning decision on February 16th, and in particular the plan for the whole of the North Mill to be run by the community on a long lease, to provide a financially viable visitor centre for the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. DHBT has already provided valuable support on this project and will continue to be a key player as we move forward with this exciting venture. I look forward to working with Richard and other trustees and staff as we move forward.

To ensure both the North Mill and the East Mill are properly regenerated, we need local heritage craft skills.

Richard Wood, the new chair of the Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust, raised this to me at a recent meeting. Most construction workers are trained with modern building materials, rather than traditional materials like lime mortar.

We agreed that we need a bigger skill pool, and it is vital that this development is accompanied by solid apprenticeships, jobs for local people, and that those skills are retained in the community.

That’s why I asked the Prime Minister Keir Starmer if the government would support training construction workers in heritage building techniques.

I am pleased that the Prime Minister confirmed that heritage construction courses would be included as part of the Government’s £1.2 billion investment in skills, apprenticeships, and its new technical excellence colleges. This includes Derby College, which was chosen last year as one of ten across the country – and the only one in the East Midlands.