Property development and investment company Consortia Developments is converting the former Lockside House office building on Scotland Street into 16 one-bedroom and two-bedroom duplex apartments. A roof extension, which will house four penthouse-style apartments, and a new building on the adjacent car park, will create an additional 45 homes, of which three will be affordable.

Consortia Developments has appointed D W Hicks as the main construction contractor on the £16m (GDV) scheme.

Archie Ward, managing partner at Consortia Developments, said: “Lockside House is our first residential development in Birmingham. Having receiving planning permission for the scheme at the beginning of the year, we are pleased to have reached this stage of the project, when work on site can really begin in earnest. The building is full of character, much of which we are retaining and restoring, to create what we think will be a fantastic addition to the city’s mix of new residential apartment developments.”