The Dye House, Milford Mill

Heritage Unlimited prepared a Heritage Statement for the Dye House at Milford Mill, Belper, built on detailed research into the building and its fabric. This grade II listed building has a fascinating and complex history. Our research revealed something unexpected: the evidence indicates that it was originally two separate structures that were modified and joined to enable gangway links with nearby mill buildings, rationalising circulation across the site. Three gangways connected the site, running east to the old dye house, south across the road, and north to the adjacent mill building.

This understanding helped us read the building phases more easily. We identified different types of cast iron columns, infilled openings, new openings, changes to fenestration, and altered internal floor levels throughout the structure.

The Strutt family

The Strutt family were talented engineers who played an important role in the evolution of fireproof mill construction in the Derwent Valley in the late 18th and 19th centuries. Jedediah Strutt went into partnership with Richard Arkwright in 1771 to build the pioneering water-powered cotton mill at Cromford, and after that partnership ended the family developed their own mills at Belper and Milford. In 1897 the family firm, W.G. and J. Strutt, was one of fourteen businesses that combined to form the English Sewing Cotton Company.

What the Heritage Statement research revealed

The Dye House features early Boulton & Watt style cruciform cast iron columns, combined with the later fireproof brick vaults pioneered by Strutt. An extension on the west side connected the building to the New Dye House, visible through the later circular section of columns in that location. The whole site went through multiple phases of development as technological advances in spinning machinery and processes were made.

Survival and future use

Sadly, the owners demolished many large buildings in the 1960s when they reorganised the mill, and the closure of the mill in the 1990s led to further demolition for modern redevelopment. Fortunately, the Dye House survived. Its road frontage and smaller scale made it easier to adapt for alternative uses, which proved vital as the textile industry faced rapid decline from the 1950s onwards.

Heritage Statement for listed building consent

Our Heritage Statement (now termed a Heritage Impact Assessment) supported applications to bring the Dye House back into use as a veterinary practice. The building’s earlier adaptation is what enabled its retention within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, when so much around it was demolished.

Update: the applications were refused by Amber Valley Borough Council in March 2025. The council concluded that subdividing the interior, together with the other alterations, would harm the building’s special interest. The research stands apart from that scheme: an understanding of how the building developed, and of which parts carry its significance, is the starting point for whatever use follows.

We found this a truly rewarding building to research, and we hope the information uncovered will enhance the understanding and appreciation of this remarkable building within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. To find out more about Heritage Statements or Listed Building Consent applications, please get in touch with our expert heritage consultants.

For the full account of the research and how the building developed, see our Dye House, Milford Mill project page.

Read more about our heritage statement and historic building recording services.