Canada House
Canada House, a Grade II* Listed building, was originally built as offices for the Sheffield United Gas Light Company in 1875. It played a crucial role in the technological revolution that swept across the UK – where the use of gas for heating and lighting homes was becoming more and more widespread.
It remained offices for the Gas Board until 1972, and then, after lying vacant and facing the threat of being torn down by property developers, received its Grade II* Listed building status.
Since then, Canada House has played different roles over the years, from housing ‘Turn Ups’ nightclub and the ‘Bloomers’ pub in the early 1980s, to hosting offices for the stylish Panache Lingerie, and, throughout the noughties, as home to the ‘No. 1 Oriental Buffet Restaurant’ which closed in 2011.
Click to have a look inside Canada House. Digital model by students at SSoA at the University of Sheffield.
Proposals
Canada House is the perfect home for music education – it will be a place where all kinds of music can thrive. Our plans to revitalise Canada House are exciting. We will make the most of the building’s space, retaining its unique heritage features, whilst making sure that it is accessible and welcoming to all, using the variety of spaces to adapt to fit different music-making such as recording facilities, performance, and practice spaces, which will support all types of musical development. to meet the needs of our diverse and talented young musicians.
Click here to view our full proposal poster.
We’d love for you to share your stories from Canada House with us.
Harmony Works will be a lively, welcoming space with a café and other chill-out spaces that young people can make their own.
Our plans to restore and revitalise Canada House are exciting. We will make the most of the building’s space, retaining its unique heritage features, whilst making sure that it is equipped with the very best acoustic design and facilities for performance, to meet the needs of our diverse and talented young musicians.
Nestled in the heart of Castlegate, Canada House isn’t just a building – it’s a piece of Sheffield’s story, where the city’s history began. Castlegate is the home to the remains of Sheffield’s medieval castle, and its where the Rivers Don and Sheaf join at the ‘Sheaf Field’.
The building sits within the centre of Sheffield, next to the tramlines, two minutes from Ponds Forge, five minutes from the bus and train stations, and has views encompassing the iconic Park Hill Flats. Canada House is, easy to get to from anywhere in the city and beyond.
