The steel structure for Derby’s newest entertainment and conference venue has started to take shape.

We are on course with construction of the Becketwell Entertainment Venue and erecting the steelwork, which is a major phase of the project, will be completed at the end of January next year.

Shipley Structures of Grantham is the steel contractor and responsible for the 1,150 tons of the material which will form the venue.

Heavy machinery will be helping the 10 operatives involved with fixing the steel into place and, with the heaviest single piece at 3.5 tons and the longest single span of steel at 12.9 metres, it is a mammoth task.

Developed on the site of the former Pink Coconut nightclub, the £45.8m Becketwell Entertainment and Conference Venue will be a fully flexible, scalable space. It will have a maximum seated/standing capacity of 3,500 and seat 600-2,100 in seated configurations. A secondary space will have a capacity of up to 400.

Bowmer + Kirkland Site Manager, Joshua Bredenkamp, said:“It’s exciting to see the steelwork starting. Now everyone can see the structure taking shape and the venue really becoming part of the city landscape.”

Paul Morris, Director of St James Securities, added:“We are delighted to see construction work underway on this exciting new entertainment, events and conference venue, which will serve the people of Derby and the wider region.

“The recent opening of The Condor, the imminent launch of Springwell Square and the start of construction work on the events and conference venue continues the success story at Becketwell”

It is anticipated that the venue will hold hundreds of cultural and commercial events each year, offering a fantastic and varied programme for local people and attracting an additional 250,000 visitors to Derby every year.

The flexible venue will accommodate a diverse range of events – from major music, comedy acts and theatre productions to sports entertainment events and commercial events such as trade shows.

Developed by St James Securities, the venue will be owned by Deby City Council and leased and operated by ASM Global. the world’s leading venue management and services company, and producer of live experiences.

The Becketwell scheme will create a vibrant, exciting, new quarter of residential, commercial leisure activity in the heart of Derby city centre.

Phase one includes The Condor, the city’s first ever purpose-built, Build to Rent scheme, which is now open and will be owned and operated by Grainger plc, along with the creation of a new multi-purpose public square.

Springwell Square, a new public square for the city, is set to open next week. Phase two of the scheme includes the events and conference venue, which is set to be completed in early 2025.