Derby's Christmas events returning to Market Place after Assembly Rooms U-turn

Derby's festive ice rink and Nordic Bar will be returning to the Market Place this Christmas after a delay was announced on the demolition of the Assembly Rooms. Derby City Council had previously said its programme of Christmas events, Festive Derby, would be primarily centred around Cathedral Green.

That was because the Assembly Rooms were due to be demolished this autumn, meaning that having the ice rink and Nordic Bar in their usual Market Place home would have been impractical. Yet Derby City Council's recent U-turn on the future of the Assembly Rooms means the Market Place will once again be home to some festive favourites.

The Cathedral Quarter Ice Rink and Nordic Bar will both open on November 30 as Festive Derby is launched at a Christmas lights switch-on event. Councillor Nadine Peatfield, Derby City Council's leader, said: "One of the positive outcomes of our recent amendment to the Assembly Rooms demolition plans is that we get to welcome the Cathedral Quarter Ice Rink and Nordic bar back to the Market Place, enhancing the Festive Derby experience for visitors while supporting local businesses and our cultural partners.

"We're working with our partners to ensure Cathedral Green and the surrounding area continues to be an important part of Festive Derby and we're all excited to reveal the full programme of events very soon." It was confirmed earlier this month that Derby City Council was withdrawing an application to try and amend plans for the Assembly Rooms.

Built in 1977, the former events venue hosted acts including Elton John and Iron Maiden in its heyday but never recovered from a devastating 2014 fire in the plant room on top of the adjacent car park. The Assembly Rooms have been closed ever since and although no planning application has yet been made, Derby City Council's vision is for the site to house a multi-storey office and meeting space alongside restaurants and hotels.

A planning condition says the Assembly Rooms cannot be demolished until a replacement for the site had been given planning permission. The condition also says a contractor must be agreed for the replacement scheme and that a timeline for it should be drawn up before the Assembly Rooms are demolished.

Derby City Council first applied in August for this condition to be withdrawn, prompting concern from bodies including Historic England. The authority was therefore planning a demolition this autumn, yet questions about how long the site would remain vacant caused a rethink.

The authority now says the demolition of the Assembly Rooms and the construction of a new site will take place consecutively, meaning there will be no gap between the two. The council also says it will continue to work closely with developers Vinci UK Developments Ltd and ION Developments "to progress the masterplan and business plan for the future of the site, ahead of a planning application."