Old Labour Exchange (Former Weights and Measures Office) is a Grade II listed building in the Bath and North East Somerset local planning authority area, England. First listed on 24 April 2002. Former labour exchange. 3 related planning applications.

Old Labour Exchange (Former Weights and Measures Office)

WRENN ID
twelfth-chapel-finch
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Bath and North East Somerset
Constituency
Bath MP: Wera Hobhouse (LD)
Country
England
Date first listed
24 April 2002
Type
Former labour exchange
Address
Old Labour Exchange (Former Weights and Measures Office), Milk Street, BA1 1BS
OS grid reference
ST 747 646
Coordinates
51.38067, -2.36382
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: EPC · related consents · flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Old Labour Exchange, formerly the Weights and Measures Office, is located on Milk Street and dates from around 1936, with the architect unknown. The building features Bath stone facades and is currently a single storey structure. It has a five-bay front facing James Street West, with central double doors set within a framed surround and six/six pane sash windows in aedicular surrounds. The corners of the building are rounded, although the north-west corner is badly damaged, exposing the inner structure.

The east side facing Milk Street has eight bays, with framed doors at both ends. The inner four bays contain arched windows, while the outer bays have six/six pane sash windows. The right return of the building is significantly damaged, showing three windows with metal mullions and transoms in aedicular surrounds; the central window exhibits extensive fire damage above it, and there is a later inserted window opening for a first-floor addition.

Historically, this building suffered severe damage during one of the two 'Baedeker Raids' on Bath in March 1942, which resulted in 417 fatalities and extensive destruction of buildings. It is notable for its visible shrapnel damage from high explosive bombs dropped just south of Kingsmead Square. The building is listed primarily for its façade, as the structure behind is considered to have much lesser significance.

Local climate

Old Labour Exchange (Former Weights and Measures Office) receives an average of 860 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 60% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 64% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 34 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 52% of listed buildings. Of these, 15 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • Full EPC report — heating system, energy costs, size, glazing, construction etc.
  • No sale records on file
  • Related listed building consents — 3 applications
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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