Blackburn with Darwen Council purchased the building in 2021, however substantial internal damage caused by a suspected arson assault in February 2022 made the project too expensive. According to a report published in February 2024, the demolition proposal is required to make construction on the £250 million Blackburn Town Centre project possible. The study also approved the use of the Penny Street and Starkie Street car parks as development land for the 10-year program, which is expected to generate 1,000 jobs.

Plans to demolish the former Daniels pub, which was later repurposed as Thwaites’ training centre, on Penny Street were announced last year, and the seven-acre brewery site was slated to become a new Morrisons before the supermarket dropped out in March. The ambitious 10-year vision for Blackburn was initially unveiled in 2021.

It could include the construction of 500 dwellings, five new commercial buildings, and the repair of St John’s Church, which was devastated by fire. The concept would also include fresh green areas, trees, and bushes dispersed throughout the 12 acres of land. The ancient Fleece Inn has long been a part of Blackburn’s history, with sources indicating that it existed on Penny Street in 1805 and was restored in 1920. It operated as a hotel, meeting centre, and community pub until its closure in 2012.

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