St Michael’s Church in Stamford, home to Nationwide Building Society, Boots Opticians and Vision Express, up for auction with Acuitus

A Grade II listed church which was renovated into shops has been put on the market.

The three retail units in St Michael’s Church in Stamford will be going under the hammer at an auction later this month with a guide price of £2.1 million.

The High Street church has had a chequered history and dates back to at least the 12th century.

In 1963 the church was permanently closed and remained empty for 20 years before the building was transformed into shops and an office.

The church, which has a gothic revival-style tower, underwent its most recent renovation in 2016 during celebrations to mark Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday.

The 7,602 sq ft property is currently occupied by Nationwide Building Society, Boots Opticians and Vision Express in renewed leases, and generates £173,750 a year in rental income.

There is also a car park for 14 vehicles.

John Mehtab of Acuitus said: “Properties of historic interest that have already been converted into modern commercial space are sought after assets for investors, offering intrinsic value in the bricks and mortar while at the same time offering good income in an affluent attractive and popular town”.

The auction will take place on March 27 at 1pm and will be broadcast via livestream on the Acuitus website with bidding online, by telephone and by proxy.

The adjacent churchyard, which includes seating and is used for a number of town events, was purchased for the town in 1993 by the Harry Skells Trust to prevent further commercial development.