[3] The building was designed by Charles Bateman and Alfred Hale in the Queen Anne style and was officially opened on 12 October 1904.

[1] Internally, the principal room on the first floor was the Oak Room, which was heavily panelled and featured stained glass windows depicting local people: the philosopher, Edmund Burke, the former Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, the English Civil War Parliamentarian, John Hampden, and the founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn.

Due to budget constraints, the council decided not to build this wing in the first phase of construction, but retained the land with the intention of adding it at a later date.

Instead, it built a separate building, called Municipal Offices, on the opposite side of Queen Victoria Road, facing the town hall.

Rock performers included The Rolling Stones in August 1963,[8] The Who in November 1965[9] and Joy Division in February 1980.