Wonder what you could do with a disused stairwell? Self-declared ‘millionaire’ who bought staircase for £25K reveals he wants to turn it into office

• Simon Squibb, 49, bought disused stairwell in Twickenham for £25k at auction
• He has revealed he wants to turn it into office space for small businesses

A self-declared ‘millionaire’ who bought disused stairwell for £25,000 at an auction has revealed he wants to turn it into an office.

Located in Twickenham, West London, the quirky property was put on the market for £20,000, with people left pondering what it could be used for.

The size and shape of the property make it unsuitable to be turned into housing and was instead described by the auction house as a ‘long leasehold stairwell with development potential subject to planning permission’.

And feeling a connection to the strange property, 49-year-old businessman Simon Squibb held his son in the air and bid £5,000 over the guide and shouted ‘we got it!’ 

A virtual tour of the property behind a Starbucks shows the space littered with cardboard boxes, rusty bikes, dingy pieces of furniture, potted plants and piles of fire extinguishers.

Broken windows and stained walls can also be seen in some of the pictures posted on housing website Zoopla. The stairs are not connected to the block of flats that it used to serve.

A self-declared ‘millionaire’ who bought disused stairwell for £25,000 at an auction has revealed he wants to turn it into an office

And feeling a connection to the strange property, 49-year-old businessman Simon Squibb (pictured) held his son in the air and bid £5,000 over the guide and shouted ‘we got it!’

But the issues did not deter father-of-one Mr Squibb, from North London, who said it was ‘worth taking a risk’ after formulating his plan to buy the odd property just within the last two days – even admitting his team had not yet seen it and did not know if they could get planning permission, the BBC reports.

READ MORE: Disused staircase sells for £25,000 – as experts say it could be turned into a climbing wall, vertical farm or office pods

The new staircase owner is the chief executive of 75,000-strong online community HelpBnk, which rewards users for helping others and ‘allows entrepreneurs to get the help they need for free’.

His experiences of being made homeless at age 15 led him to set up the business so others could have the support network he did not – and he has also set up other firms.

Barnard Marcus Auctions Partner, James Paterson earlier told MailOnline following the sale: ‘The staircase generated a good amount of interest. We’ve had more than 8,000 hits on our YouTube video. 

‘There’s potential for it to be used for storage or possibly development.’

But Mr Squibb wants to use his new stairwell as a place where he can help small businesses have a place to live and work from for free. But if planning permission is not forthcoming ‘the worst outcome will be that we just make this our walk-in office, where we can meet people and they can tell us their dreams’, he told The Times.

Mr Squibb’s vision differs from what others may have dreamt up for the space, as after the advert came out, viewers and property experts suggested the stairwell could be turned into office pods, a vertical farm, a gallery and even a ‘wellness’ space.

Property expert previously Chris told MailOnline: ‘I would guess that the staircase would be used as an advertising asset, or gifted to a community or charity to use to design and showcase artwork. 

‘I guess it could even be used as an abseiling or climbing wall.’

Michelle Niziol, owner of IMS Property Group, earlier said: ‘I think we are going to see more of these “spaces” being sold off, as commercial properties aim to streamline profits, tackle energy costs and utilise unused space. It could potentially create a boom of sustainable, urban spaces, which have the potential to benefit and positively affect the local and wider communities.

‘An obvious choice for the stairwell would be cubed office spaces, or even a co-working space for local small business owners. Whoever buys the stairwell could be quite clever with the space to maximise use and profits.

‘However, I think the best use of the stairwell is to create a living wellness space that everyone can benefit from. I can imagine the walls be turned into living walls, using plants and greenery, and the space used for wellness activities such as meditation, holistic therapy and yoga. 

‘The space will adapt quite well for this, and wellness practitioners can rent the space, or studio time and people could hire out space for their own wellness practices. It could be a peaceful haven within the city.’

Mr Paterson earlier told The Times newspaper: ‘Previous quirky buildings we have sold include an iconic red telephone kiosk in South Kensington a few months ago.’ 

A property expert had earlier suggested the space could be used as a climbing wall (stock image)

Viewers of the Twickenham property previously suggested it could be used as office pods (stock image)

Average property prices in London have increased by 63 per cent in the last decade from £322,000 to £525,000.

And this bizarre stairwell is the latest wacky property to go on the market as the London housing crisis worsens.

One ‘cosy’ flat in West Kensington, costing £520 per month, had no toilet and came with a shower located directly under the bed.

And in Hendon a landlord was fined for making tenants crawl up the staircase to reach their room which was situated in the attic, for £420 per month.

The UK Government has announced plans to tackle the housing crisis by making it easier to turn empty shops and offices into homes.

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