Building work starts on historic former factory site

BUILDING work has started on one of Southport’s most historic factory sites.

Diggers are currently at the site along Rufford Road which used to be home to the former Philips, Vulcan, Brockhouse factories. The land has been a brownfield site and underutilised for a number of years.

In December 2018 Sefton Council approved a planning application giving architects The Ratcliffe Groves Partnership (RGP) the go ahead to demolish the existing buildings on the site and build around 160 new homes which are a mix of two, three and four bedroom properties.

Meols Ward, Councillor Daniel Lewis said: “I am pleased to see this brownfield site being redeveloped. We should be building on sites like this rather than building on the greenbelt off Bankfield Lane.

“The one concern Councillors Dodd, Sathiy and I have is around the demolition of the factory site and we have met with the developer to seek assurances that homes on Balmoral Drive will not be damaged by the works.”

Generations of families have worked at the factories over the decades and the buildings at the site were a range of ages and styles. Some dated from the early twentieth century through and included a mid-20th century office block.

Phillips, a television manufacturing company, was famous for the building’s clock tower and munitions were made by the The Vulcan Motor and Engineering company during both The Great War and World War II.

Brockhouse of Southport was an engineering business and the company produced Brockhouse motorcycles from 1948 to 1955.