END OF THE ROAD FOR LANDMARK FACTORY

COVENTRY’S landmark Courtaulds factory is to be demolished.

The factory, called Little Heath Works, in Old Church Road, Little Heath, will be torn down on Monday August 17.

With it will go the iconic 200ft cooling tower and a number of offices.

The site clearing is expected to take eight months. All that will remain is the gatehouse.

The building, which dates back to the 1920s, has been disused since 2007 and parts of it have been out of use for more than 20 years.

Courtaulds manufactured a range of products including, fabric, clothing, artificial fibres and chemicals.

The decision to demolish it has been taken following an unsuccessful attempt by owners, Acetate Products Ltd (APL), to sell the site for redevelopment due to the economic downturn.

Wayne Currie, project director for APL, said: “The factory has come to the end of its useful working life and we need to move forward with a new plan for the site.

“Clearing the site will help its future saleability, and depending on how it is redeveloped, it will hopefully once againhelp bring prosperity to north Coventry.”

The factory began life more than 80 years ago, as part of the wider Courtaulds development.

In its production heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, Little Heath Works employed around 5,000 staff from in and around the city.

But the factory’s fortunes waned in the 1980s and by 1992 its workforce had dwindled to just 450.

Courtaulds was then split into two parts – textiles and chemicals - with the latter half of the business merging with European chemicals company AkzoNobel in 1998.

Today only a small group of maintenance and security staff are left on site.

It has not been decided what the 40-acre site will be used for, but it could be developed to include homes and job opportunities.

Do you have memories of working at Courtaulds or the factory? Write to us or email timesletters@mrn.co.uk.