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Demolition plan for part of historic Brush factory site in Loughborough

Google The Brush factory in Nottingham Road, LoughboroughGoogle
An application to demolish several buildings has been submitted to Charnwood Borough Council

A large section of a historic industrial site in Loughborough could be heading for demolition.

The Brush site in Nottingham Road was a major employer in its heyday and built trains and other heavy engineering products.

But parts of the plant have closed or been sold over more recent years, along with the loss of hundreds of jobs.

The Falcon Works industrial estate owners have applied for permission to demolish several buildings.

However the distinctive yellow "Brush" sign, which can be seen from Loughborough railway station, would stay where it is because the 1920s building - known as the Brush Building, Falcon Building or 24 Shop - would be untouched.

Brush
The Brush sign can be seen from Loughborough railway station

The first factory was built on the site by Henry Hughes in the 1860s to manufacture parts for trains.

The Falcon Works was taken over by Anglo-American company Brush Electrical Engineering in 1889, which led to it becoming a major employer in Loughborough.

It became a locally-listed building in 2004, which does not provide the same level of protection granted to a nationally-listed building but means it is considered an important historical asset.

Part of the company, Brush Traction, was bought from Brush UK by Wabtec, an American company, in 2011, which announced it was closing the Brush plant in 2021.

However Brush Transformers, which is part of Brush UK, is still on site. The planning application says the site is "in active, manufacturing use today, although parts of the complex are vacant and disused".

Some demolition work has been done over the last three years.

Google The Brush factoryGoogle
A number of the brick buildings on the right have been demolished in the last three years

International investor QCP Real Estate was said to have bought the site for £35m last year and several businesses are run from it today.

Falcon UK MLI Property Unit Trust has applied to Charnwood Borough Council for permission to demolish several buildings and put up new structures for general industrial, storage and distribution, and research and development use.

The application documents can be viewed on the council's planning portal. Comments and objections can be made until Wednesday 8 November.

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