Thwaites chooses farm for new brewery site

BREWER Daniel Thwaites is planning to build its new headquarters at a farm north of Blackburn.

It is moving out of the town centre to a seven-acre site at Sykes Holt, Mellor Brook, which is currently a farm off the A59.

Thwaites will now submit plans for a new brewery, head office and a visitor centre for 200 staff.

But it said it had no plans for the town centre site after failing to secure a redevelopment that involved a Sainsbury’s supermarket.

A distribution team of 120 people will be staying at the Blackburn depot “for the foreseeable future”.

Chief executive Richard Bailey said: “This is a tremendously exciting day for us, to be able to share where we plan to relocate our whole business to over the coming months. We have been looking for a new site for over two years, and Sykes Holt, Mellor Brook fits perfectly with our vision for the future of the business.  

“We will be applying for planning permission to build our new brewery, head office and a visitor centre. Completion of the purchase will take place in six months, in order to allow the current owner time to leave the site.

“We will be working hard in that time to make sure that as soon as we complete the purchase we will be in a position to start work quickly. We will be working with the planners to create an exciting scheme to make the most of the site, part of which dates back to 1540.”