Brewery's move on to town centre site

Prospect Brewery will move into the former Wallgate Windows showroom on Great George Street, very close to its hugely-successful Wigan Central microbar.

The move is expected to be complete by Christmas and comes after the award-winning ale producers were served notice on their previous base on the Bradley Hall Trading Estate in Standish.

Brewster Patsy Slevin, who owns Prospect along with husband John, says that while she would have preferred to remain where the business currently is the new location is ideal and she is extremely pleased the threat of having to move out of the borough has been averted.

She said: “As soon as I saw this place I knew that it would suit our purposes. We’re delighted to be staying in Wigan borough and I think all of our beer fans will be too.

“We looked and looked for somewhere in Standish and there isn’t anywhere suitable. This is as good a building as we’re going to get.

“It fulfils the criteria we require. It’s got gas to heat the coppers, it’s got electricity, it’s got enough head room and there’s offices and outdoor space.

“It also aligns us with Wigan Central, which is the premier outlet for our beers.

“I want to be in before Christmas. We want to get in here, get brewing and ensure the beers are superb and of the same consistency we’ve got now.

“The water here is different and the building is different, but we will be fine. There’s things to think about and look at but we’ve done it before so we can do it again.”

The new building will be about the same size as Prospect’s Standish base, with the windows firm moving into a smaller annexe and the brewery taking over the rest of it.

Patsy confirmed that the brewery tours, which had to be stopped in Standish, will be returning at the new venue with the bar making its way from Bradley Hall to the town centre.

She said: “I’ve been asked several times if we are putting a bar in and the answer is yes. The bar will be coming down from Bradley Hall although I can’t say at the moment if it will just be for brewery tours or more than that.

“It’s definitely good to be bringing the tours back. People have missed it and people look to breweries to do that sort of thing.

“I’m not sure how often the brewery tours will run or when, but it’s definitely on our radar.”

Work is already under way to convert the former showroom into a brewery, with the move expected to be finished by the end of this year.

Brewery tours at the new facility are currently slated to start in 2017.