Council bosses step in amid concerns for trespassers at derelict Wigan mill

Pagefield Mill in Swinley was once a thriving hub for industry and then used as a college building, but has fallen into disrepair in recent years.

It became a target for arsonists, vandals and youths looking for a thrill by climbing onto the roof or up a tower, with emergency services called there regularly and local authority bosses working to keep people away.

But despite their efforts, people are still making their way into the historic building and causing trouble.

David Proctor, assistant director for planning and regeneration at Wigan Council, said: “What we have been concerned about is people gaining access to the main building itself, in particular when they have reached the upper floor and roof of the building. They are putting themselves in a lot of danger.

"They are also endangering the wider community as well. There have been incidents of pieces of slate being thrown off the roof onto properties.”

Council bosses served a notice on the building’s owners asking them to secure the building.

However, nothing was done within the specified time period and so the council is using its emergency powers to do the work itself due to the risk to the public.

Contractors have been busy working on the site to remove piles of rubble and earth mounds, which people climbed on to gain access, seal up every opening on the ground floor with steel sheeting and brickwork, block off stairwellls and basement openings, remove two external staircases, repair the perimeter fencing alongside Mesnes Park, apply anti-vandal paint and erect signs.

Mr Proctor said: “It’s a fairly big job. There are a lot of openings to seal up and a fair amount of earth and rubble to move. We are probably talking weeks for that work to happen.

"At the end of that, we will have a more secure situation than we have now.”

The work will cost tens of thousands of pounds to complete and the council hopes it can recoup that money from the mill’s owners.

Mr Proctor said: “Essentially we will be looking to reclaim the cost. We have taken the decision knowing that it’s not guaranteed, but it reflects the importance and seriousness of the situation that the council has decided to take this step.”

It is not the first time the local authority has stepped in to try to reduce risks on the site, with previous work including the demolition of buildings and securing closure orders from the magistrates’ court.

The council does not own the building, but has taken action to ensure the area is safe and prevent anyone getting hurt.

Ownership of the grade II-listed Pagefield Mill is complex, with a freeholder and leaseholder, and council bosses have struggled to get anyone to engage with them over the years.

Mr Proctor said: “We are still looking to talk positively with both of these entities. There is not a lot of progress.

"Ideally the long-term solution is that we want to see the mill brought back into use and regenerated to bring a positive use of the site to the benefit of the wider community. We are still very receptive to having those discussions with the owners of the site and seeing what we can do to support that.”

Coun Dane Anderton, the council’s portfolio holder for police, crime and civil contingencies, said: "Wigan Council is continuing to work closely with our partners to secure this site for the safety of our residents.

"We are persisting in our efforts to engage with the building owner as we have no legal responsibility for the building, but we do have a moral obligation to keep our residents safe in exceptional circumstances.

"I am pleased to see this package of works all designed to prevent people from gaining access.

"Our message, alongside our emergency service colleagues, remains the same; please do not enter the site due to its unsafe condition as you are putting yourself and others at risk."

Meanwhile, action to stop arson attacks at the mill appears to have been a success, with a huge drop in the number of fires over the last 12 months.

An investigation by the Observer last year found the fire service was called to Pagefield 91 times between November 2021 and October 2022 – a massive 193.55 per cent increase on the 31 call-outs the year before.

That equates to nearly once every six days over the two years or every four days in 2021-22.

The Observer has since submitted a new request under the Freedom of Information Act to find out how many times firefighters were called to the mill between October 2022 and September 2023.

It showed there were just 12 call-outs in that time – an 86.8 per cent fall – with two of those being false alarms.

Eight of the incidents were deliberate fires, one was a chimney fire and the other was a rescue from height, the response showed.

While the number of call-outs to Pagefield Mill has previously escalated during the spring and summer months, coinciding with school holidays and light nights, there was not a single call-out after July 2, according to the data.

It is estimated that these incidents cost the fire service a total of £16,050 – a decrease on the £37,748 spent over the previous two years.

The Observer contacted the fire service about these figures but no-one provided a response for inclusion in this article.