History
The Bass Maltings in Sleaford, England are a large disused group of eight malt houses originally owned by the Bass Brewery of Burton upon Trent. Constructed between 1901 and 1907 to Herbert A. Couchman's design, the maltings are the largest group of malt houses in England; they have been designated Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England, recognising them as "particularly important ... of more than special interest."
Part of the predominately agricultural county of Lincolnshire, the Sleaford area was a major producer of barley in the 1880s. When germinated and dried to form malt, barley forms a key ingredient in the production of beer. Along with the town's railway links, this attracted the Bass brewery company to the town. The use of more efficient techniques at Bass's other plant led to the closure of Sleaford's maltings in 1959. Despite being used to rear poultry in the late 20th century, the buildings have not been fully occupied since Bass left and a fire in 1976 caused severe damage to three of the malthouses. Derelict since the 1990s, proposals to convert the buildings into office, retail and residential space were put on hold in early 2015 after lengthy delays over planning permission and the withdrawal of a major investor
Explore
Ventured down with Hamtagger. HT had been before so all I had seen was in pictures and videos. I liked what I saw though on the approach, nice red brick buildings which now looked very out of place next to a housing estate. The walkways between the malt houses are something I was drawn to, I quite liked them, timber build connected to that lovely red brick. A few of the roofs had gone due to past fires but it was nice all the same.
We got up close and on arrival noticed there was another couple of people there, they certainly weren’t dressed for exploring but it appeared they were there for the same reason we were. Anyhow, soon found entry to the building and the first building was the one I liked the most. After mooching around and playing with dead animals (HT), We headed out to see the rest. Had quite a good look around and then we were going to try and see the staircase, just literally climbing over when the guy we had seen earlier shouted over to us that it was all sealed. I mean, exploring.. meant to be quiet… and all of a sudden someone shouts quite loud about an area being sealed up….. When we walked back to the fence I spotted a gap adjacent to the wall, I had the pleasure in getting through, it wasn’t easy. Chest a bit too big but with a little squeeze I was through and then watched HT climb over. Anyway, it wasn’t sealed as you can see from my pics and I really enjoyed this place. It has it’s fair share of pigeon shit which I had the pleasure of laying down in just to get that picture. Anyway, on with the pics.
The main attraction ..
The Bass Maltings in Sleaford, England are a large disused group of eight malt houses originally owned by the Bass Brewery of Burton upon Trent. Constructed between 1901 and 1907 to Herbert A. Couchman's design, the maltings are the largest group of malt houses in England; they have been designated Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England, recognising them as "particularly important ... of more than special interest."
Part of the predominately agricultural county of Lincolnshire, the Sleaford area was a major producer of barley in the 1880s. When germinated and dried to form malt, barley forms a key ingredient in the production of beer. Along with the town's railway links, this attracted the Bass brewery company to the town. The use of more efficient techniques at Bass's other plant led to the closure of Sleaford's maltings in 1959. Despite being used to rear poultry in the late 20th century, the buildings have not been fully occupied since Bass left and a fire in 1976 caused severe damage to three of the malthouses. Derelict since the 1990s, proposals to convert the buildings into office, retail and residential space were put on hold in early 2015 after lengthy delays over planning permission and the withdrawal of a major investor
Explore
Ventured down with Hamtagger. HT had been before so all I had seen was in pictures and videos. I liked what I saw though on the approach, nice red brick buildings which now looked very out of place next to a housing estate. The walkways between the malt houses are something I was drawn to, I quite liked them, timber build connected to that lovely red brick. A few of the roofs had gone due to past fires but it was nice all the same.
We got up close and on arrival noticed there was another couple of people there, they certainly weren’t dressed for exploring but it appeared they were there for the same reason we were. Anyhow, soon found entry to the building and the first building was the one I liked the most. After mooching around and playing with dead animals (HT), We headed out to see the rest. Had quite a good look around and then we were going to try and see the staircase, just literally climbing over when the guy we had seen earlier shouted over to us that it was all sealed. I mean, exploring.. meant to be quiet… and all of a sudden someone shouts quite loud about an area being sealed up….. When we walked back to the fence I spotted a gap adjacent to the wall, I had the pleasure in getting through, it wasn’t easy. Chest a bit too big but with a little squeeze I was through and then watched HT climb over. Anyway, it wasn’t sealed as you can see from my pics and I really enjoyed this place. It has it’s fair share of pigeon shit which I had the pleasure of laying down in just to get that picture. Anyway, on with the pics.
The main attraction ..
Last edited by a moderator: