A 200-year-old Calderdale mill could be demolished after years of deterioration, with the owner reluctant to pay for costly repairs.

Clough Works in Bolton Brow, Sowerby Bridge, is an early 19th century two-storey building that used to be home to Hargreaves Lock Gates – a sister company of Halifax-based Hargreaves Foundry.

Hargreaves Foundry has worked on restoration projects for the Houses of Parliament and ‘Big Ben’, as well as Manchester Town Hall and the city’s cast iron Bee Planters, and the Clough Works site was opened to make gates for canal locks.

Though a previous planning application sought to preserve the area’s industrial heritage by keeping the façade of the building while converting it into five family townhouses, those plans have been dropped in favour of demolition.

The building’s owner and managing director of Hargreaves Foundry, Michael Hinchliffe, said his company no longer manufacturers canal gates at the site and the building is unsuitable to modern production.

“It’s not suitable for modern industrial use anymore,” he explained.

“It could be repaired, I suppose, at quite big expense, but it would not be suitable for modern-day use.

“For modern manufacturing, you need big open tall high spaces.

“We have run our business in Halifax, but [this site] is just not suitable: two different floors, quite low ceilings.”

Despite an application “to safely demolish the existing building” to build new homes, Mr Hinchliffe said the plans were not finalised and the development could include industrial units to maintain its historic use.

A planning statement says the architects, Cave Architecture Ltd, want to explore “opportunities to reconstruct or reinterpret the historic frontage and architectural detailing of the former works building” and “deliver high-quality family housing”.

A heritage statement also said demolition was “regrettable”, but it had arisen “solely because of the significant deterioration of the structure and the associated risks to public safety”.

A planning document submitted to Calderdale Council in November 2021 says the building had not been used for industry in around two years.

Redevelopment plans had previously been withdrawn to allow bio-diversity considerations, but since then parts of the roof have collapsed and asbestos was discovered, according to the latest planning documents.

In a structural investigation report, Elysium Structures concluded: “We feel the conversion of the property into houses isn’t feasible and aspects of demolition and rebuild work would need to be carried out.”

There have also been incidents of unauthorised public access to the building, leading to concerns about safety, planning documents claim.

“The building has remained vacant for a prolonged period and has experienced significant deterioration through weathering, lack of maintenance and structural failure,” according to the planning statement.

“The applicant fully recognises the historic significance of Clough Works and the contribution it makes to the industrial history of Sowerby Bridge.

“However, the planning balance must also recognise the importance of public safety together with the practical realities associated with the structural condition of the building.”