Owners of Yorkshire mill that once employed 400 people could face legal action after repeated fires and trespass incidents

Last week fire crews were called to Barkerend Mills, a derelict former mill that looms over the Bradford skyline.

It was just the latest in a series of fires at the Barkerend Road site that are thought to have been caused by people breaking into the abandoned building.

The company that owns the mill – Barkerend Mills Ltd – has already been prosecuted once this year for failing to secure the site.

But the site remains insecure, and Bradford Council has said it could soon re-start legal proceedings if the issue is not resolved.

Grade II-listed Barkerend Mills is a six-storey former spinning mill that has been empty for years. Built in the 1870s, at its height the mill employed over 400 people.

It is thought that the building was designed by Bradford-based architects Milnes and France and the main mill building was built to be fireproof.

The mill was listed in 1983. Originally the current buildings were part of a much larger mill site, but a number of the buildings were demolished in the 1990s.

Although the main mill building seems to be structurally sound, the smaller North Mill has been badly damaged.

In recent years the site has been used for storage and the manufacture of aquariums. It currently appears to be in a sorry state, with smashed windows and fly-tipping regularly found on the surrounding land.

Last year, a major planning application to redevelop the mill, creating a development of 117 flats, was approved by Bradford Council.

The plans, by Barkerend Mills Ltd, acknowledged that the buildings had been subject to arson incidents in recent years.

In addition to the fire earlier this week, emergency services had been called to a blaze at the mill in July.

The incident led to road closures that lasted for hours, and two people being rescued from the building.

Bradford Council has previously raised concerns about how easy it is for people to access the mill site.

A case was brought against Barkerend Mills Ltd by the Council after “failure to comply with a community protection notice to secure the buildings against unauthorised entry.”

That case went before the magistrates court on March 29, and the company was fined £1,500 and ordered to pay £1,300 costs.

The company did not attend the hearing, but subsequently made representations to have the fine and costs put aside.

This appeal was due to be heard at Bradford and Keighley Magistrates Court in September, where the company would put forward its case.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service were present at the court on this date – but nobody from the company attended and the appeal was dismissed.

The Council was asked whether there would be further action following this latest fire. A Bradford Council Environmental Health spokesperson said: “We prosecuted the director of the company which owns the building earlier this year, then he appealed.

“The court dismissed the appeal in September.

“We have visited the mill complex again and found that the site is still insecure and allowing unauthorised access.

“We have also again tried to resolve this with the owner. But without success so far.

“If we cannot get this matter resolved, we will be restarting legal proceedings.”

Councillor Hassan Khan (Lab, Bowling and Barkerend) said the state of the mill was a big issue for residents of the area.

He said: “It is a serious matter for the community. It has been standing as a derelict building for a long time.

“I think now is time for the Council to take serious action. It is really dangerous, every few months the fire service needs to come out and put out a fire there.

“There is also a lot of anti-social behaviour that takes place at the back of the building.

“I often get calls from residents asking us to do something to clean up the area. As it is now people can just come and dump rubbish around the building because it isn’t secure. Drug users and other people use the site. Residents are fed up.”