Langley Maltings is a former

maltings A malt house, malt barn, or maltings, is a building where cereal grain is converted into malt by soaking it in water, allowing it to sprout and then drying it to stop further growth. The malt is used in brewing beer, whisky and in certain food ...

in Oldbury, West Midlands, England. Built in 1898, it was in operation until 2006. It was damaged by fire in 2009. It is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, listed on 18 March 1974. It has been named by the

Victorian Society The Victorian Society is a UK amenity society and membership organisation that campaigns to preserve and promote interest in Victorian and Edwardian architecture and heritage built between 1837 and 1914 in England and Wales. It is a registered ...

as a heritage building at risk of disrepair.

History

Langley Maltings was built in 1898, replacing a malt house destroyed by fire the previous year. It was designed by Arthur Kinder & Son.Wolverhampton and Dudley’s Maltings: Langley, West Midlands and Lichfield, Staffordshire: visit on 22 September 2005
The Brewery History Society. Retrieved 27 July 2018. It supplied malt to Crosswells Brewery, a short distance away across a railway line; the brewery, established in 1870 by Walter Showell, distributed Showell's Ales throughout the Midlands.Langley Maltings
Made in Oldbury. Retrieved 27 July 2018. The maltings was known as Showell's Maltings. The building is next to

Titford Canal The Titford Canal () is a narrow (7 foot) canal, a short branch of the Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) in Oldbury, West Midlands, Oldbury, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Authorised under the ''Birmingham Canal Act 1768 ...

; grain was delivered by canal, and later by rail, a railway siding being built from the main line (now the

Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line The Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line is a railway line which runs from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster in the West Midlands, England. It is one of the Snow Hill Lines, with trains operated by W ...

). After the Second World War grain was delivered by road. There was some rebuilding following a fire in 1925. In 1944 the maltings was bought from Showells by Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries. By the end of the 20th century it was one of few such buildings in the country using the traditional floor

malting process Malting is the process of steeping, germinating and drying grain to convert it into malt. The malt is mainly used for brewing or whisky making, but can also be used to make malt vinegar or malt extract. Various grains are used for malting, mo ...

. Malting came to an end in 2006, and the following year Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries sold the building. Viewed from the towpath of Titford Canal in 2019 On 8 September 2009 the building was damaged by arson: much of the roof, and three of its outlet towers, were destroyed in the fire.Langley Maltings
History of Oldbury, Langley and Warley. Retrieved 27 July 2018. In 2012 permission to demolish two of three structures, as part of a housing plan, was refused by Sandwell Council. The council report noted that

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

, disagreeing with the report by the structural engineers supporting demolition, said that despite some unstable masonry, repairing the building would be relatively straightforward. The council report noted: "The proposed demolition of a large element of the listed building will result in a substantial loss of significance to these historic maltings".Oldbury's historic Langley Maltings buildings saved after campaign
Birmingham Live, 14 October 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2018. In 2018 the

included Langley Maltings on its list of the top ten endangered buildings.

References

{{reflist Oldbury, West Midlands Grade II listed buildings in the West Midlands (county) Grade II listed industrial buildings Buildings and structures in Sandwell Malt