Thorp Arch Trading Estate is a trading estate, with both industrial and retail space, south-east of

Wetherby Wetherby () is a market town and civil parish in the City of Leeds district, West Yorkshire, England, close to West Yorkshire county's border with North Yorkshire, and lies approximately from Leeds City Centre, from York and from Harrogat ...

in the

City of Leeds The City of Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. The metropolitan borough includes the administrative centre of Leeds and the towns of Farsley, Garforth, Guiseley, Horsforth, Morley, Otley, Pudsey, Rothwell, W ...

metropolitan borough,

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England. The estate occupies the major part of the site of a former Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF), ROF Thorp Arch, in the parishes of Thorp Arch and

Walton Walton may refer to: People * Walton (given name) * Walton (surname) * Susana, Lady Walton (1926–2010), Argentine writer Places Canada * Walton, Nova Scotia, a community ** Walton River (Nova Scotia) *Walton, Ontario, a hamlet United Kingdo ...

. There is evidence of its former use around the site which was similar in layout to the former ROF Aycliffe in Darlington, County Durham.

War years

The Royal Ordnance Factory was built to supply British forces with munitions during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. The site was ideal: it had a railway running adjacent (the Harrogate to Church Fenton Line), open space and was not in a strategic bombing area. Railways sidings were built (these are still evident in certain areas) and buildings constructed around them, many with flat concrete roofs. The retail park is constructed in semi-underground bunkers, with grassy banks running up the sides of the buildings.

Post war development

The Royal Ordnance Factory closed in 1957. However, with a boom in the construction trade and many others in the post-war years, the site found many new industries requiring the space it could offer. George Moore (founder of Moores Furniture Group) bought the site in 1960s and converted it into a trading estate. Moores Furniture Group furniture factory is situated on the estate, as is a

Leeds City Council Leeds City Council is the local authority of the City of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in West Yorkshire and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, and provides the majority of l ...

household recycling centre, a sewage works and many other small businesses situated. A major development, and the biggest employer, is the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

lending division, the British Library's second site after the St Pancras site in Central London.Locations
/ref> The British Library Boston Spa, as it is known, is housed in a large eight-storey concrete building (with windows set in narrow slits to avoid light damage to the books) and many smaller, newer buildings around it. Buywell

The Thorp Arch Retail Park occupies semi-underground bunkers and many of the retail outlets have grassy banks up the exterior walls. The retail park houses Brooks Discount Retailers, DFS (formerly Northern Upholstery), Power Electrical Superstore (formerly Empire Direct and Miller Brothers), the Sofa Centre, the Greenery Garden Centre, a car showroom and a cafe. The retail park had a branch of

Texas Homecare Texas Homecare was a chain of do it yourself (DIY) stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The firm operated from 1972 until 1996, with some stores lasting until 1999. History Texas Homecare was first established in 1972 by Manny, Sydney and Ge ...

, but because of the small-sized units, it occupied two units several hundred yards apart but they were closed. Bargain Street, (a now defunct

discount clothes and household good retailer) also had premises. During the 2008–2009 UK retail crisis, two retail chains, Land of Leather and Empire Direct, closed.

Features

* The street names are all uniform, with roads running in a North-South direction named "Street 1", "Street 2", "Street 8", etc., and those crossing them named "Avenue A", "Avenue B", etc. * Running along the sixty-year-old lamp posts on certain parts of the estate are electricity cables. * The retail park is set in grass covered bunkers. * There are

level crossings A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The term als ...

on certain streets, despite the railway being dismantled since 1965. * The retail park is home to a playground, formerly home to an old

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...

, a Bren Gun Carrier and a fire engine, and is still home to a large mock pirate ship (about 40' in height).

References

{{Reflist Buildings and structures in Leeds Industrial parks in the United Kingdom Retail parks in the United Kingdom