SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

I have a very good friend I have known since I was knee high who works at the Burtons site in Harehills and has worked there for many many years.

This friend has seen plans within the office of Burtons in relation to selling the site in order to pull down the place and build houses by 2021.

I understand the main frontage with the Burtons sign is listed, however the rest of the building is not, this friend has told me of the old work rooms where the machines would have been which still have fittings in place and locked doors with what looks like a railway running underneath and beyond the doors which have been locked since he started at the place and says when you get close to the doors can feel cold air blowing.


Part of the historical fabric of Leeds will be lost when this happens along with a plethora of historical artefacts.


This friend also tells me that the playing fields at the bottom of the site were under covenant for 100 years as Montague Burton said they were to be for the use of the children and inhabitants of Leeds, they know plan to build a school on these fields as the time on this has almost expired.

To sum up the site is to be sold for houses to be built and a school built on the fields by 2021.

If that’s the case, then this person should go to the Yorkshire Post with the story.

Ask for the Newsdesk and they should look into it.

The school part of it is true and well known locally.
Access is from Torre Road the route which HGV currently use into Arcadia.
The council sent a flyer o local addresses asking for comments etc.
Housing is something new
The site is purely warehousing and distribution which can be done almost anywhere.
It would be interesting to know who owns the land and for how long and how much.
Arcadia do have problems I think cashwise so a tasty profit seems likely for someon

Due to Arcadia's demise the site has ceased operations.
The question of building housing on the land seems unlikely now the to let signs have gone up.
Low cost flexible terms on industrial,office,open storage.
The schools on the Torre Rd side are not far off completion.

Recent activity on site which seemed to be just general clearance and tidying up.
It seems that Royal Mail are taking on part of the despatch facility for the Christmas peak mail/parcels peak..

The Real Junk Food Project have relocated from LS10 to the Arcadia/Burton's site,access from Torre Rd.
It is not a food bank,just a way of selling low cost food,still in date/fresh that might otherwise end in landfill.