There’s a huge jobs blow in North Yorkshire this afternoon after it was announced a major factory is to shut down.
Legal & General is to cease production at its modular housing factory in Sherburn in Elmet, putting 475 jobs at risk.
The finance-to-property group has said it plans to cease production at the site after years of weak demand.
It is understood that the group has launched consultations with all 475 staff at the L&G Modular Homes business, with plans to make the majority of workers redundant.
The firm said it will review and assess “potential strategic options” for the division after halting operations.
L&G blamed “long planning delays” and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic for weakness in the firm’s pipeline of orders for new homes.
It added that the group has not been able to “sustain the significant running costs of the large factory in Selby” as a result.
Bill Hughes, chairman of Legal & General Modular Homes’ board, said: “Legal & General is proud of what we have achieved in bringing forward a new approach to construction through our factory.
“However, without the necessary scale of pipeline it is not sustainable to continue producing more modules.
“We are therefore reluctantly proposing to reduce business activity and cease production of new modules at the factory.
“Regrettably, this includes commencing consultation with all employees around the proposal to make the majority of modular homes roles redundant.
“We recognise this will be a challenging and uncertain period for our staff and we will be actively exploring redeployment opportunities and supporting them during this difficult time.”