Final blow to Northumberland Foods workers
The biggest issue affecting Amble at the time of writing is the uncertain future of the former Cheviot Foods factory. Longbenton Foods Ltd, the company which was in the process of taking over the factory, has now gone into administration.
This means a firm of accountants, Grant Thornton, have taken over the running of the Longbenton business and will be working out whether to resume operations at the Longbenton plant and sell the business as a going concern, or close the business down and sell off the assets for the benefit of its creditors. My researcher Dr Clare Mills, who is based in Alnwick, and I have been working with people who were working at the factory and trying to help get them the pay and benefits which they are owed.
As Longbenton’s deal to buy the Amble factory had not been concluded, the factory itself is not affected and is still in the hands of the administrators Begbies Traynor, dealing with the previous business – Northumberland Foods Ltd – and who are still looking for a buyer. But the workers who had been taken on by Longbenton Foods Ltd to work in Amble now find themselves out of work again. This is a further blow to these skilled and loyal workers who have tried so hard to make the business survive, and who do not deserve the treatment they have had over the last few months.
By the time this article is published I will have written to all those who have been in touch with me about their rights and how to claim pay and redundancy, but I will also be making every effort to ensure that there is a future for the factory, which is the largest employer in the Amble area. The factory has had its problems over the years but I really hope we can find a business to take it on and make it work.
If I can be of any further help to former employees please contact me at the Constituency Office on 01665 602901 or email Dr Clare Mills on millsc@parliament.uk
Sir Alan Beith MP
