Contractor appointed as major ‘Stori Brymbo’ works prepare to get underway

The major redevelopment of a former ironworks and steelworks in a Wrexham village will soon get underway after the main contractor for the project was appointed.

Mold based MPH Construction will be the main contractor carrying out the works at Stori Brymbo – an ambitious enterprise that will see the Brymbo site transformed into a new tourist and community attraction.

The company is expected to begin works at the former Ironworks, Steelworks and Fossil Forest site in Brymbo on 9 September.

Stori Brymbo is primarily funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, National Lottery Community Fund and Cadw. The Fossil Forest, an SSSI, also has funding support from Natural Resources Wales.

“This is a unique and exciting project that means a lot to the local community and to Wales, we are thrilled be a part of it,” said Andy Roberts, Managing Director, MPH Construction.

The first buildings to be tackled will be the Machine Shop redevelopment and the new building to cover the Fossil Forest, followed by a refurbishment of the Pattern Shop and a partial refurbishment of the Agent’s House.

The Fossil Forest building is expected to finish in January, enabling an exciting series of events and activities around the live fossil excavation to begin in 2025.

Nicola Eaton Sawford, Chief Executive of Brymbo Heritage Trust, said: “Using local trades and suppliers is incredibly important to us.

“When you put out a tender for a big contract like this you can’t show any geographical preference and so we’ve really struck lucky that MPH, who are based just eight miles from site, took an interest in the project and put forward a compelling bid.

“Making this site something the community can be proud of once more is now happening.”

Once complete Stori Brymbo will offer a unique visitor attraction that moves from the humid, mossy swamp forests of 300 million years ago (the period when coal was formed), through the industrial processes on the site over time.

Pictured: Andrew foster, Trustee, Brymbo Heritage Trust, Nicola Eaton Sawford, Chief Executive, Brymbo Heritage Trust, Gwilym Hughes, Head of Cadw and Ken Skates, Cabinet Secretary for the Economy

Works will see the former Machine Shop building being repaired and the Heritage Area around it developed, whilst the other side of Phoenix Drive will be transformed into Lodge Valley Park – a beautiful parkland space for the community and visitors to enjoy.

Andrew Foster, trustee, said: “It’s taken a long time to get to this point.

“It’s fantastic to finally get the contractors on site and we look forward to working with them to create something special.”

Prior to the construction team coming on site, resident Paleobiologist, Dr Tim Astrop led a team of 20 palaeontology/archaeology/geology students from Portsmouth, Leicester, Cardiff, Newcastle, Birmingham, Cambridge Universities as well as The Open University, in a ‘dry run’ paleontological dig.

Stori Brymbo Fossil Group volunteers and interested parties in the local community also got involved. They excavated four pits that are needed for the vertical supports that form part of the fossil forest building.

Local Member of the Senedd, Ken Skates, a long term, loyal supporter of the project visited site to see for himself the excavation progress and the construction plans.

“It’s excellent news that this major project to completely transform an important local heritage site has cleared its final hurdle and work will begin imminently,” he said.

“This area of Brymbo is a huge part of the fabric of Wrexham’s history, and once completed this ambitious redevelopment will be a truly unique visitor attraction.

“Wrexham County Borough is enjoying huge attention and surging visitor numbers, and Stori Brymbo will further enhance our area’s offering to people from all over the world.”

Mr Skates added: “I’m also delighted that that a new community parkland space – Lodge Valley Park – will be created for visitors to Brymbo and for local people to enjoy.”

To find out more about the history of the Stori Brymbo site and the plan for the site an Open Day will take place on 28 September between 11am – 4pm.

To monitor Stori Brymbo’s progress over the next couple of years and be notified of events, follow Stori Brymbo on Facebook/Instagram, keep an eye on local noticeboards or submit your email address on the website for updates.

Those interested in future excavations can contact [email protected].