'We're determined to save mill after fire'

The owner of a former mill which caught fire over the weekend has spoken about plans to save what is left of the historic building - despite having had no insurance cover.

Martin Cove, 51, bought Lodge Mill in Middleton - just outside Manchester - with his wife, Paula Hickey, in 2019.

After renovating the mill as a community and local business venue, the couple were left "devastated" after the Townley Street building burnt down in a fire early on Sunday morning.

Cove said quotes to insure the building had been "unfeasible" - meaning the couple are now faced with the task of rebuilding the mill with limited funds: "We are devastated and numb, but determined to save it," said Cove.

Cove told BBC Radio Manchester he and his wife were woken up on Sunday morning by a friend who had a spare key to their Middleton home.

"At about 6:30 a friend of ours came bursting into our house, shouting upstairs to us that the mill was on fire."

"I felt numb," he recalled. "I didn't believe it to start with, until I got down to the mill and saw it myself.

"I've been shell-shocked ever since."

Fire crews spent more than six hours tackling the blaze, after the fire broke out at about 05:50 BST, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said.

Cove said the fire came almost exactly seven years after he and his wife had purchased the venue, on 1 April 2019.

The couple spent thousands renovating the building - which had since become home to a variety of businesses, from dancers and artists, to scaffolders and an animal chiropractor.

The building was also the headquarters of local community group Historic Cheapside, which used the venue for events and activities.

Following the fire, Cove said some businesses based at the mill had been able to find other premises to operate from, at least temporarily, with the demolition having already begun.

"The demolition will take place down to the second storey, so the mill will remain the height of the engine house and we will rebuild from there - putting our roof back on and then going in and doing any reclamation we can," he said.

However the rebuilding process will be dependent on the availability of funds, as the couple will have to pay for everything themselves.

"Not a single company would touch it," said Cove, explaining why the mill was uninsured.

"Before that, we were quoted between £80,000 and £100,000, because it is an old building," he said.

"The choice was, either do up the mill or pay for insurance."

Cove said the couple must first pay back the council for the demolition costs before they can consider any restoration work.

"It would probably have been easier - and quite possibly more lucrative to start something new," he said.

"But as my family has lived in Middleton for eight generations - and my wife and I have a passion for old buildings - we would rather save what's left than make the money on putting a new ugly apartment block up."

Martin said the mill also means a lot to a community, including the 40-strong Historic Cheapside group.

"A lot of the community group are devastated, but like us they have said, if the engine house is alright, we will clean up and carry on."

"Not only us, but so many members of our community, have put their heart and soul into it. It would be wrong to do anything but try and save it."

The couple have launched an appeal since the fire, and have so far raised more than £3500 towards rebuilding costs.

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