Fascias and Gutters Barrow

Barrow is a port town located on the northwest coast of the UK next to the Irish Sea and is surrounded by Estuaries. It became a municipal borough in 1867 and in 1974 it merged with Dalton and formed the Borough of Barrow in Furness.  

Known throughout its modern history as a ship building town it was also known as an Iron and Steel working town till the factory finally closed at the end of the second world war.  However, the ship building continued which went on to provide a number of naval ships as well as oil tankers and cruise liners. The Royal Navy nuclear submarine invincible was also built at the yard. After the cold war came to an end the company Vickers Shipbuilding was sold to BAE Systems and the town was saved from closure. Today Barrow is also a hub for energy generation and handling. Offshore wind farms form one of the highest concentrations of turbines in the world, with multiple operating bases in Barrow.  

In its early years Barrow was a small hamlet located within the parish of Dalton-in-Furness. At that time Furness Abbey, which is located on the outskirts of the town was the hub of the area and was firmly in control of the local economy before its dissolution in 1537.  

The iron prospector Henry Schneider arrived in Furness in 1839 and, opened the Furness Railway in 1846 to transport iron ore and slate from local mines to the coast. Further hematite deposits were discovered, of sufficient size to develop factories for smelting and exporting steel. This gave the area and the Barrow Hematite Steel Company-owned steelworks is the largest in the world. 

During the period of the end of the Cold War which led to a decrease in military spending unemployment in the town reached critical levels however despite this, the BAE Systems shipyard remains operational as the UK’s largest by workforce (9,500 employees in 2020) and major expansion continues with the Dreadnought-class submarine programme. 

Today Barrow is also a hub for energy generation and handling. Offshore wind farms form one of the highest concentrations of turbines in the world, including the second largest offshore farm, with multiple operating bases in Barrow. The coastline in this part of the country is strewn with bird sanctuaries and other wildlife reserves. Another treasure of the area is Walney island which is located just half a mile from Barrow shipyard and the mainland. It forms a natural channel for ships to be launched into. The island itself is just 11 miles long and 3 miles wide and is surrounded on all sides by the Irish sea. It is connected to the Barrow mainland by a bridge and is close enough to walk to from the town centre. 

The 2011 census showed Barrow’s population had grown to 56,745, making it the second largest populated area in Cumbria after Carlisle. The A590 leading to the M6 is the only road route in and out of Barrow which gave Barrow and the road the unpopular title of longest Cul de sac in the UK.