England's last bell foundry: John Taylor & Co. of Loughborough

Whitechapel Bell Foundry, which had been operating on the same site since 1739, closed in 2017. Campaigners are now fighting to prevent the buildings being turned into a hotel.

But there is a bell foundry still open in England, and it's in Leicestershire.

Last time I blogged about John Taylor & Co. of Loughborough there was bad news. In May of last year I reported that they failed to secure a £8m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Visit the company's site today and you find better news:

The Loughborough Bellfoundry Trust is pleased to confirm that a major grant has been awarded by the Heritage Lottery Fund for the restoration and development of the Foundry. Full details were published in the Ringing World on 12th October 2018.

Judging by that website - and by the papers being read by the person next to me on the train to work this morning - the project is moving ahead.