Orient Building

The Orient Building stands on the corner of Station Road and Copse Road at Fleetwood. Following renovation in 2016, it’s now accommodation for students at Fleetwood Nautical College.

In recent years a number of different uses have been proposed and explored. They included a tram museum and a community building, but none of these plans secured sufficient funds to be taken forward. A planning application was submitted in March 2014 for the Orient Building, for prior notification of change of use from B1 (office) to C3 (dwellinghouses).

History of The Orient Building

The Orient Building was built in the early 20th century, sub-divided into three buildings. It’s had a varied past, as the former Custom House, and once also a trawler net factory.

Fleetwood’s third Custom House occupied the corner of Lofthouse Way and Station Road, in use from 1919. The middle of the building was once a navigation school and the eastern part of the building on the corner of Station Road and Siding Road was used as an employment exchange.

In 1925, Fleetwood School Clinic was opened there.

The Orient Building later housed the Employment Exchange, then from 1928 the Navigation School. Fleetwood Navigation School for fishermen had opened in 1892 with classes in the Congregational Sunday School buildings on London Street and in the Fielden Free Library on Dock Street. The Fleetwood Navigation School moved into the Orient Buildings on 16 April 1928. Marconi Marine housed radio trainers there and many local boys were trained by the instructors.

The accountants Hodgson and Harris also had offices in the building too. Customs Officers occupied the offices until 1989 when their work was transferred to Preston. The building has also been used as a fish curing works and a magistrates court.

After many years of neglect, the windows were finally replaced in 2017 in preparation for being converted into student accommodation for the Nautical College.

The Orient Building – before renovation…

Local historian Juliette Gregson shared the following photos which were taken around the back of the Orient Building. We’re not sure (from memory) whether these are the actual Orient Building itself, or the buildings to the rear of it. Do you know?

Renovation of an interesting building

It’s a two storey building, built of red brick with sandstone lintels and a flat roof.

The building was assessed for listing in 2008, but didn’t meet the criteria for the following reasons:

• The building is architecturally modest with little external evidence of its former usage, other than lettering executed in glazed brickwork on its Lofthouse Way façade.
• The building’s interior has been largely stripped out and vandalised leaving few surviving original or early fixtures and fittings and little evidence for its previous usage.
• The building is appropriately protected, being included within the Fleetwood Conservation Area.

Some of this information was researched from the Pastscape website which you might find interesting. It’s an English Heritage website and public archive.

Add what you know

Do you know anything else about the history of this interesting building? Even better, have you got any old photographs?

Either leave a comment below, or email your information/photos to jane@theRabbitPatch.co.uk. Full credit will be given.

Your Photos of the Orient Building

After this post was published in 2019, Matthew Foster got in touch.

Matthew was the caretaker at the Orient buildings and told us how he loved the town and this building, saying “I grew up in Fleetwood, as did my dad and his dad.”

Matthew had decorated the main staircase, after persuading the landlord to allow him to pull the wood and boards off the front railings. He said he’d also found some tunnels under the building… Take a look at his photos –

Student Accommodation

The Orient Building is now converted into student accommodation, mostly for students at Fleetwood Nautical College. In 2021 it was up for auction with Landwood Property Auctions with a guide price of £925,000+.

It was described as “7 self contained “houses” (four 4 bedroom, two 5 bedroom and one 2 bedroom), together with 2 apartments (one 7 bedroom and one 6 bedroom) to provide up to 41 letting bedrooms.” These photos are from the sale listing on the Landwood Property Auctions website.