Fords Head Office – Warley – Essex – March 2020

[mockney reject]

Here’s some more before images. It looks like the white cladding has been removed in @mockney reject picture, but I can see from the ceiling in his picture that it’s the 6th floor lobby from the lifts. There’s also a canteen picture with furniture and the main reception which I think is now completely gutted.

That’s pretty cool, sadly they had removed pretty much every trace of the Ford name

 

[Exploring With Pride 🌈]

We mite be visiting this soon hopefully its still accessable as its a bit of a drive

 

[Rainbowunicorn]

Wow this is a great urbex. Well done

 

[scrapman]

If you are nearby it’s well worth a look.

I'd love to join you what a place

 

[mr_3xplor]

Hi everyone, also a long time lurker but this one caught my eye!

Always been a big Ford fan and wished I'd visited here at some point before it closed (actually asked a superior at work who visited Warley regularly for meetings if I could come along one time as I knew it was closing) and was told no as security was tight

@mockney reject thanks for the report and allowing me a small glimpse inside

Hope its appropriate to ask on your thread Mockney Reject, but @capricorn1 if you have any more photos of the inside of the building prior to closure I'd be keen to see them too

 

[capricorn1]

Hi everyone, also a long time lurker but this one caught my eye!

Always been a big Ford fan and wished I'd visited here at some point before it closed (actually asked a superior at work who visited Warley regularly for meetings if I could come along one time as I knew it was closing) and was told no as security was tight

@mockney reject thanks for the report and allowing me a small glimpse inside

Hope its appropriate to ask on your thread Mockney Reject, but @capricorn1 if you have any more photos of the inside of the building prior to closure I'd be keen to see them too

LOL - security wasn’t that tight at all, sure you had to get past security at main reception and you needed additional access to specific parts of the building, but it wasn’t that tight. Once signed in you had free access to roam about.

I’ll go through my phone and see what other pictures I have that are worthy of sharing.

 

[mr_3xplor]

LOL - security wasn’t that tight at all, sure you had to get past security at main reception and you needed additional access to specific parts of the building, but it wasn’t that tight. Once signed in you had free access to roam about.

I’ll go through my phone and see what other pictures I have that are worthy of sharing.

I must admit I did suspect it was just easier to say no, but there we go, bit late now lol.

That’s great, would love to see some more

 

[Thepope]

Just to give an update on this location, don’t even attempt it tried it last night, was on the grounds for not even 5 minutes and next thing we knew we had easily 20+ police officers running at us screaming from all angles. No idea what’s inside there but they definitely don’t want you seeing it

 

[mockney reject]

Just to give an update on this location, don’t even attempt it tried it last night, was on the grounds for not even 5 minutes and next thing we knew we had easily 20+ police officers running at us screaming from all angles. No idea what’s inside there but they definitely don’t want you seeing it

must have been wrong time, wrong place, I've been back a few times and not seen any cops

 

[mockney reject]

Went a few nights back, it’s sadly all stripped inside

 

[mockney reject]

Just thought I would add these pictures I've been sent today

Ford foundations are laid in 1962.

The new building rises. In the background is the Essex Regiment chapel, which remains today.

In early 1964, the building's shell has reached penthouse level.

The main entrance canopy is installed.

Construction work continues in April 1964, despite wintry conditions. In the background is the former army officers' mess, converted to the Marillac Care Centre in 1963.

The army parade ground becomes an employee car park.

Retirees help with bricklaying.

The snack bar (later removed) under construction.

The future managers' car park has been marked out.

The building is now ready for occupation.

Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother presents new colours to the 3rd East Anglian Regiment (successor to the Essex Regiment) in 1989.

A reminder of the site's distinguished history.

At the typing pool, before the age of personal computers

Looking into the board room.

The telephone switchboard, when most external calls were connected by operator.

Data centre line printers, when the paperless society was a distant prospect.

Mass storage. The company's data was held on magnetic tape.

The Warley building in its final form, following the 1986 addition of the 'new' data centre on the east side.​

 

[Eng]

Worked there for 10 years, great canteen,discounted prices
Lovely old building will be a cash cow for the developers £££££

 

[LemonFactory]

What a fantastic post!

 

[chills]

Glad this has been bumped as I missed the premiere from you Mr Reject!

Certainly a few interesting details left and remaining; think you caught that just at the right time before total stripping! Nice job Sir! ✌

 

[AmeliaDavids]

This report is awesome! I really liked the pictures you made and the way you described your struggles getting inside. I have been perusing this website for quite a while now. Urban exploration sounds like a ton of fun. Sadly, I don’t really have a lot of time on my hands for a time-consuming hobby like this. The instant I thought I would have more time on my hands, the pandemic struck and I was forced to work from home and the amount of work doubled. It was hell. I escaped home when I found this coworking space here https://osdoro.com/us/coworking-space-austin/ . But it didn’t fix everything. Thankfully, it seems that the situation is calming down and I am going to have more time on my hands soon. I would love to do something similar one day!