Pottery workers told to pack up and leave - union

Robert Morley said staff knew something was wrong when they saw the locks were changed on the building

Workers at a pottery firm were told to pack up and leave just minutes after they received a letter to say the company was going into liquidation, according to a union.

Robert Morley, the GMB union representative at Royal Stafford in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, was among 83 staff who lost their jobs and two weeks wages.

Royal Stafford, which dated back more than 200 years, called in administrators on Tuesday to the site at the Royal Overhouse Manufactory.

Those administrators, Moore Recovery, said the firm had "pursued every avenue possible" but a "dramatic reduction in orders" meant it could not continue to trade.

Increased energy costs also contributed to firm's closure, a spokesperson added.

Mr Morley said workers were "devastated" and "gutted" by the move.

Employees said they knew something was wrong when they discovered the locks on the building had been changed.

Mr Morley said: "I wasn't working that day. But I got a phone call that said everyone's been told to get their stuff and get home.

"They could have let us know, but we got nothing. No information, nothing."

Royal Stafford said it had faced a dramatic reduction in orders and, along with energy price rises, it could not afford to continue to trade.

The company's collapse followed the closure of Dudson in 2019, Wade in Longton two years ago, and Johnsons Tiles last year.

'No pots left in Stoke'

Mr Morley said workers were handed letters minutes before a voice on the factory's receiver communication system asked staff to go home.

"We knew we was struggling, but for the receivers to go and to shut the gates - terrible.

"I jumped in my car and drove straight up there. But by the time I got there, a lot of the members had gone."

The union said it blamed spiralling energy bills as well as the illegal importation of foreign forgeries, which was driving down orders in the UK.

Mr Morley said the government needed to intervene and help the pottery industry.

"The pottery industry can't afford all the price hikes. Why hasn't the government come in and tried to help?"

"We couldn't keep it going with the price of the energy - it was killing us," he added.

"Something's got to be done. There's going to be no pots left in Stoke-on-Trent."

A GMB union meeting for workers at the site has been organised for Thursday.

The spokesperson for Moore Recovery said a closing down sale was planned and more information about this would be shared "when possible".

"The directors have pursued every avenue possible to save the business but without the guarantee of a profitable forward order book, this was not possible," they added.