News & Press Releases

Mar

Spirit of Goole finds new home

Our Goole – for everything Goole – (March 2015)

Local charity The Spirit of Goole faced an uncertain future when it was announced that the building in which it was located was to be demolished. It has now found a new home in Gilberdyke thanks to the work of Labour’s parliamentary candidate Jacky Crawford and local builder Dave Wilcock…

Jacky Crawford said: “The Spirit of Goole is a fantastic project which provides invaluable engineering skills to local young people. I am delighted to have been able to help this brilliant local cause and am grateful to local builder Dave Wilcocks for his generous offer of help to the charity.”

For full article, see: Spirit of Goole finds new home (Link broken)

Feb

Costa Coffee Coming to Goole

Summary of various news sources – (February 2015)

Costa Coffee, the popular coffee shop has confirmed plans to open a new outlet in Goole town centre in 2015. Wilcock’s Contractors Limited is currently renovating the former North Eastern public house in preparation for opening the new coffee shop on the premises sometime in the coming months.

The lower floor of the North Eastern will be taken up by Costa Coffee and the upper floors are in the process of being converted into flats. It is expected that the new store will create between six to eight jobs and will be run by one of its franchise partners, a local businessperson.

Apr

Campaigners’ Surprise as Church Ripped Down

St Mary’s Church in Old Goole Demolished – The Goole Times (10 April 2014)

St Mary’s Church in Old Goole was shockingly pulled to the ground over the weekend to the dismay of a fundraising group that had been fighting to save it.

The land was purchased by Dave Wilcock of Wilcock’s Contractors Ltd and he plans to turn the site into a range of affordable housing.

Mr Wilcock said yesterday: “I only acquired the land at 3pm on Friday but I have been trying to buy it for three years.

I put in a demolition order three years ago, which was granted when I bought the site. I would never have bought the site if an order had been put on it to save it as a group of people in the area were trying to do, as it was in in a complete state of disrepair. The building was full of rats, it was an eyesore and people had been sleeping in it as we found mattresses in there.

“The whole of the inside had been vandalised and stripped, there was nothing worth saving.” The church was completed in 1938 and Bishop Burrows came to St Mary’s to dedicate it in that year. The pews in the church came from the older St Mary’s, which was actually positioned further up the road and were made by the young men of the church.

Josie Head, who was campaigning for the church to stay in the community and reopen as a community facility, said: “It is with sadness that I found out that St Mary’s was demolished over the weekend. The church had to unfortunately close due to falling congregations but in other places if this was the case the building had been handed over to the community.

“We have been fighting to save St Mary’s because Old Goole as a community doesn’t even have a village hall. The PCC who own it wouldn’t even let us lease it or buy it on terms. We would have got grant funding, we weren’t asking for it to just be given to us. “There are a lot of people that are very upset and angry about this. The money that was raised through the St Mary’s Community Charity will now go to worthy local causes.”

Pauline Cowling, a resident who also volunteered with the St Mary’s Community Charity said: “If St Mary’s Community Charity had been successful in their long term struggle to keep the building for Old Goole we would have honoured the memory of those young men and all the others who worshipped and worked in that happy church. Sadly, it seems no one else will do them that courtesy.

“There is no longer any evidence of Christianity in Old Goole. We have lost our Methodist and Anglican Churches and the Roman Catholic Church stands there in a state of dereliction. Well that says it all, the churches think we are not worth looking after, we don’t bring them in enough money, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Karen Hammond, centre manager at the Morlands Centre, said, “When the church building was open as a church, maintained and looked after by the PCC it was a lovely building, however it was sadly under used by the community which consequently led to its closure. “More recently the site had become an eyesore, strewn with litter and showing signs of vandalism. The money to purchase the church and its surrounding land has not been successfully raised by the Save St Mary’s committee in either donations of funding applications over the last three years.

“It was recently suggested that the Moorlands Centre should have relocated into these premises, I,m afraid that suggestion was really quite unrealistic as the cost involved in the purchase, renovation and running of such a site would be astronomical and not necessary. The Moorlands Centre provides extensive services within the local community and surrounding villages from its current premises already.

“We have a shortage of social housing in the area and I would hope that with the addition of further good quality housing at a realistic and fair rate from a local builder reputable builder, we will attract new families into our vibrant community who will in turn encourage even greater support for existing, established facilities in the area.” An East Riding of Yorkshire Council spokesperson said: “The council was made aware that St Mary’s Church, Old Goole, was being demolished and informed the developer that two approvals should have been obtained. The first is consent from the council’s building inspectors (which had been given) and a ‘Prior Notification for Demolition’ from the planning office which seeks to ensure the method of demolition is suitable and that the site is left in reasonable state.

“As the latter approval had not been obtained, the developer was advised the church’s demolition was being undertaken at his own risk. As the church has now been demolished, the council will be considering what, if any, action should be taken.

Feb

Developer’s Plan for Bingo Hall

Plans are being prepared for the redevelopment of the former cinema and bingo hall site on the corner of Goole’s Boothferry Road and Jackson Street. (The Times and Chronicle – 21 February 2013)

Dave Wilcock, of Goole-based Wilcock’s Contractors Ltd, said this week a fresh application for planning permission to build three shop units, a veterinary surgery and 18 flats on the land had been submitted to East Riding Council.

“Things have been held up because ERYC wanted us to put in a whole new application and go through the whole process again, even though the site already had a planning permission that was very similar,” said Mr Wilcock, whose company is based in Queen’s Close, behind the Tesco building.

The cinema, known to many as the Carlton, showed films between 1912 and 1980, although the property actually dated back to 1892. It was known later as Walkers bingo hall. The building was finally demolished in January 2010.

Walkers originally sold the site to Julian Read, of Goole-based firm Arthur Read Jewellers, who then went on to gain the original planning permission. But the site was then sold on in a swap deal with Dave Wilcock, who at the time was building the new shop units on the opposite side of Boothferry Road.

In the deal, Arthur Read Jewellers moved into Mr Wilcock’s new shop units and Mr Wilcock took on the development of the former cinema site. Mr Read had wanted to build three shop units, 10 flats and two houses, along with parking.

Mr Wilcock said he had hoped to get the permission sorted by now, with a view to getting work started in early March. Workers were recently seen on the site flattening brick rubble with a JCB.

The empty building was demolished earlier than it needed to be after local youngsters began playing in it.

Mar

Refurb Boost For Moorlands Centre

Wilcock’s Contractors Ltd assist with Moorlands Centre refurbishment (The Goole Times 1st March 2012)

The Moorlands Centre in Old Goole has opened its doors even wider to the community following a recent refurbishment two weeks ago.

The upper part of the building, which was formally unused, has been transformed into a meeting room facility with children’s studio, utility room, kitchen and serving area and two refurbished toilets…

… All renovation work was made possible thanks to businessman David Wilcocks, who after eating breakfast in the cafe one morning, asked what improvements could be made to the building and generously offered to help out.
Everyone at the centre is thankful to David and his firm for the work they have done.

Since the refurbished floors were opened for use, members have been delighted with the new facilities, and look forward to enjoying it for years to come.

Jan

Memories Reduced To Rubble

Dave Wilcock watches over the demolition of the Carlton Cinema in Goole. (The Courier – January 2010)

Demolition of Walkers bingo hall in Goole in progress.Memories of Goole’s cinematic past came crashing down with the demolition of the former Carlton building last Sunday.
The property on the corner of Jackson Street and Boothferry Road has had many guises since opening in 1891 but its best remembered as the cinema, which ran from 1912 to 1980.
Walkers Bingo, which was the last company to own it, sold up two years ago and it now belongs to Julian Read, of Arthur Read Jewellers.
He has planning permission to transform the site into three retail units, ten flats and two houses as well as parking provision and he says he is waiting to get an investor on board before making the next move.
“We didn’t necessarily have to demolish the building yet but youngsters had started playing in it and we decided it was the safest thing to do,” he said.
“It looks a mess at the moment but it will all be cleaned up in a fortnight’s time and fenced off.”

CONTRACTOR Dave Wilcock watches over the demolition of the Carlton Cinema in Goole.

Mar

Anchor is set to bloom

The Castaway anchor arrives in Goole, pictured (from left) are Dave Wilcock, David Walsh, Natalie Bristow and Hugh Mackenzie

Dave Wilcock helps transport and place donated anchor (The Courier – 26 March 2009)

Anchors aweigh for a generous donation.
Last year Castaway Music Theatre’s gardeners entered the Goole in Bloom competition with a small plot of land alongside the Dutch River Bridge belonging to ABP.
They planted an anchor logo design in blue and white flowers but by the autumn the foliage was well past its best.

Dave Wilcock helps transport and place donated anchor

Thanks to the generosity of two local firms and the aid of Goole Town Council’s Jean Kitchen, a more permanent anchor is now in place.
Local Contractor Dave Wilcock recently transported a ship’s anchor reclaimed by Richard Bourne of Dunstan Ship Repair based at the William Wright Dock from Hull to Goole and cemented it in its new position.
The anchor will be the centrepiece for a new planting for this year’s competition.
Digaway members David Walsh, Hugh Mackenzie and Natalie Bristow were there to see the anchor arrive and to thank Dave Wilcock and his men for their help.
Eric Henderson who voluntarily works with the group and his team will shortly be getting to work painting the anchor with the materials kindly donated by Peter Yates of Waverley Shipping.
Planting the spring bedding will start after the Castaway fundraiser at the Charter Club.