FULLY RECOVERED

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 96, 19 February 1947, Page 8

FULLY RECOVERED

BRITAIN’S POTTERY

Britain’s pottery industry, which sustained a setback during the war years, has now more than fully recovered and products bearing such famous names as Wedge wood, Royal Doulton and Spode are once more being exported to all corners of the globe. For the time being the industry is concentrating mainly on manufacture for export—there are many products which cannot be purchased at home—and, based on the first six months, it is estimated that this year’s value of production figure will reach the £12,500,000 mark, or 2,000,000 higher than the best prewar years.

This year 36,087 hundredweights of pottery have been exported to the United States alone—just 6000 hundredweights less than during the same period in 1938. Most of this pottery which is of all shapes and sizes is hand-painted, but large consignments of plain white tableware such as cups and saucers and plates 'are also included.

When on March 20 the Board of Trade relicensed 58 potteries which had been closed during the war to facilitate the telescoping of production it was a “victory day” for the industry. Extensive production started up again at Burslem, Longston and Fenton—indeed all along the 12 straggling miles embracing the six towns that make up Stoke-on-Trent. These six towns, travelling from north to south are Tunstall, Burslem, Hanley, Stoke, Fenton and Longton. The tdtal population of the area exceeds 300,000 and practically every man, and most of the women, work in the potteries either in potmaking or in the subsidiary tasks such as the clerical and packaging grades. The percentage of women employed in the pottery industry has always been high—the delicate hand-painting which stamps English tableware with the hallmark of distinction is done almost entirely by women. During the war, pottery production under the telescopic scheme was carried on by 100 firms. This concentration of materials, labour and production meant that output could be maintained at a reasonable level even though the actual labour force was cut from 46,000 in 1935 to less than half that figure in 1940. Current pottery prices are approximately 70 per cent, higher than pre-war. Total production in 1935 was £7,500,000 of which £2,500,000 was for export. In 1944 total production fell to £6,500,000 with ex-. ports showing a decrease of £1,000,000. In 1945 total production jumped to £9,000,000 with exports rising again to £3,500,000.