EMERGENCY meetings are being held with the owners of Wansbrough Paper Mill after it was announced the Watchet factory is to close with 176 employees set to lose their jobs.

The paper mill, which is owned by DS Smith, has been running in Watchet since the 1750s but could close as early as December.

Ian Liddell-Grainger, MP for Bridgwater and West Somerset, described the news as an ‘immense tragedy’ and said it is essential that the workers receive the best possible payment severance package.

“Paper-making has been part of the town’s life for two and a half centuries and the real tragedy is that the closure is going to happen despite the presence of a skilled, dedicated and very enthusiastic workforce which over the years has acquired a wonderful reputation,” Mr Liddell-Grainger said.

He warned that realistically there is no chance that DS Smith will reverse its decision to close the loss-making plant, given the size of the investment necessary to re-equip it and comply with stringent new pollution controls.

 “All the same this is a massive blow to Watchet and could hardly be landing at a worse time of year,” Mr Liddell-Grainger added.

Formal consultations over redundancies started this week but with investment of at least £20 million needed to modernise the plant – and no prospective buyer in sight - it seems almost inevitable that 265 years of paper-making in Watchet will end at Christmas.

A spokesman for DS Smith, who have run the factory since purchasing it for £83m in 1986, said: “Following a review of the long term economic outlook for the Wansbrough paper mill, we have announced to employees at the mill that we are proposing to close Wansbrough Mill and are entering a period of consultation with employee representatives.

"We will work closely with Union and employee representatives throughout the consultation process to ensure the best possible outcome for all parties.”

Unite Union representative Heathcliffe Pettifer said that he was surprised by the speed of the decline, given the company had invested £1m in the mill in 2014.

“It was a real body blow for our members, they were handed a letter the day before on their shift that there would be a meeting at 6pm the next day and of course the rumour mill got to work but I still think it came as a surprise when it was announced,” Mr Pettifer said.

Peter Murphy, district councillor for Watchet said that the community is a state of shock following the news.

“Many of the 176 workers live in Watchet and the loss of these relatively well paid jobs represents a big blow to the local economy,” he said.  

West Somerset Council leader Cllr Anthony Trollope-Bellew, met the mill’s management with Bridgwater and West Somerset MP Ian Liddell-Grainger on Tuesday.

Afterwards Cllr Trollope-Bellew said: “It is vital that we try to secure the best possible deal for all those who stand to lose their jobs.

“The mill has been the principal employer in Watchet, and one of the largest employers in West Somerset, for many years, and its significance cannot be underestimated."

Neil Murphy, CEO of Somerset Chamber of Commerce, said that with this news falling in the same week as Cricketer’s Farm Shop announced it will stop producing cheese, people could be forgiven for thinking these were troubled times.

"At a macro Somerset economic level, nothing could be further from the truth, although these announcements do reflect the delicate nature of the overall economic recovery,” Mr Murphy said.

"I remain confident, however, that the staff who may be displaced as a result of this decision will comfortably find alternative employment, although this may involve additional travel and retraining."

The mill has played a significant part in Watchet's history, having first been established as a paper mill in the 1750s after William Wood converted an old apple-press used for making cider to produce paper.

In 1979, the workforce of 280 was producing 1,500 tonnes of product a week from mainly recycled pulp, including brown paper for use by the cardboard box industry, plus glazed and wet strength papers for bags, envelopes, wallpapers, and wrappings, but the factory has suffered numerous cutbacks in recent years.