2-879-383 - Historic England Archive/Heritage Images

Hulme, Manchester, 04/05/1967. A view over the construction site of three-storey flats in Hulme, built using the 12M Jespersen system, with the Manchester skyline in the distance including Manchester Central Railway Station. In 1963, John Laing and Son Ltd bought the rights to the Danish industrialised building system known as Jespersen (sometimes referred to as Jesperson). The company built factories in Scotland, Hampshire and Lancashire producing Jespersen prefabricated parts and precast concrete panels, allowing the building of housing to be rationalised, saving time and money. These flats in Hulme were built by Laing in 1967 and were part of a contract to build 420 flats and maisonettes, with the prefabricated concrete units being supplied by the John Laing Concrete Factory in Heywood. The housing development consisted of walks and closes including Toddbrook Close, Pyegreave Close, Birchvale Close, Magdalen Walk, Elmin Walk and others. The development has subsequently been demolished and the site is now occupied by the Hulme Park playing fields just off Jackson Crescent.