T&A readers' memories of Grattan on Ingleby Road, Bradford

Safina Javed emailed to say: ‘So great to see the Grattan building on the T&A website - a blast from the past.

It brings back good memories as it was my first ever job at the age of 18 - I turned 19 a few days later - in 2001.

I remember my mum dropping me off at 8.45am. I walked into reception, nervous as anything, as this was my first job and I didn't know what to expect. The security at the desk got me to sign my name and write down the time I came in. He told me to wait in the side room along with the other new starters.

As I was studying at college during the week, I had chosen to do part-time hours 5pm until 8pm Monday to Friday and overtime on weekends.

Because I was so nervous when my mum dropped me off, she came inside to check on me to make sure I was okay. I felt a bit embarrassed to be honest, but she was happy that I was fine.

I remember the building as though it was yesterday. It was huge and employed hundreds of people. The canteen was so big with many tables.

I worked in the call centre on the top floor. I remember the lifts were on the right-hand side of the building on each floor and then I would walk across the bridge to get to the call centre which was huge, with rows and rows of people working.

At first it was very daunting, but then got used to it. I made lots of friends and really enjoyed my working days there, so much so that after I left, I went back to Grattan in 2004 and worked full-time in the call centre. I eventually left in 2007.

Louisa Guest writes: ‘Thanks for the nostalgia, I worked at Anchor House for many years - in fact I do still work at FGH (Freemans Grattan Holdings), now based in Little Germany.

One thing I was always in awe of at that building was the huge, great, mosaic mural that was in reception. It was about two floors tall - legend had it that the records of its creator were long since lost and nobody could remember who had done it, but it was quite a piece of work.

The striking mural in Grattan's reception. Picture: Louisa Guest

It was very ‘Marmite’ though, being an abstract.’

Linda Gordon said she ‘worked there for five years and hated it.’

The pictures brought a different memory for Ray Banyard, who worked in the control room for Bradford Fire Brigade.

He said: “Every Friday at 3pm a man who worked for Grattan would ring the control room and say; “Grattan Warehouse, Cartwright Warehouse, can I give you the test please?”

We would stand and look at it and a red light would come on buzzer would sound in the room and we would confirm that the test on the alarm system had worked.

“Cartwright Warehouse is still there but Grattan Warehouse has gone - they are building houses on there now.”