Ref: Office Block On East Lane, Runcorn - September 2009
Was browsing round here and came across the old closed thread from 2009 - title above
If anyone's interested I can shed a lot of light on that building as I worked there for 15 years - by the way, I should warn you all that being 1970s it is riddled with asbestos, do NOT disturb any fallen roof tiles
I left before it was shut down (everything moved to Castle View House, the much newer building next door, now also closed) but think it closed in the late-90s
Used to be called East Lane House - yes, very inventive
It was the HQ building for the Department of Employment, latterly Employment Department (and several other names besides).
The big more or less windowless block along the back was the Dept of Employment national computer centre and used to house 6 ICL mainframe computers, a Honeywell bulk printer / scanner system, the tape libraray (big open-reel tapes in those days) and the Data Prep department - this being in the days when computer programming was done via punch cards or paper tape which were prepared by a room full of girls on glorified typewriters (aka Kode machines). Pic 1 looks like it was taken from the roof of the computer block, in which case the ground floor windows opposite are what used to be the bar and I worked in the office on the 1st floor directly above the vehicular access. The block on the RH end (adjoining Crown gate) also had another mainframe computer in it with one of the first robotic tape libraries in the country . The large hall at the LH back end of the building used to be the canteen - which doubled as the Christmas Party venue.
Main entrance was ground floor (pic 3 on the thread), in the open 'quad' off Crown gate, turn right on entry and the big room on the right was the bar - where I DJd for many a very lively very late night, Crown offices weren't subject to licensing laws and parties often ran on till about 3am
Turn left from reception and through the double doors used to lead you to the 'disaster store' secure area - also the scene of occasional nefarious goings-on between the lads and girls in computer operations especially on the night shift
Most of the rest of it - being government offices - is yes very repetitiously the same, an office is an office after all,
Hope all that's of interest to someone somewhere lol!!!!