The Pine End Works at Lydney had been built during the Second World War to manufacture plywood for use in aircraft manufacture (such as the Mosquito). Plywood manufacturing continued at the site after the War, the plant finally closing in 2001. Here Mike Hinton describes in detail his work there and the plywood-making process.   

Pat Harper left her Cheltenham job aged 19 years, because she wanted to ‘come home’. She found a job at Scovill’s, commonly known as the pin factory in Whitecroft where many of her family already worked. Her first job was soldering electrical connections on electric knives and mixers. 
 

The promise of post-war investment in the Forest saw many new factories start that offered new employment opportunities and better terms and conditions. Here Glenda Griffiths who left her job in a pharmacy, describing her new career at the ‘biscuit factory’. Manufacturing biscuits was tailored to retailers’ requirements and the process often produced burnt offerings!