It’s Blackburn’s historic Griffin Lodge – as you’ve never seen it before.
The Grade II listed building is to undergo a multi-million-pound transformation from neglected and burnt out shell into a state-of-the-art GP super-surgery serving thousands of patients.
That revival is one step closer thanks to a drone survey by Burnley firm Networx3 UAV which has captured the condition of the 197-year-old landmark ahead of its redevelopment.
Networx3 UAV managing director and CAA-approved professional pilot Ian Ashworth led the Griffin Lodge drone flight.
He said: “Most local people in Blackburn will have walked past Griffin Lodge in recent years and thought ‘what a pity’ at its sorry state. Flying a drone over it, swooping through broken windows and hovering beside collapsed walls has given surveyors and developers an up-to-the-minute snapshot of the state of disrepair.
“The high-definition photos and video we produced will give a critical starting point to bring this unloved shell back to a vibrant and useful public building once again.”
The flight over and inside the three-storey building using Networx3 UAV’s industry-leading Elios2 and Matrice 210 drones identified dangerous walls, where the roof remains intact and weather damage without inspectors having to put themselves in harm’s way by entering the dangerous structure in person.
The Networx3 UAV inspection report, which flags that the internal layout of Griffin Lodge is in danger of collapse, will now be used to plan the next step in turning the vandalism and arson-blighted heritage building into a purpose-designed health facility offering care seven days a week.
The façade of Griffin Lodge and the coach house will be retained in the new health centre and a modern extension will be added.
