Leading building products manufacturer Forterra is celebrating 140 years of production of its iconic London Brick, which is made exclusively at its Kings Dyke facility in Whittlesey.

Manufactured continuously since 1877, London Brick, which is also known as a ‘Fletton’ brick after its original place of manufacture near Peterborough, was used extensively to rebuild Britain during the post-war housing boom.

Forterra marked the start of 140 days of activity to commemorate the history of London Brick, which has been used in the building of almost a quarter of Britain’s housing stock, with a launch event at Travis Perkins of Padholme Road, Peterborough which featured prize giveaways for customers.

The 140th anniversary celebrations last from June until the end of October, and will include prizes worth a total of £50,000 for builders purchasing London Brick. Homeowners who share photos of their London Brick projects on social media using #LondonBrick140 can also win prizes.

Stephen Harrison, chief executive of Forterra, said: “London Brick is one of our most successful and recognisable brands, and we wanted to mark its 140th anniversary by reminding everyone that London Brick is the original. It is an iconic product that has been used in millions of homes around the UK, and is now made exclusively at our Whittlesey site. We have 140 days of activity planned to celebrate, from prize draws and trade days to talkSPORT radio and charity fundraising.”

Forterra will be using the London Brick celebrations as an opportunity to raise funds for one of its chosen charities, CRASH, and is also sponsoring the Construction Industry Training Board’s (CITB) SkillBuild 2017, a competition that sees the very best in construction talent compete against each other to be crowned winner in their chosen trade.

Over their 140-year history, London Bricks have been produced in their billions, with output reaching 16 million bricks per day during the post-war housing boom. Today, London Brick is produced almost exclusively for the residential renovation, maintenance and improvement market, at Forterra’s Kings Dyke facility, which employs 250 people.