Bovis Homes bought the 15-acre former factory site adjacent to its brickworks in Telford, Shropshire for £4.6m.

Martin Warner, CEO of the brick maker, said: “Completion of the sale of this land is extremely satisfying and is a sound reward for the hard work of our planning and development team.

“We now move on to address other land assets and maximise their value to the Group.”

He added: “We are, however, principally a brick manufacturer and we continue to compete strongly in a market that is showing signs of price recovery.

“The upturn in demand we have seen over the past few months is encouraging us to invest in our existing plants to increase capacity and efficiency, which will, in due course, increase group revenue.”

Michelmersh operates four works, employing 260 staff and ranks as the leading UK manufacturer of handmade bricks alongside machine-made bricks and handmade roof tiles.