Factories Act 1961

175 Interpretation of expression “factory". E+W+S

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the expression “factory” means any premises in which, or within the close or curtilage or preceincts of which, persons are employed in manual labour in any process for or incidental to any of the following purposes, namely:—

(a) the making of any article or of part of any article; or

(b) the altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, cleaning, or washing or the breaking up or demolition of any article; or

(c) the adapting for sale of any article;

(d) the slaughtering of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, asses or mules; or

(e) the confinement of such animals as aforesaid while awaiting slaughter at other premises, in a case where the place of confinement is available in connection with those other premises, is not maintained primarily for agricultural purposes within the meaning of the M1 Agriculture Act 1947 or, as the case may be, the M2 Agriculture (Scotland) Act 1948 and does not form part of premises used for the holding of a market in respect of such animals;

being premises in which, or within the close or curtilage or precincts of which, the work is carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain and to or over which the employer of the persons employed therein has the right of access or control.

(2) The expression “factory” also includes the following premises in which persons are employed in manual labour (whether or not they are factories by virtue of subsection (1) of this section), that is to say,—

(a) any yard or dry dock (including the precincts thereof) in which ships or vessels are constructed, reconstructed, repaired, refitted, finished or broken up;

(b) any premises in which the business of sorting any articles is carried on as a preliminary to the work carried on in any factory or incidentally to the purposes of any factory;

(c) any premises in which the business of washing or filling bottles or containers or packing articles is carried on incidentally to the purposes of any factory;

(d) any premises in which the business of hooking, plaiting, lapping, making-up or packing of yarn or cloth is carried on;

(e) any laundry carried on as ancillary to another business, or incidentally to the purposes of any public institution;

(f) except as provided in subsection (10) of this section, any premises in which the construction, reconstruction or repair of locomotives, vehicles or other plant for use for transport purposes is carried on as ancillary to a transport undertaking or other industrial or commercial undertaking;

(g) any premises in which printing by letterpress, lithography, photogravure, or other similar process, or bookbinding is carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain or incidentally to another business so carried on;

(h) any premises in which the making, adaptation or repair of dresses, scenery or properties is carried on incidentally to the production, exhibition or presentation by way of trade or for purposes of gain of cinematograph films or theatrical performances, not being a stage or dressing-room of a theatre in which only occasional adaptations or repairs are made;

(j) any premises in which the business of making or mending nets is carried on incidentally to the fishing industry;

(k) any premises in which mechanical power is used in connection with the making or repair of articles of metal or wood incidentally to any business carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain;

(l) any premises in which the production of cinematograph films is carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain, so, however, that the employment at any such premises of theatrical performers within the meaning of the M3 Theatrical Employers Registration Act 1925 and of attendants on such theatrical performers shall not be deemed to be employment in a factory;

(m) any premises in which articles are made or prepared incidentally to the carrying on of building operations or works of engineering construction, not being premises in which such operations or works are being carried on;

(n) any premises used for the storage of gas in a gasholder having a storage capacity of not less than [F1 140 cubic metres].

(3) Any line or siding (not being part of a railway or tramway) which is used in connection with and for the purposes of a factory, shall be deemed to be part of the factory; and if any such line or siding is u sed in connection with more than one factory belonging to different occupiers, the line or siding shall be deemed to be a separate factory.

(4) A part of a factory may, with the approval in writing of the chief inspector, be taken to be a separate factory and two or more factories may, with the like approval, be taken to be a single factory.

(5) Any workplace in which, with the permission of or under agreement with the owner or occupier, two or more persons carry on any work which would constitute the workplace a factory if the persons working therein were in the employment of the owner or occupier, shall be deemed to be a factory for the purposes of this Act, and, in the case of any such workplace not being a tenement factory or part of a tenement factory, the provisions of this Act shall apply as if the owner or occupier of the workplace were the occupier of the factory and the persons working therein were persons employed in the factory.

(6) Where a place situate within the close, curtilage, or precincts forming a factory is solely used for some purpose other than the processes carried on in the factory, that place shall not be deemed to form part of the factory for the purposes of this Act, but shall, if otherwise it would be a factory, be deemed to be a separate factory.

(7) Premises shall not be excluded from the definition of a factory by reason only that they are open air premises.

(8) Where the Minister by regulations so directs as respects all or any purposes of this Act, different branches or departments of work carried on in the same factory shall be deemed to be different factories.

(9) Any premises belonging to or in the occupation of the Crown or any municipal or other public authority shall not be deemed not to be a factory, and building operations or works of engineering construction undertaken by or on behalf of the Crown or any such authority shall not be excluded from the operation of this Act, by reason only that the work carried on thereat is not carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain.

(10) Premises used for the purpose of housing locomotives or vehicles where only cleaning, washing, running repairs or minor adjustments are carried out shall not be deemed to be a factory by reason only of pararaph (f) of subsection (2) of this section, unless they are premises used for the purposes of a railway undertaking where running repairs to locomotives are carried out.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted (with saving) by S.I. 1983/978, regs. 3, 4, Sch. 1

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Definition of "factory" applied by City of Edinburgh District Council Order Confirmation Act 1991 (c.xix), s. 1, Sch. Pt. I, para.2.

Marginal Citations

M1 1947 c. 48.

M2 1948 c. 45.

M3 1925 c. 50.