A SOUTH Lakeland stone business is set to expand after taking on the quarrying rights of a failed rival firm.

Burlington Stone, in Kirkby-in-Furness, announced it had bought the name and rights to quarry stone from Kirkstone Quarries, which went into administration in March.

The expansion will see Burlington, which employs 160 staff at six sites, increase its natural stone portfolio from eight to 11.

The deal gives directors rights to extract stone at Petts Quarry, on Kirkstone Pass, and Brathay Quarry, near Ambleside However, while Burlington’s product range has grown, company directors announced they would not be taking on the 39 staff who lost their jobs when Kirkstone Quarries folded.

A company spokesman said although Burlington Stone had grown more than 20 per cent in three years, it would only be recruiting when roles needed to be filled.

“It is always with regret that we witness a local business going into administration,” the spokesman said. “Kirkstone had a strong brand and the company were good at marketing.

“Their indigenous stones are a fitting product for our portfolio. We want to protect natural stone sales from the Lake District, which we sell across America, the Middle East and the Far East.”

News of Burlington’s expansion will come as no surprise to its employees, who have seen the company invest in new machinery in recent months, and grow its team with two new marketing staff.

Its quarries include Broughton Moor, Elterwater, Brandy Crag, Baycliff, Bursting Stone and Kirkby-in-Furness, where the company was first established 175 years ago.

Directors will incorporate Kirkstone’s Brathay Blue Black stone, Sea Green stone and Silver Green stone with their offering of six British slates, laid down in the Lake District more than 450 million years ago, and two English limestones.

Commercial director Nick Williams said: “This is a great opportunity to enhance the product offering from British and, in particular, Lake District, natural stone producers. The stone in the Lake District is regarded as one of the finest and most durable in the world, which we will continue to promote to the benefit of our local industry.”