Almost all of the ex-workers who contributed to the project remarked on the extraordinary camaraderie at the mill. Rather than being one large 'family', the workforce consisted of many smaller 'families' based in the various sections of the mill, and many lifelong friendships were made during working hours. Repeatedly, the workers have told us of how hard the work was but, in the same breath, say that they also had enormous fun.

Women workers were in the majority at the mill, usually organized under male overlookers. Lillian Potts reports that, in the 1920s, every week the women put threepence into a draw; the winner either went to the local photographer's for a portrait session or to the hairdresser's for a "perm".

From the 1930s until the 1970s there was an annual "Miss Jesse Lumb" competition in the licensed Social Club, where the snooker table was converted into a stage, the steps leading up to it made by the works joiner. For decades, there were organized mill trips to Morecambe and Blackpool, by train or by bus. As it left its berth in Fleetwood, holidaying mill workers waved to the Lumb family yacht as it sailed into Morecambe Bay.

Geoff Lunn reports that many people went to work at Lumb's primarily to join the sports teams; the mill was a focus for Lumb's darts, domino, bowls, cricket and football teams, all competing in local leagues.

Each Xmas, the children's party in the Social Club was renowned for the quality of its presents, all wrapped in brown mill paper. Children were taken by bus to the pantomime or circus. Lumb's management allowed the workers to put up trimmings at Xmas and numerous Xmas parties took place throughout the mill, a practice that workers who went elsewhere after the mill closure found to be frowned upon.

On becoming Managing Director of ATC Dyers, Anthony Greenwood deliberately adopted the Lumb's management style in that company, which organised fun runs to Castle Hill to raise money for scanners at the local hospital.

The images below are donated by Donald Crowther, John Harbisher, John Wood and Linda Cook.