The History Of Shirleys Transport LTD

Shirley’s Transport Limited was incorporated in 1964, taking over the existing business of its founder, Mr. James Shirley Senior.  Mr. Shirley had commenced  trading in 1936.  Originally much of the business involved livestock and meat haulage and delivering bagged animal feeds to farmers on behalf of corn merchants.  During the Second World War Mr Shirley was appointed by the Ministry of Agriculture to oversee and organise all movements of livestock (farm to market – market to slaughterhouse) in North Staffordshire.  In March 1943 Mount Pleasant Farm at Cellarhead was purchased and this became Mr. Shirley’s new base, replacing the original site at Waste Farm, Rownall.

After the Second World War the business continued its involvement  with the livestock industry and also began to diversify into general haulage and during the 1950’s Liverpool and its docks became a regular collection/delivery point and soon Mr. Shirley was carrying animal rendered fats and liquids in drum format.

 
At around this time the livestock side of the business began to wane and Mr Shirley started to work for the Bass, Allied and Marstons breweries based at Burton-on-Trent.  This involved carrying the breweries’ products in bottle and barrel form to their outlets and customers all over the U.K.

The first tanker was purchased in 1966 and was driven by Arthur Shirley and as a result of the contacts he developed the tanker side of the business grew.  By 1974 bulk liquid haulage was the mainstay of the Company’s business as the breweries had by now changed their distribution strategy and no longer required the same levels of transport. 

           
Arthur Shirley and James Shirley became Directors and owners of the Company in 1986, after the founders passed away in August 1985 and January 1986  and under their  guidance the Company has continued to grow and move forward in increasingly more difficult operating conditions. In 1993 the Company gained BS 5750 accreditation and is currently operating to the IS09001:2000 standard.

During 1998 the Company became involved in international tanker haulage, having held an International Operators Licence since 1992.  The majority  of this work involves transporting oils and chemicals to Belgium, France, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Italy and Poland, often returning with raw materials for the feed industry.

In May 2002 the Company was awarded a 5 year contract for the U.K. transport requirements of  SvG Intermol and Advanced Liquid Feeds.  This resulted in a rather steep learning curve as prior to 2002 the Company had  little experience of transporting molasses, but after investing heavily in new and specialised equipment the Company is fully geared up for transporting molasses and other associated animal feed products. The Company is also TASCC accredited.

Shirley’s have now been operating tankers for 40 years and have vehicles based at 5 locations throughout England and Scotland. A large variety of products are transported ranging from feed and foodstuffs to oils and chemicals. The fleet of vehicles also includes specialised tankers for farm deliveries, tipping vehicles for sand and aggregates and curtainside vehicles for palletised / dry goods.