Church of Scientology cruises into Manchester

The Church of Scientology has bought the former Duckworth Mills in Trafford, Greater Manchester. The church, which counts celebrities including Tom Cruise among its followers, has paid Merseyside-based Maghull Group £3.65m for the 51,000 sq ft Victorian building. Maghull, which bought the property from Cargill Flavor Systems for £2.1m last year, had planned to redevelop the building as 42 flats and 20,000 sq ft of offices. Plans have been submitted to turn the building into a “place of worship and religious instruction”. david.quinn@rbi.co.uk