ONE year on and a local ironworks is booming thanks to help from a Sunderland Community Project.

Following redundancy from Grove, John Fletcher and Eddie Henderson launched Vulcan Ironworks in September 1999, with the help of advice from Pennywell Community Business.

The company specialises in manufacturing ornate gates and railings, working on contracts across Sunderland in its first year of trading.

Their order book is full for the coming months.

Trading from one of the 30 units at Pennywell Community Business, Vulcan is now looking to invest in additional machinery which will double the company's production capacity.

John said: "Both of us have always worked in manufacturing. When we were made redundant there was never any question that we'd do anything different.

"We decided that rather than go and work for someone else, we would use our thirty years experience and work for ourselves.

"But we needed advice on setting up and it wasn't until someone mentioned Pennywell Community Business that we managed to find the help we needed."

Before setting up, John and Eddie signed up on Pennywell Community Business' ten-week management course.

The course taught them how to start and manage a successful business together with practical advice on book keeping and accountancy.

The project also set them up in premises on Portsmouth Road.

John Tulip, manager at Pennywell Community Business, said: "Vulcan has been extremely successful.We are already working with them to source extra funding.

"This will enable them to buy the latest machinery and tender for bigger contracts.