Black steel feature staircase with a frameless glass balustrade and a landing that seems to float above planting, in a Farringdon office fit-out

Family-run metal fabricators · Essex & London

Bespoke metalwork, fitted by the people who made it.

Staircases, gates, railings, balconies and structural steel for homes and businesses across Essex and London. We measure, draw, make and fit every job ourselves, so it fits first time and one team answers for all of it.

Get a free quote Call 01277 286599

Free, no-obligation quotes. Workshop open Monday to Friday, 7am to 4pm.

  • Rated 4.7 out of 519 Google & TrustATrader reviews
  • BS EN 1090 · EXC3Certified structural steel
  • ISO 9001 · 14001 · 45001Independently certified
  • Insured & guaranteedFamily-run since 2014

Pictured: feature stair for Maris Interiors, Farringdon
See how we did it

Recent sites

  • Swedish Embassy Mayfair
  • Canary Wharf Rooftop steel
  • Covent Garden Shop fit-out
  • Farringdon Feature stair
  • Lucent Corner Soho
  • Atelier House Camden
  • Fenchurch Avenue City of London
  • Ipswich Station Car park safety
  • Pontoon Dock Newham
  • The Pinnacle Milton Keynes
  • Northbrooks House Harlow
  • Howdens Epping

Who we work for

From garden gates to Canary Wharf rooftops.

“Nothing is too big or too small” is how one of our customers put it. Here’s what working with us looks like, whoever you are.

Bespoke black steel footbridge with arched railings in a private garden For homeowners

Your home

Gates, railings, handrails, staircases and Juliet balconies, designed around your house rather than picked out of a catalogue.

  • We come out, measure up and talk it through
  • You approve the drawings before we make a thing
  • Galvanised and powder-coated to shrug off the weather
  • Fitted by the people who made it, fully insured and guaranteed
Gates & railings

“They supplied us with drawings for approval and happily adjusted them to our requests. They manufactured it and fitted it in good time, in fact a week earlier than scheduled.”

Andy M. · Bespoke handrail · Google review
Three-storey black structural steel mezzanine frame inside an office atrium For contractors & designers

Your site

Structural steel, feature stairs, balustrades, temporary works and public-realm metalwork for main contractors, fit-out firms, architects and councils.

  • Fabrication drawings in Advance Steel, with calcs via our structural engineer
  • FPC certified to BS EN 1090, up to Execution Class 3
  • ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 certified
  • At home with night shifts, live buildings and tight access
Case studies

11 of the 15 projects in our case studies were for clients who’d already worked with us.

What we make

Made to measure. Made in Essex.

Every piece is drawn for your space, fabricated in our own workshop and fitted by the same team. Pick a service to find out more, or ask us for a price.

Staircase with a dark steel balustrade, oak handrail and terrazzo treads in an office lobby 01

Staircases

Feature, spiral, access and escape stairs in steel, glass and timber, made to fit awkward voids and exact floor levels.

Find out more
Bespoke royal-blue slatted steel garden gate with a decorative cut-steel motif 02

Gates & railings

Driveway, garden and security gates, manual or automated, with railings to match. Simple and strong, or properly ornate.

Find out more
Curved glass and stainless steel Juliet balconies on an apartment block 03

Balconies & canopies

Juliet and walk-out balconies, glass and steel balustrades, entrance canopies, cycle and smoking shelters.

Find out more
Red-primed structural steel portal frame for a warehouse extension in Epping 04

Structural steelwork

Beams, frames, portal-frame extensions and temporary works, certified to BS EN 1090 up to Execution Class 3.

Find out more
Galvanised hoop-top security fencing and gate around a paved courtyard 05

Fencing & security

Vertical-bar security fencing at any height, plus decorative fencing for homes, schools, parks and play areas.

Find out more
Rooftop terrace in Mayfair with a steel pergola and a weathering-steel clad bar 06

Bespoke metalwork

Signs, firepits, ice baths, shelving frames, fireplace cladding. If it’s metal and it doesn’t exist yet, we’ll make it.

Find out more
Barriers & bollards Protecting people and property, from car parks to Christmas markets. Playground equipment Tough outdoor play equipment and fencing for schools, parks and play areas. Bar & restaurant refits Stainless bar tops, drip trays, footrails, back-bar racks and kitchen metalwork. Steel detailing & 3D Advance Steel models, fabrication drawings and point-cloud scans, with or without the fabrication.

Not sure what you need? Send us a photo or a sketch. Plenty of great jobs start on the back of an envelope.

Ask us anything

Selected projects

Night shifts, light wells and stairs that came in through the window.

The jobs that look impossible on paper are often our favourites. A few recent ones:

How we work

From first measure to final fix.

When four different firms measure, draw, make and fit, mistakes fall through the gaps between them. With us there’s one team, and one phone number, from start to finish.

A Blackburn fabricator working on a curved staircase, trial-assembled in the workshop before it went to site
Trial-assembling a curved staircase in our West Horndon workshop

  1. Talk

    Ring us or send your idea: a photo, a sketch or a full set of architect’s drawings. We’ll tell you straight what’s possible.

    Advice is free

  2. Quote

    A clear, itemised price with lead times, so you know exactly what to expect from the outset.

    Free & no obligation

  3. Survey

    We measure up on site and look for problems early, before they turn into costs.

    Measured, not guessed

  4. Draw

    Detailed fabrication drawings for you, your architect or your engineer to approve. Structural calculations arranged where they’re needed.

    Nothing’s made until you sign off

  5. Make

    Fabricated by our own welders in West Horndon, then galvanised, powder-coated or both to suit where it’s going.

    BS EN 1090 · up to EXC3

  6. Fit & hand over

    Installed by the people who made it, snagged and signed off, then handed over with care guidance and completion photos.

    Fully insured & guaranteed

Certified

The paperwork to back it up.

Small enough to care about a single handrail. Certified to the standards main contractors ask for.

  • BS EN 1090

    Factory Production Control, up to Execution Class 3

    Certified by the Steel Construction Certification Scheme (SCCS) for load-bearing, welded structural steel components, with a company welding certificate to BS EN 1090-2. It means our structural steel can carry the UKCA mark.

    Certificate 2273-CPR-0784 · UKAS-accredited certification body

  • ISO 9001
    14001 · 45001

    Quality, environment, health & safety

    Certified by Citation ISO Certification for the design, manufacture and installation of architectural and structural metalwork.

    Certificate 366332021

  • SafeContractor

    Approved contractor

    Health and safety accreditation recognised across the construction industry, under the SSIP scheme.

  • Constructionline

    Silver member

    Pre-qualified to work for public and private sector buyers, so you can skip a round of supplier vetting.

  • SMAS Worksafe

    Contractor

    Independently assessed health and safety competence, recognised under SSIP.

Need copies for your pre-qualification pack? Ask when you enquire and we’ll send our certificates along with the quote.

View our certificates

Reviews

Don’t just take our word for it.

Homeowners, designers and contractors on what it’s like to work with us.

4.7

Average from 19 reviews
on Google and TrustATrader

Google reviews ↗All reviews

Bespoke handrail

We needed a handrail for safety but wanted it to be aesthetically pleasing. A simple, neat and elegant design. They supplied us with drawings for approval and happily adjusted them to our requests. All in all a job well done. We’re so pleased we went with Blackburn.

Andy M.Google review · June 2026
Metal fencing

From start to finish, the communication was excellent. They really took the time to listen to exactly what I wanted. On the day, the team was efficient, professional, and kept everything clean and tidy throughout. The quality of the work is fantastic, and all at a reasonable price.

JananiGoogle review · April 2026
Bespoke handrail

The staircase was already in place and it needed a modern design that fitted perfectly. Blackburn worked alongside our interior designer to draw a beautiful handrail that they manufactured and installed.

Claire H.Google review · December 2024
Bespoke gate

I brought a complex design idea for a back gate to Blackburn. They consulted with me fully to understand exactly what I wanted, checking every detail with me during the drawing stage. The finished gate they built and hung for me was superb.

Alex M.Google review · August 2022
Gate repairs

I did not have to worry about specifying everything in precise detail as they used their experience from looking at my photos to provide the right service. Their staff are easy to get on with, and they worked to minimise costs.

Nick H.Google review · February 2024
Repeat customer

Kris and his team are always very helpful, offering a very fast service at a great price. I have used Blackburn and Co a fair few times now and have built a great working relationship. Nothing is ever too much for them, even the small little jobs.

Rae T.TrustATrader review · March 2020
The Blackburn & Co. workshop in West Horndon, with a company van and a finished wayfinder tower standing in the yard
Established 2014

Family-run since 2014

A family firm with a proper workshop.

Blackburn & Co. is independent and family-run. Since 2014 we’ve worked from our own workshop at Nutty’s Farm in West Horndon, just outside Brentwood, and between us we bring more than 30 years of metal fabrication experience.

We do the whole job ourselves: surveying, detailing, welding, finishing and fitting. That’s why so much of our work comes from people who’ve used us before, or were sent our way by someone who has.

  • 2014Family-run and independent since
  • 30+Years’ combined experience
  • 11/15Case studies for repeat clients
  • 4.7★Average across 19 reviews

Proud community partner of Leyton Orient Football Club.

Where we work

Based in Brentwood. Working across Essex and London.

For homes, we work within about 20 miles of our West Horndon workshop. That takes in most of south Essex, plus North and East London.

  • West Horndon
  • Brentwood
  • Billericay
  • Basildon
  • Chelmsford
  • Southend
  • Upminster
  • Hornchurch
  • Romford
  • Grays
  • East London
  • North London

Commercial projects go further. Recent jobs have taken us from Mayfair, Soho and Canary Wharf to Harlow, Ipswich and Milton Keynes.

Map of the areas we cover A 20-mile ring around our workshop in West Horndon, Brentwood, taking in Brentwood, Billericay, Basildon, Chelmsford, Southend, Upminster, Hornchurch, Romford, Grays, Harlow, Epping and North and East London. Commercial projects reach further, including central London, Ipswich and Milton Keynes. London Essex River Thames R 20 MI 10 mi Brentwood Billericay Basildon Wickford Chelmsford Southend Upminster Romford Grays Epping Harlow Stratford Canary Wharf City Mayfair Our workshopWest Horndon Ipswich · 48 mi Milton Keynes · 57 mi
Approx. 20-mile radiusWorkshop CM13 3EH

Fresh from the workshop

See what’s on the bench.

We post finished jobs and work in progress on Instagram and Facebook. Come and have a look.

@blackburncoltd Facebook

FAQs

Good questions. Straight answers.

Can’t see yours? Give the workshop a ring.

01277 286599
Do you take on small domestic jobs?

Yes. We’re as happy fixing a sticking gate or making a single handrail as we are building a staircase for an office fit-out. Same team, same care.

How much will it cost?

Everything we make is made to measure, so we price each job individually once we’ve seen it, on site or from your drawings and photos. Quotes are free, itemised and come with no obligation.

Do you fit as well as fabricate?

Yes. We survey, draw, fabricate and install everything ourselves. That’s the whole point: one team, answerable for all of it.

If you only need drawings, we also offer steel detailing and 3D point-cloud scanning on their own.

Can you work from our architect’s or engineer’s drawings?

Yes. We work with architects, interior designers, structural engineers and main contractors all the time. We turn design intent into fabrication drawings for approval, and can arrange structural calculations through a trusted structural engineer where they’re needed.

What finishes can you do?

Hot-dip galvanising, powder coating, or both for the toughest outdoor finish. We also work in stainless steel, supply raw steel for painting on site, and use traditional paint finishes where a heritage look is needed.

Is your structural steel certified?

Yes. We hold Factory Production Control certification from the Steel Construction Certification Scheme to BS EN 1090-1, covering load-bearing welded steel components up to Execution Class 3. We’re also certified to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001.

Can you work at night or in occupied buildings?

Yes. We’ve installed on night shifts in occupied buildings at Canary Wharf and in Farringdon to work around noise restrictions, and we’re used to tight access and live sites.

Which areas do you cover?

For homes, around 20 miles from our workshop in West Horndon, Brentwood: Brentwood, Billericay, Basildon, Chelmsford, Southend, Upminster, Hornchurch, Romford and North and East London. Commercial projects take us further, across London and beyond.

Is your work insured and guaranteed?

Yes. All our work is fully insured and guaranteed.

Free quote

Tell us what you’re making.

Send us the basics, and a photo or drawing if you have one. We’ll come back to you to talk it through. No obligation, no hard sell.

  1. 01

    We get in touch to talk it through and ask the right questions.

  2. 02

    We measure up on site, or work from your drawings.

  3. 03

    You get a clear, itemised quote with lead times.

Job sheet · New enquiry Step 1 of 2

Your project
Who’s it for?

Please tell us who the work is for.

What do you need? Pick any that apply

Please pick at least one, or choose “Something bespoke”.

Helps us check we cover your area.
Photos or drawings (optional)
Add a photo, sketch or drawingJPG, PNG, PDF or DWG, up to 8 MB

That file is over 8 MB. Please choose a smaller one, or email it to info@blackburnltd.co.uk.