Workers have returned to Glastonbury's historic Baily's Building for the first time in nearly 50 years following a £7.6 million redevelopment.

Nearly half a century after workers last clocked in, one of Glastonbury's most distinctive former factories is busy with people once again.

More than 60 staff and carers from Candlelight Homecare Services have moved into the Grade II listed Baily's Building, making the former tannery their new headquarters following a £7.6 million redevelopment.

It is a striking new chapter for a building with quite a past. Baily's began life as a tannery in the late 1800s and later manufactured sheepskin products, rugs and gloves — including gloves for world-famous boxer Muhammad Ali.

The factory had stood derelict since closing in the 1980s, but has now been transformed into modern employment space while retaining reminders of its industrial history.

Candlelight Homecare Services has taken space across two floors, from where its team will manage the company's four main branches across the UK.

Chief executive Ken Marshall said: "We absolutely love our new home at the Baily's Building; it's just what was needed for us to grow as a business.

"This move will open up so many more opportunities for us, from offering career paths for younger people and inspiring the next generation of carers, to developing and nurturing our existing colleagues, and creating an even stronger, more connected team."

For company founder Cherry Catley-Day, the move marks another milestone in a business she established almost four decades ago.

She said: "From a kitchen table in Butleigh in 1988 to this wonderful new home in Glastonbury, what an incredible journey.

"May this building be filled with ideas, opportunity, team work and above all, exceptional care for many years to come."

The redevelopment has been funded through the Glastonbury Town Deal, which secured £23.6 million from the Government's Towns Fund programme.

Part of the money for Baily's came through the Town Deal's Robert Richards Initiative, aimed at supporting sustainability and Glastonbury's ambition to become carbon neutral.

The redevelopment has retained features including exposed walls and the factory's drying tower, while maintaining an industrial character inside.

One of the main buildings has been converted to provide space for local start-ups and small and growing businesses.

The idea of bringing the former factory back into use was developed by the Beckery Island Regeneration Trust, which was established in the early 2000s with the aim of restoring historic commercial buildings in Glastonbury and creating employment opportunities.

Trust chairman Ian Tucker said seeing people return had been "decades in the making".

He said: "I am so proud that we have turned that dream into a reality.

"As a listed building, we have been sympathetic to the factory's heyday and maintained some of the fascinating original features, and when you now see the inside of the building you'll realise why keeping that history and heritage alive was so important.

"What we have now created is a fabulous, welcoming space for local businesses and start-ups."

The work is not over yet. The trust is now looking for further funding to bring other Baily's buildings back into use, including work to preserve the prominent factory chimney which remains a familiar part of the Glastonbury skyline.

Rob Taylor, chairman of the Glastonbury Town Deal, described the regeneration as a "great success story".

He said: "This project truly epitomises the Town Deal; preserving Glastonbury's unique heritage, restoring an existing building, and bringing important spaces back into use."

For a factory which once produced boxing gloves, its latest incarnation is rather different — but after almost 50 quiet years, Baily's is a workplace once more.

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