Wessex Celebrates 40 Year Anniversary

Wessex Lift Company (formally Wessex Medical) was formed by Roger and Michael Warwick Smith (Romsey residents) in 1976 as a privately owned company. Its aim was to provide tailored equipment in home adaptations for the less abled.

Their first major premises were behind the current BP garage in Winchester Road (now apartments), but this soon proved inadequate and larger factory space was needed. This was found in Budds Lane where we remain today with manufacturing, warehousing and office facilities.

The company has expanded to become a global force in the supply of lifts for use by the less abled, employing over 140 people.

Now owned by the Ratcliff Group we design, manufacture install and maintain a range of vertical lifting platforms from through floor lifts and step lifts for private dwellings to larger platform lifts for commercial buildings.

Celebrating this mile stone we have donated a new external platform lift to the Romsey Methodist Church. We became aware that their existing lift was proving to become a burden due to its age, so we offered our services to help complete the churches recent refurbishment.

The Revd Gareth Hill, minister of Romsey Methodist Church, said: "The generous gift from Wessex Lifts came at just the right time. Now that our worship area is a more flexible space we use it for all sorts of events and find many more parents with buggies and people with wheelchairs wanting access to the front of the building”.

"Our Friday morning Coffee Stop is buzzing and the lift makes it so much easier for people who need step-free access so when Wessex Lifts approached us with the offer of a lift we were thrilled - you could call it a real answer to prayer!"