Source: Evening Courier, Date: 18 March 2010
 
AFTER 47 years, three premises and thousands of keys a locksmith has finally closed the door on his career.
Robert Allinson, 65, of Akroyd Court, Boothtown, joined Charles Watson & Co when he was 18 and has been key to the business ever since.

He said: “I had a few jobs when I left school at 15 but never really settled. Then I joined here and have never left.

“I viewed it as a long-term job but never had any idea I would be here for this long.”

In fact, before joining Mr Allinson had ideas of a future far away from locks, keys and metalwork.

He said: “When I was young and single, me and a few mates had plans to buy a bar in Ibiza, but you get a mortgage and get married and your priorities change.”

Mr Allinson was born in Ovenden and went to Oven-den Secondary Modern, and later The Ridings School. He has always lived in Calderdale.

He claims to have cut so many keys it would be impossible to count but guesses the figure would be into the hundreds of thousands.

“I’ve been in my role as a locksmith for 35 years and the techniques haven’t really changed in all that time. You can automate some of the processes but you will always need that human input to ensure the quality and accuracy.

“Nowadays I can probably cut a high-quality key in under 10 minutes.”

 
Mr Allinson said he would miss colleagues and customers, but said his wife would be his number one priority, adding: “Part of my decision to retire is to be with my wife who is suffering with illness.

“I would maybe have retired a few years earlier if I’d had the money.”