An evaluation was carried out by Colchester Archaeological Trust in November 1997 on the area of the car park situated to the east of Westway and north of Sheepen Place, in advance of redevelopment (CBC Planning Application: COL 97/1197). Six trenches (85m in total) were opened under archaeological supervision using a wheeled Hymac with a flat-edged ditching bucket. Trench location was specifically targeted on areas where the site would be affected by the proposed development. The intention was to machine down to the highest significant deposit but in the absence of any significant deposits this meant that the trench bottom was generally on natural clay, except for trench 3 where a deposit of dumped gravel was located. In all cases where natural clay was reached, an extra depth of clay was dug out to confirm that it was natural and did not mask underlying deposits. The deposits exposed during the evaluation consisted primarily of the foundations of the recent factory, lying on top of several metres of disturbed Victorian topsoil, probably resulting from rubbish tipping in the later 19th and early 20th centuries. <1>