In the last issues of Cuttings we reported on the growing interest being shown in the Sankey by the outside world. The Regional Director of British Waterways, Derek Cochrane, had been to visit us, and invitations had been sent to the Chief Executives of British Waterways and the Waterways Trust to come and visit us. Both invitations were accepted, and Roger Hanbury, CEO of the Waterways Trust came to see the Sankey for himself on January 19th.
The Mayors of our three Boroughs were invited to join us during the day, and we were very pleased to welcome the Mayors of Warrington and St. Helens, and the Deputy Mayor of Halton as we made our tour.
Cllr. Christopher Loftus, Deputy Mayor of Halton, was waiting with us near the M62 at Warrington to welcome Roger Hanbury as he finished his journey up from Gloucester in a flurry of snowflakes. Fortunately, by the time we had finished coffee the snow had been replaced by sunlight, which struggled to conquer the mist which shrouded the Mersey, at Widnes, our first port of call on our tour. We were met there by Cllr. Keith Morley, who has recently joined SCARS’ Executive Committee to represent Halton, and Anthony Dooley, the Ranger who was very helpful during our “Sailing the Sankey” Festival during the Summer. The link between the canal, the Catalyst Chemical Museum, the park facilities at Spike Island, and the lure of the Mersey was impressive, even through the mist.
The party then retraced its steps to Winwick Quay, where the archaeological work SCARS has been carrying out on the remains of Hulme Lock Cottage were looked at beside the work which we had carried out to reveal the lock itself, buried under waste in 1974. We went on then to Winwick Repair Works, to see where the new bridge will be installed across the gates to the dry dock. As we moved around, SCARS members and Bob Massingham and Ric Rogers from St. Helens Council were giving Roger background information about the work carried out so far and of future funding possibilities. With his background of years of service with Warrington and association with SCARS, Ric Rogers was able to draw out the way that the Sankey draws the regeneration ambitions of the Boroughs together.
By the time we left Winwick it was time for lunch, which we enjoyed at the “Fiddle I’ th’ Bag Inn” on the edge of Burtonwood. Here we were joined by the Mayor of Warrington, Cllr. Mrs Sheila Woodyatt, and her consort Neville, and the Mayor of St. Helens, Cllr. Mrs Pat Robinson, who has represented the Council on the SCARS Executive for many years. Also present was Mr Derek Bromley, who has been a long-standing friend of SCARS. He runs “Gorden Sheds” in the former Winwick Repair Works, and provides somewhere for us to store our gear when we are carrying out practical work in the area. As a token of our appreciation for his support we presented him with an enlarged photograph of the Works when the canal was still in water thereabouts in 1972.
After lunch we travelled to Newton Common, to see the work SCARS has done in revealing the lock, and to appreciate the potential of restoring the canal where it passes beneath the Earlestown Viaduct. Our website has a gallery of contemporary prints from the time that this historic transport crossing-place was created in 1830, and the attraction of restoring this section hardly needed to be stated. By this time, unfortunately, two of the Civic leaders had had to go on to other duties, but the Mayor of Warrington was able to stay with us for the photo call against the background of the viaduct.
From Earlestown we took the direct route into St. Helens to the “World of Glass”, where St. Helens’ Bob Hepworth and Halton’s Richard Tregea joined us. Here we had arranged for Roger Hanbury to inaugurate the “Sankey Suite”. At the time when our Founding Secretary, and first Director of the Groundwork Trust, Dr. John Handley, moved on to academia, he was granted the “Kingfisher Award” for his work - and had promptly passed on the £500 prize money to SCARS for a town centre interpretation feature. The Sankey Suite gave us the opportunity to put that money to good use. Three photographs depicting the canal when it was in water, had been enlarged and mounted for display in the suite, so that the role of the Sankey Canal in the industrial development of the region might be more graphically illustrated. After performing that short ceremony, Roger was presented with a contemporary print of the Sankey Viaduct as a thank you for his time and interest in the canal, and as a reminder to him of its claim to historic fame, and thus the added value of restoring it to navigation. At this point Cllr. Woodyatt had to return to other mayoral duties in Warrington, so we bade her and her Consort Neville farewell, giving them a SCARS mug depicting the Viaduct as their memento of the day.

The party look at the archaeological and restoration work SCARS has been carrying out at Hulme Lock, Warrington.

Halton's Deputy Mayor, Cllr. Christopher Loftus, Roger Hanbury, our Chairman, the Mayor of Warrington, Cllr. Sheila Woodyatt, and the Mayor of St. Helens, Cllr. Pat Robinson line up at our lunchtime stop at the "Fiddle i' th' Bag Inn", Burtonwood.

St. Helens Planning Officer Bob Massingham, Roger Hanbury and our Chairman in discussion over lunch at the "Fiddle", Burtonwood. SCARS' Executive member Mary Presland in the foreground. The lunch was excellent.

the "World of Glass", St. Helens, Roger Hanbury inaugurates "The Sankey Suite", which recognises the role of the Sankey Canal in the growth of St. Helens, including the Glass Industry. Also in view are the Mayor of Warrington and St. Helens' Director for Housing and Regeneration, Bob Hepworth.

As a memento of his visit Roger Hanbury is presented with a contemporary print of the Sankey Canal soon after the Sankey Viaduct carrying the Liverpool - Manchester Railway was opened (1830).