Sankey Canal Restoration Society



Volume 5, Number 2 - Autumn 2002

British Waterways Chairman's Visit to the Sankey Canal

Dr. George Greener fitted his tour of the Canal into a very busy schedule, which saw him leaving Edinburgh at 7.30 am to be met at Wigan by our Chairman just over three hours' later. No time was wasted - on the way to the rendezvous with the rest of the party at The World of Glass, he was filled in on the Society's history and ambitions, and as the coach drove alongside Carr Mill Dam, could see the part of the Sankey still in BW ownership, as well as the start of the proposed new Canal to the Leeds and Liverpool, at Gerard's Bridge.

After a short break over coffee, during which the rest of the party was introduced, the coach took us to Widnes for the start of the tour. Here our Widnes Councillor, Keith Morley, had arranged for us to go to the top of Catalyst, the Chemical Museum, where splendid views of the Sankey, and of the problematic Mersey access to it, are to be had. Whilst there he also heard of ambitious regeneration proposals for the canalside at Widnes, and was able to appreciate how the Sankey fitted into the regional waterways scene. The new Chairman of the IWA, John Fletcher, painted a picture for Dr. Greener in which the Sankey and its proposed extension added value to all the other completed and proposed waterways projects hereabouts.

During lunch at a nearby pub, Councillors and Officers from the three Boroughs gave our visitor a thorough questioning about the benefits of restoration, and were left in no doubt that the case had been well-proved elsewhere. As the tour along the Sankey continued (see pictures below), it seems that Dr. Greener himself became convinced that the restoration of the Sankey would indeed deliver such benefits to our area too. He demonstrated this by offering the full support of British Waterways in creating a more formal partnership which would work towards both restoring the present canal and creating the link to the Leeds Liverpool.

Before being whisked back to Wigan to catch his train on to London (which was managed with only a couple of minutes to spare!) Dr. Greener gave the party a quick resume of his impressions of the day, and encouraged volunteers, Councillors and Officers alike to work closely with his own organisation to take the project forward.

We are grateful to Dr. Greener for the time he gave us - and are obviously very pleased that he left us expressing his own enthusiasm for what he had seen, and was so encouraging about the potential which our proposals would unlock for the benefit of our three Boroughs.


Flanked by Councillors (Pat Robinson of St. Helens, Keith Morley of Halton) Dr. Greener and the party outside the Catalyst Chemical Museum		Warrington Ranger Mel Hutchinson explains how Bewsey Old Hall,(the background to this shot) fits into the rich heritage trail along the Sankey

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