The St. Helens Canal in Halton : Progress and Aspirations
Paul Wright's address to SCARS' Annual Meeting

When his family moved to Widnes in the 1960s he well remembers the derelict industries and Sankey Canal as a child's playground beyond compare, never imagining that in the new millennium he would have responsibility for its development.

Widnes was the first of the local authorities which undertook restoration work on the canal, with much work carried out in the 1970s with the reconstruction of its banks and the installation of moorings. The gates of the sea lock were renewed and have been renewed again since then. The result has been a pleasant waterside walk popular with both local pubic and visitors from the wider region. Spike island was refurbished in the 1980s and is well utilised but is now in need of some attention.

Widnes is now part of the larger Halton Borough Council whose aims are to open up its section of the canal to navigation, acting as a catalyst to the restoration of the whole canal, and to install a trip boat to operate on this newly accessible waterway for public enjoyment.

Phase one of the project will include a new children's playground adjacent to the catalyst Museum and improvements to the entrance to Spike Island.

Phase two will develop the history of the railway dock, Spike Island's railway network and the development of a nature reserve, aiming for Green Flag status.

There are many aspects of the canal and its corridor which it is intended to improve since the waterway is a window on the Waterfront Development Project.

A shopping area and local amenity centre are planned, facing onto the canal rather than away from it whilst the West Bank Boat Club facilities are to be improved.

The present bridge, occupying the site of the original railway bridge onto Spike Island, is to be replaced by a new swing bridge which will nevertheless be capable of carrying the HGVs which need to access the Island when large scale events are being held. Carterhouse Bridge, the next one along, is also to be replaced, again with a swing bridge, opening up yet more of the canal. The much larger high level bridge to be thrown across the Mersey in 2012 to replace the Jubilee Bridge will also span the Sankey, revealing it to a much wider audience than was previously possible. Alongside will be another nature reserve, drawing yet more visitors to the area.

The whole of the canal within Halton has been studied and found to be mostly in good condition following the earlier restoration work. Those areas which need attention will receive it and the canal will then be fully open with in the Borough's boundary.

To attract more visitors, walkways will be installed alongside the river and out across the marshes of the wharf, complete with bird hide for the ornithologists. On the inland side of the canal is a blighted area which it is hoped to convert into a linear park via the Mersey Forest initiative.

The next target will be the open concrete channel which cuts across the canal at Johnson's Lane. This was built by the old Widnes authority to serve a new waste water treatment works which did not come into being and is therefore superfluous. This is a complicated project involving run-off from the land, water disposal by the power station and the effects of the tidal range so careful  planning will be needed. Once this has been done the removal of extensive reed beds  would allow access from Spike Island all the way to Fidlers Ferry, an alternative route for boaters wishing to avoid tricky currents in the Mersey.

Mr.Wright's presentation was a refreshingly positive one with benefits to the canal , the wider canal corridor, the public and the local authority as a previously underused facility is brought back to life. The Society is most grateful for his support and hopes to maintain contact into the future when the plans become reality.

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