News Archive 2
Obituary to Cllr Keith Morley 1939-2020
It is with great sadness that I have to report that on Thursday 12th November Cllr Keith Morley at the age of 81 passed away following his battle with cancer.
​
Keith first came to the society as the representative for Halton Borough Council some twenty years ago and from then on became our go-to man for anything to do with canal matters at the Widnes end of the Sankey Canal. He was a hard working councillor who would always go out of his way to help the society in whatever way he could, be it arranging visits to the Mersey Gateway Bridge construction site to acquiring the container at Spike Island for our work party team, nothing ever seemed to be too much trouble.
Working with the Sankey Canal Restoration Steering group he helped in the “Linking the Locks Project” and in getting Halton Council to replace the swing bridge on Spike Island. More recently he was involved with negotiations over the water supply situation with the closure of Fiddlers Ferry Power station.
He became Halton Council’s representative on the Sankey Canal Partnership Board on its formation in 2017 and his advice and commitment to the group was always accepted knowing that if he said he would do something it would eventually lead to it being achieved.
​
He has represented the Broadheath Ward of Halton Council for the last twenty years and been described as an “outstanding“ councillor with nothing being too much trouble to help his constituents.
In 2011 he had the honour of being appointed Mayor of Halton Borough Council, a role which he thoroughly enjoyed along with his wife to be Sheila Glynn as the Lady Mayoress.
Keith and Sheila married on Valentine’s Day 2015 at Runcorn Town Hall and held their reception at the Select Stadium, home of Widnes Vikings RFL Club.
Keith said he had known Sheila for more than fifty years, she used to help carry the band’s equipment into the Queens Hall, Widnes where Keith was the drummer in a local band called the Ramblers.
Tributes have been paid by his former councillor colleagues at Halton Council and these are summed up nicely by Council Leader Rob Polhill who simply said that Keith “Was irrepressible, irreplaceable and irresponsible at times in the nicest way possible”.
​
On behalf of the Sankey Canal Restoration Society, I would like to say thank you for the many hours spent in the company of a person so dedicated to his position as a councillor and for the way in which he approached life with kind hearted humour and responsibility.
Rest in Peace dear friend you will be sadly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing you as a friend or colleague. Colin Greenall 2020-11-21
Chalon Way Carpark is to be demolished
Chalon Way Carpark in St Helens is being demolished and will 'kick-start' the regeneration around the Sankey Canal.
£1 Million pounds from the Government's town deal accelerated fund will be used to support this demolition.
St Helens' new Mayor will raise money for the Sankey Canal
St Helens new Mayor, Blackbrook councillor, Paul McQuade has said he will raise money for the Sankey Canal Restoration Society (SCRS).
​
He said: "Having had the pleasure of being associated with this cause for a number of years, I know first-hand that it takes a considerable amount of time and effort by this group of dedicated volunteers to enhance the amenity value of Sankey Canal."
Halton Council’s New Bridge: A Commitment to Restore the SANKEY CANAL.
Halton Borough Council has firmed up its commitment to the future of Spike Island and The Sankey Canal, with plans to replace the ageing wooden bridge there with a steel swing structure.
​
Please read the full document by clicking and downloading the .pdf document icon on the left.
Sankey Canal to lose its Water supply
SCRS has recently been informed by Halton Council that Fiddlers Ferry Power Station will discontinue its regular supply of water to the Sankey Canal.
​
This will mean that the section of canal between Bewsey Lock in Warrington and Spike Island in Widnes will gradually dry up unless a new source of supply is found soon.
Fiddlers Ferry Power Station has been feeding water into the canal since its restoration way back in the 1980’s. This was done as a goodwill gesture at no expense to either Warrington or Halton Councils.
​
Please read the full document by clicking and downloading the .pdf document icon on the left.
Sankey Canal Advocacy Booklet
The latest update from the Sankey Canal Partnership is here for you to download and read.
​
Please click on the PDF logo below to open the document:
Desilting Work Begins at College Street
In spite of the best efforts of Storms Ciara and Dennis, work commenced on the desilting of the Gerards Bridge Branch of the Sankey Canal on Monday 11th February.
​
This £330,000 scheme will help reduce the risk of flooding at Gerards Bridge on College Street after St.Helens Council secured funding from Liverpool City Region and The European Regional Development Fund.
​
The work is being carried out by Environment Agency and is scheduled to take around eight to ten weeks.
​
The work involves removing silt from the bed of Rainford Brook (which flows along the course of the Sankey Canal), starting at College Street through to Merton Bank and on to Park Road in Blackbrook.
February Sunday WorkParty
We had a great day on Sunday 2nd February! There were 10 of us clearing weeds and brambles from around the dry dock at Winwick Quay, including a litter pick as far as, and around, Hulme Lock.
The rain held off and we even had blue sky for much of the time that we were at work.
Here are the before and after photos:
On Wednesday 9th January 2019, another milestone was installed at the side of the canal. This one is labelled '10 Mile to Ferry Lock' and was positioned approximately half-way between the Old Double Locks and the Blackbrook Road bridge.
February WorkParty with WRG (NW)
On Sunday, 3rd February, we had the services of the WRG(NW) with us when we tackled the bushes and trees growing out of the canal wall on the towpath side between the bridge to Bewsey Old Hall and Bewsey Lock. Here are before and after views showing the difference that has been made.
Also work was done on the Bewsey Lock Island cutting back nature's growth which was nearly 2 years since they were last cutting down trees there.
There were about a dozen people working in generally lovely weather conditions.
Before ...
After
On Thursday 6th December 2018, another milestone was placed at the side of the canal. This one is labelled '9 Mile to Ferry Lock' and is positioned between the Havannah Flashes and the Engine Lock.
The last event that SCRS Sales & Exhibition Gazebo attended in 2018:
Saturday 29th & Sunday 30th September 2018: Vintage Vehicle Rally at Victoria Park, Widnes WA8 7SU
On Wednesday 26th September 2018, two replica milestones were installed at the 8 mile and 6 mile points from Ferry Lock. So, now we have 3 mile markers within the St Helens Borough boundary. The 6 Mile milestone is situated a short distance North of the Newton Brook, the 7 Mile milestone is alongside Bradley Lock and the 8 Mile milestone is at the North end of the watered stretch from Penkstone Bridge. Our thanks go to Dr Barry Pennington of the Milestone Society, and Pete Morris and the crew from St Helens BC.
Sankey Canal Heritage Weekend
Saturday 8th & Sunday 9th September 2018 from 11.00am until 4.00pm
At the Sankey Valley Heritage Visitor Centre, Blackbrook, St.Helens WA11 0AB
Come along to the Sankey Valley Visitor Centre and view Archive Photographs and Documents about the history of England’s first industrial canal.
There will be slide shows and people on hand to answer question etc.
We will also be leading guided walks along the canal and surrounding area.
Plus our sales stall will be there with our usual supply of Bric-A-Brac and second hand Transport & Local History Books
Previous Show stall:
Sunday 19th August 2018 Victoria Park Rural Craft Display, St.Helens, WA10 2UE
​
Saturday 4th August 2018: Newton-le-Willows Town Show in Mesnes Park, Newton- le-Willows from 11:00 until 17:00.
Sankey Canal Heritage Weekend
Saturday 16th & Sunday 17th June
11.00am till 4.00pm
At the Sankey Valley Heritage Visitor Centre,
Blackbrook, St. Helens WA11 0AB
Come along to the Sankey Valley Visitor Centre and view Archive Photographs and Documents about the history of England’s first industrial canal. There will be slide shows and people on hand to answer questions etc.
We will also be leading guided walks along the canal and surrounding area, including a visit to the site of the old copper works on Stanley Bank.
Plus our sales stall will be there with our usual supply of Bric-A-Brac and second hand Transport & Local History Books.
During the week leading up to our event there will be an archaeological dig taking place at the site of the old copper works on Stanley Bank.
The Annual General Meeting 2018
The SCRS Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 29th March 2018 at 19.00 at the Newton-le-Willows Fire Station Community Centre, Borron Road, WA12 0EL.
​
The Guest Speaker will be Steve Higham, North West Waterway Manager from the Canal & River Trust, and he will be talking about the work of CRT in the north west and the reorganisation of the Trust.
It is with great sadness that we have to report the sudden death of David Smallshaw, our Chairman.
Please click the button to read his Obituary.
Plans for the transformation of St Helens town centre announced.
16th August 2017
​
In the last couple of days, St Helens Council has announced ambitious plans for the transformation of St Helens town centre. The full brochure can be read here:
https://www.investinsthelens.com/invest/town-centre/transforming-our-town-centre/
The Sankey Canal Restoration Society broadly welcomes the importance accorded to the canal in the scheme. The young town of St Helens was the terminus point of the first canal of the industrial age in this country and it is right and proper that the borough not only recognises its unique place in history but also now aims to utilise this precious asset to regenerate the town centre.
The ambitious plans for the town include provision for an active waterfront environment to complement retail and residential development and the Society is keen to get involved in the study on how best to maximise the benefits this will bring to the town centre.
Attractive waterfronts need boats to make them work and part of the development must be to facilitate how the town centre stretch of the canal can provide this, as isolated lengths of water will not support this ideal.
In this respect, the Sankey Canal Restoration Society looks forward to being able to work with the Borough and its partners in the Sankey Canal Partnership, amongst others, to achieve this.
Exhibition at the Catalyst Museum, Spike Island, Widnes.
17th July 2017
​
There's a new exhibition at the Catalyst Museum called the 'Sankey Canal Story'.
If you're in the area of Spike Island, Widnes, why not visit this exhibition?
Also, why not pay a visit to the exhibition while you are at Spike Island for the next work party which is on Wednesday 30th August?
The events of 2017...
​
The North West Vintage Vehicle Rally, due to be held on the weekend of Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th September 2017, had to be cancelled due to heavy rain in the preceding weeks causing the park to be saturated, so we were unable to have our stall at the event in Victoria Park, Birchfield Rd, Widnes WA8 7SU.
​
On Saturday 5th August 2017, our stall was at Newton Town Show, Mesnes Park, Newton-le-Willows WA12 9TA from 11:00 until 17:00.
​
On Sunday 25th June 2017, our stall was at the Lymm Historic Transport Day from 11:00 until 17:00. The address is: May Queen Field, Pepper Street, Lymm WA13 0JB.
The Previous Event was on Saturday 24th June 2017 where we had our stall at the Willow Park Armed Forces Fun Day at Earlestown from 11:00 until 17:00. The address is: Southworth Rd, Newton-le-Willows, WA12 0BG.
​
Come along to the Open meeting at Fidler's Ferry Sailing Club this evening 13th June 2017 at 19:30.
There will be a talk on the progress of the Society and on the projected plans for the foreseeable future!
Postcode: WA5 2UJ.
​
Last Edited: 24 Jan 22 15:30
​