Leigh Rushes for Investment

A major investment for the communities around Leigh is underway.

Tens of millions of pounds are being ploughed in to the former colliery site at Bickershaw which has lain abandoned since the pit shut in 1992.

Wigan Council, along with English Partnerships and others, are transforming the derelict site into a 190 hectare country park, activity and education centre. It’s due to open in the next couple of years.

Council regeneration champion Cllr David Molyneux says:

“This project signals another massive investment in the local area. We have been left with a legacy of scarred industrial landscapes, which we are transforming into a resource, not just for the people of Leigh, Hindley and the surrounding area, but into a park which is already attracting comment and support from far and wide.”

After extensive local consultation, the new country park is set to be called The Rushes. Cllr Molyneux explains:

“The council’s cabinet has approved the name as it emphasises the vast wealth of wildlife to be found there, and also demonstrates the range of exciting and energetic activities soon to be available.”

The thinking behind the name ‘Rushes’ is along the lines of a similar forest park and family activity venue in the Midlands called ‘Conkers’, which has proven to be a hugely popular attraction.

As well as an 18 hole golf course, facilities for activities and extensive walks and paths for horse riders and less-abled people, there will be an education centre at the heart of the park. Visitors will be able to learn of the heritage of the site.

Respect for the past will also see major investment in the canal. A new marina is set to form the heart of the separate, but equally important, investment on the site of the actual colliery.

Council environmental services director Martin Kimber adds:

“With our partners, we are replacing the dangerous and derelict remains of the former pit buildings with another substantial investment in the Leigh economy - 2,750sq metres of employment space and a high quality 'destination' venue for food and drink. There will also be 650 homes built to a very high eco standard.”

And on the former slag heaps and flashes, nature is already reclaiming its own. Local birders have long recognised the unique habitats created from the mining past, and locals have been very much on board as plans for The Rushes have developed, to ensure these sensitive habitats are enhanced and projected.

The area will form the unofficial centre of the much bigger ‘Greenheart’ project, which is linking together and promoting the borough’s many open spaces. Reaching from Pennington Flash in the south, through to Haigh Hall north of Wigan, Greenheart is set to become a familiar label for the huge areas of countryside in the area.

Cllr Molyneux continues:

“We want to see these areas carefully made more accessible to people so they can walk, cycle and play. We can talk about ‘the health’ agenda and ‘the environment agenda’, but with these projects we are making it easy for everyone to get out and about and enjoy some of the hidden treasures of our borough.”

The Rushes is set to be open for public access within the next 18 months, with the first game of golf teeing off in 2011.