Woolston, Cheshire

This article is about Woolston, Cheshire. For other places with the same name, see Woolston.

Woolston is a large urban modern parish in the English town of Warrington, Lancashire. The area is officially in the Woolston and Rixton district, however this term is rarely used. The historic districts of Paddington and Martinscroft are in the Woolston and Rixton district, however they are widely regarded as being in Woolston. Woolston lies wholly north of the River Mersey and therefore since its creation in 1100 A.D. has been part of the county of Lancashire not Cheshire as commonly thought, due to the area being temporarily administered by Cheshire County Council betwen 1974 and 1998.

History

Throughout time its name has changed often. At time of the Vikings it was called Wulfiges Town (probably because of the wolves that occupied the land).

It is a parish which has grown at an astonishing rate in the 20th century. The population – only 451 in 1921 – now stands at some 53,450 making the area the largest parish of Warrington.

Economy

A large area of the district is covered by warehousing districts. The largest by far is the "Grange" this is an area of modern warehousing and light manufacturing built next to the M6 motorway. This area was home to a large Safeway distribution depot that was taken over by Morrisons in January 2006, and then taken over by Iceland in mid-2006. In 2007, this was outsourced to DHL, while still continuing to serve Iceland. There is also an industrial estate to the south called the "New Cut industrial estate", this features a large pipework fabrication business (WH Capper)http://www.whcapper.co.uk and several small offices and small holdings. The estate gets its name from the canal which borders it and the "new cut" of the River Mersey.

Geography

The area has two main natural areas: Woolston Linear Park and the Woolston Eyes Nature Reserve—a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Woolston is situated in the Mersey Valley and so there is a very slight lowering in height between it and the surrounding areas. The highest point is on the Woolston Eyes (two man-made areas formed by large embankments for the dispersement of dredging waste). The lowest point is the marshland formed by the dereliction of the Woolston New Cut Canal and Woolston Old Canal. Woolston has plenty of waterways including the aforementioned canals; the new cut of the River Mersey; and the Manchester Ship Canal.

Demographics

At the 2001 Census:

• Woolston had an average housing density of 2.66 residents per household.

Housing

Of 1783 households

• 1574 (88.3%) were owner occupied
• 203 (11.4%) were rented
• 5 (0.3%) were of unknown status

Employment

• 19.3% of 16-74 year old residents had no qualifications
• 2.1% are unemployed

Race and Gender

• 48.3% of residents are Male
• 51.7% of residents are Female

of which

• 98% are of white (all origins) race
• 0.34% are of mixed race
• 0.92% are of Asian or Asian British origin
• 0.62% are of Chinese origin
• 0.12% are of Black race

Source:Office of National Statistics Neighbourhood profiles for areas Warrington 014A,014B,014B

Transport

The nearest rail stations to Woolston are Padgate and Birchwood. Mainline services are available from Warrington Bank Quay and Warrington Central (2-3 miles away).

The M6 motorway runs down the eastern edge of the district and the A57 to Manchester and Liverpool runs directly through the district. There is also a road running from the motorway past the Grange to Birchwood and Longbarn, two areas built during the new town initiative.

Warrington Borough Transport (3, 4, 4A) and Bennetts Travel (104) provide local bus services to Warrington Town Centre, whilst First Manchester operate an inter-urban service (100) to Manchester via Irlam and the Trafford Centre.

The Penny Ferry (now 24p) can be used to cross the Manchester Ship Canal to Thelwall.

Manchester Airport is the closest airport to Woolston.

Services

The area is served by an ante-natal clinic on Holes Lane and a GP doctors surgery located close by.

Education is provided by Woolston Church of England Primary School, St. Peters' Catholic Primary School and Woolston Community Primary School. Secondary Education is provided for by Woolston Community High School. Although from September 2008 their will be no student intake, and by 2012 the school will close completely.

Warrington's Direct Services are based in Woolston and provide services to the local community.

There are no local fire and police services. The nearest providers are at Risley Police Station and Birchwood Fire Station. Although there is a community police office located on the site of Dam lane shops.

There are three churches in Woolston: the Church of The Ascension and St Martin's Methodist Church (both modern) and a small but old Roman Catholic church, St Peter's, in Martinscroft.

There is a library in the centre of the district.

See also

• Woolston Park
• Grange Industrial Estate