Travel & Tourism

There are plans to turn an abandoned reservoir into a huge natural swimming pool

And just an hour from Manchester city centre...

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 27th May 2024

We all know Manchester is deprived of any sort of outdoor swimming opportunities – remember the calls to turn the old Central Retail Park into a lido?

Unfortunately for us, when it is sunny we’re just going to have to travel a little way for a dip.

But there might be a new outdoor swimming contender about to join the list, just an hour away from Manchester city centre.

Plans are in place to turn a disused reservoir just outside Bingley into a natural swimming pool, right in the heart of St.Ives regional park, The Hoot reports.

If it all goes ahead – and we’re praying that it will – the ambitious project will transform the Kettlewell Reservoir.

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Yorkshire Swim Works will feature a large lake area for swimming, splashing, dipping and more as well as a six lane 50m pool for more serious swimming and classes.

The body of water used to supply water to Bingley residents, but several years after it was built in 1909 it developed leaks and was abandoned.

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Plans to turn a disused reservoir into a natural swimming pool have been revealed. Credit: Yorkshire Swim Works
Plans to turn a disused reservoir into a natural swimming pool have been revealed. Credit: Yorkshire Swim Works

Now nature has taken over and a lot of people don’t even know it exists.

Yorkshire Swim Works are hoping to put the spot back on the map by turning it into a massive natural swimming pool.

The water-neutral development will allow nature to flourish in what is already a wildlife-rich location.

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The natural pool will be just a 30 minute walk from Bingley, which itself is a short train ride from Leeds.

Speaking of the impact the plans could have on the local area, director of Yorkshire Swim Works Russell Bowman said: “It’s huge isn’t it. Ambitious is the word that I’ve heard a lot!

How the natural swimming pool an hour from Manchester could look

“The benefits of swimming and in particular outdoor swimming are now well proven. The boost it gives to mental and physical health and its ability to create social cohesion are documented and building something of this scale that sits so naturally in the environment is a project that deserves support.

“With a young family myself, seeing investment in the area, new opportunities for them and the potential economic boost of tourists coming to the area fills me with excitement.

“I believe that YSW can be (we’re all using this word sorry!) a catalyst for the next stage in Bingley’s evolution and an incredible boost to the St Ives Estate that has struggled in recent times.”

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You can take part in a survey about the plans for Kettlewell Reservoir here.

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Featured image: Yorkshire Swim Works

Travel & Tourism

Rivington Brewing Co – The beautiful country walk that ends at a taproom with stunning views

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The beautiful Rivington Brewing Co taproom

After a long afternoon of trudging through the countryside in whatever weather conditions the north throws at you, there’s nothing quite like the reward of a crisp pint.

And on a particularly beautiful walk right on the outskirts of Greater Manchester, we stumbled upon a taproom that might just provide the best drinking background in the region.

Let’s start with the walk details.

If you haven’t yet been exploring the trails and paths around Rivington, you’re missing out on a real stunner of a hike.

There are countless loops you can do around the area, providing the best bits of all countryside settings.

You want woods? They’ve got em. A nice flat walk beside a body of water? Rivington’s got it. A decent uphill trudge ending in absolutely stunning views? Yep, that’s here too.

A highlight of this corner of the North West is the Rivington Terraced Gardens, which will try to transport you to Italy and Japan all while only just stepping outside Bolton.

These 100-year-old gardens were created by the Lord of Leverhulme and inspired by his travels, and have been carefully restored in recent years by teams of volunteers.

Views from the water's edge at Rivington reservoir
Views from the water’s edge at Rivington reservoir
And approaching Rivington Brewing Co's taproom at the end of the walk
And approaching Rivington Brewing Co’s taproom at the end of the walk

Walking around the footpaths and flights of steps you’ll stumble upon a hidden Japanese Garden, lakes, waterfalls, bridges, sculptures and caves, ending up at the top of Rivington Pike with panoramic views.

From here, you can keep going along to Winter Hill for arguably even more impressive views, or start to loop back down the hill to the water’s edge, passing Liverpool Castle as you go.

And here is where the beer comes in.

If you pass through the village of Rivington itself and walk along Horrobin Lane which crosses the two reservoirs, you’ll find yourself at the Rivington Brewing Co taproom.

The most scenic pint in the north west
The most scenic pint in the north west
Insdie Rivington Brewing Co's taproom
Insdie Rivington Brewing Co’s taproom

This is huge taproom is a haven for modern craft beer, with absolutely loads of brews to choose from and a can fridge if the 18-odd taps don’t have what you fancy.

There’s plenty of cosy spaces inside the fairylight-strewn converted barn building, but the beer garden is the star of the show.

There are views from here right across the water and all the way to Pigeon Tower and Winter Hill, with plenty of space for big groups.

And dotted all around the outdoor area are a rotating selection of street food traders, serving everything from pizza to burgers to cakes.

If you’re looking for a belting Saturday afternoon activity, this is absolutely the one.

You can look a walk in the area that suits your ability here.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Travel & Tourism

Labour says it will look at stripping ‘woeful’ Avanti West Coast of its contract if elected

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Labour has said it will look at stripping Avanti West Coast of its contract, if elected next month, due to the company’s “woeful service”.

Ahead of the upcoming General Election due to take place on Thursday 4 July, Labour and its leader, Sir Keir Starmer, have been outlining the Party’s vision for the both the immediate and long-term future of the country – and now, Shadow Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, has been having her say on a topic that continues to affect many Greater Manchester residents.

Avanti has been operating the West Coast Main Line service – which is one of the most important railway corridors in the UK – since December 2019 after taking over from Virgin, and was controversially awarded a long-term contract to continue operation in September of last year.

Before this, the train company had previously been given until 1 April 2023 to continue running the route from London to Glasgow, but had been told due to its chaotic past that it needed to “drastically improve” its services if it was to stand any chance of having the contract extended further beyond that date.

Labour says it will look at stripping ‘woeful’ Avanti West Coast of its contract if elected / Credit: Avanti West Coast | Flickr

Office of Rail and Road figures show that Avanti West Coast had the third-worst reliability of all operators in Britain in the year to the end of March – with the equivalent of one in 15 trains (6.9%) cancelled.

A new study published in April even revealed it as Britain’s “most unreliable” train operator overall.

Despite many customers continuing to voice discontent with level of services during this time, the Department for Transport (DfT) still went on to award Avanti another six-month contract extension from the start of April onwards, after it deemed “significant improvements had been made since October”.

Following DfT reviews, once again, Avanti’s long-term contract to operate the line was subsequently awarded in mid-September 2023.

When asked about Avanti West Coast’s future, and pressed on Labour’s plan to bring train services into public ownership during an interview with Kay Burley on Sky News yesterday morning (13 June), Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh explained: “Our commitment is to bring in those contracts as they expire or when they are breached.

“I anticipate I will be seeking advice early on whether Avanti has been in breach of its contract, given the woeful service that it’s been providing to passengers down the West Coast Main Line.”

Ms Haigh then insisted that October 2026 would be Avanti’s cut-off date, if Labour’s elected.

“No ifs, no buts, October 2026 will be the last date Avanti will have notice of that contract ending,” she added, “But I will ask for early advice about whether they have already breached their contract and whether it can be brought in any earlier.”

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Labour’s voicing of its intent to strip Avanti West Coast of its contract also comes after the Party announced its vision to transform the country’s childcare and early years education system earlier this week.

The Party pledged to convert more than 3,000 vacant school classrooms across England into nursery facilities if elected next month.

Featured Image – Avanti West Coast

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