Bickerstaffe is a village and civil parish in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. According to the 2001 Census the population of the civil parish was 1,196, reducing to 1,180 at the 2011 census, although the population of the

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

, which includes Lathom South, was slightly greater at 2,013, reducing to 1,988 at the 2011 census. The village is near junction 3 of the

M58 motorway The M58 is a motorway passing through Merseyside and Lancashire, terminating in Greater Manchester. It is 12 miles (19.3 km) long and provides a link between the M6 motorway and the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton and hence on, via the A5 ...

, and is about four miles west of Skelmersdale.

History

Its name may come from

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

''bïcera stæþ'' = "the beekeepers' landing-place". The moated site of the original Bickerstaffe Hall is situated about south-west of the present building. A trapezoidal island with maximum dimensions of around is surrounded by a partially infilled

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

between about wide and up to deep. The current hall may date to 1667 and was built for a member of the Stanley family, however it was re-built or heavily modified in 1772. Bickerstaffe Stocks are one of the listed structures of historical importance in the village. In the seventeenth century, Bickerstaffe was an important local centre of the Quakers in West Lancashire. The parish church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. Being built in 1843, and then extended in 1860, with a bell tower and spire to the west. It was designed by architect Sydney Smirke, with multiple examples of fine masonry. Such as the carved angles above the doorway, as well as royal heads carved into the accent stones either side of each of the northern and western windows. Until October 1936 Bickerstaffe Colliery was located just south of M6 junction 3. 2012 saw the start of United Utilities £63m scheme at Bickerstaffe Water Treatment works to reduce the reliance of the local water supply on the River Dee. That initiative comes in two parts: drilling new boreholes to find new water sources, and extending Bickerstaffe Water Treatment Works to cope with the rising demand for water.

Sport

The grounds of Bickerstaffe

AFC AFC may stand for: Organizations * Action for Children, a UK children's charity * AFC Enterprises, the franchisor of Popeye's Chicken and Biscuits * Africa Finance Corporation, a pan-African multilateral development finance institution * A ...

are at Hall Lane next to Bickerstaffe C.E school.

Culture

Public houses and restaurants in the area include The Stanley Gate, The Sandpipers and Quattros. An annual

music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...

Bickerstock
takes place in the summer season, featuring local and international artists, and drawing in increasingly large crowds.

Notable people

Nicholas Atherton Sir Nicholas Atherton (c.1357-1420) of Atherton. Other titles; Nicholas de Atherton, Lord of Bickerstaffe. English politician and Member of parliament (MP) of the Parliament of England for Lancashire in 1401. A lifelong member of Affinity (medieva ...

References

External links