THE end of a 12-year restoration project for one of the most significant sites in the land will have to wait just a little longer.

Middlewich Heritage Trust had been hoping to open up Murgatroyd's Brine Pump to the public at the end of April with its restoration project complete.

But with less than a month's worth of work still to do, lockdown brought the scheme to a halt, with contractors unable to carry on working.

Now, the trust is hoping it can pick up where it left off and finish the project as soon as possible, with a July launch on the cards if lockdown restrictions are eased early enough.

Kerry Kirwan, heritage development officer, said: "It is a shame really. We had one of the funders coming in to do the opening for us but we have just had to stop in our tracks.

"Whatever work we needed to do had to stop. The contractors we had on-site stopped what they were doing, made sure everything was safe, and we had no option but to leave it.

"We had three other contractors waiting to come and do their jobs and we would have been more or less on target to finish the job, so it is a bit frustrating."

Murgatroyd's Brine Pump is a scheduled monument, and the only complete brine pump that remains in the UK, making the project to restore it a significant one.

"The building itself was falling apart," said Kerry.

"We came onto the site in 2008 and we couldn't get inside because it was all overgrown. The walls were coming down, the doors had rotten away, it was a mess."

Northwich Guardian:

How the site looked in 2008

A host of work has since taken place to restore the building and its contents, and to get it ready for the public to visit.

Kerry is hoping that date will come as soon as possible to help bring income into the trust.

But it is not all doom and gloom for the trust in lockdown, as work to update the website with a new library has taken shape in recent weeks – with volunteers Mike Walton and Steve Broadfoot supporting Kerry on the project.

"We are just over half-way through the list of jobs on the website," Kerry added.

"The idea is to connect the community to the pump. We want to try and bring pictures to the public and one of the volunteers is working on a presentation which is excellent and shows the history of the site and the project."

Meanwhile, the WI is also helping the trust to keep the Brooks Lane memorial garden going in the dry weather.

The Murgatroyd's Brine Pump project has had major financial backing from Historic England, Heritage Fund and Association of Industrial Archaeology, while it has also been supported by Middlewich Town Council, Middlewich Heritage Society, The Newcomen Society, Cheshire East Council and Unite.

Kerry added: "Ultimately no project can go ahead without volunteers, so a big shout out to everyone and thanks, we've achieved a lot together. I can't wait to see everyone again and lets get this site open."

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To see the new-look website visit middlewich-heritage.org.uk

The heritage trust is always on the lookout for new volunteers. Email heritage@middlewich.org.uk