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Skelmersdale, Lancashire, UK
What's the difference between VD and a house in Skelmersdale?
>You can get rid of VD.
>- Old Lancashire Joke
Situated in the bottom left-hand corner of the map of Lancashire, near Wigan,
the small town of Skelmersdale has never enjoyed a good reputation
among Lancastrians, as the above joke illustrates. In recent years,
Skelmersdale has begun to shake off its image, and quite soon, it might
even qualify to be referred to as 'up and coming'.
Very few
Lancastrians actually pronounce the 'l' in 'Skelmersdale'. Only those
who have never heard it pronounced before, or who are trying to talk
'properly' do this. The town is pronounced 'Skemmsdale' and is
abbreviated to 'Skem'.
History
The town is mentioned in the Doomsday Book as 100 acres of farmland.
Skelmersdale was, for many years, a small, sleepy farming village. When
the mining industry arrived in 1850, more and more people began to
arrive, including miners from other areas of the country. The population of the
town increased eightfold and, like many towns of the industrial
era, it became hideously overcrowded. In 1874, The Lancet1 reported that it was
a colliery village that had a 'pre-eminence in filth'.
After the Second World War, someone decided that some people in Liverpool would
like somewhere nicer to live. Thus, after the war, Skelmersdale
was chosen to become one of the strings of New Towns that became dotted
around the country. Vast council estates were built, as well as new
schools, a large library, a shopping centre (the Concourse) and all the
other things people thought a town would need.
The new roads were
designed to keep the traffic flowing with roundabout upon roundabout,
and very few traffic lights. Footpaths were built well away from the
roads, and passed underneath them via subways if necessary. An
industrial estate was built named Pimbo, and companies were offered
reduced rates if they opened a factory there. Optimistically, a motorway was
built linking Liverpool and the M6 that had two junctions for
Skelmersdale.
The part of Skelmersdale that existed before the
redevelopment became known as Old Skem. The original residents were not
overjoyed at their sleepy little village being taken over by a sudden
influx of Scousers2.
Their familiar old town was transformed, even destroyed in parts. The
former main street, Sandy Lane, was replaced by a shopping centre, and
several old streets and communities, such as Stormy Corner, were
destroyed. The whole character of the town changed to one closer to
Liverpool than Lancashire. Local children picked up the newcomers'
accent in school, and now the Skelmersdale accent is distinctly Scouse.
Unfortunately, many of the factories did not stay when the rents were
increased. One
of the largest, Thorn Television, closed completely. Many people decided to
move away, some going back to Liverpool. When people got a better
job, they would usually choose to leave the area. The teachers at the
schools, the engineers at the factories, the librarians - all would
often choose to commute into Skelmersdale rather than live there.
Many of the council houses were unfilled, and the transcendental meditation
movement were looking for a location for their ideal village. Milton Keynes,
suspicious of the organisation, had already denied them permission to
build there. Skelmersdale invited them to help fill hard-to-let council
estates.
The residents who had moved from Liverpool were
suspicious of the new influx of mainly middle-class southerners who
spent their time in the lotus position hopping up and down on foam mats. The TM
community built their own housing estate, centred on 'the Golden Dome' (though
the planning authority refused permission to paint the
roof of the dome gold).
Getting to Skelmersdale
The nearest train station is Parbold, which is on a branch line between
Southport and Manchester, and is not served by any buses. The most
convenient is Wigan North Western, which is on the West Coast Main line
running from Scotland to London. There is a bus service from there to
Skelmersdale bus station, which is attached to the concourse, though the last
bus runs in the early evening.
As Skelmersdale is arranged
entirely on a roundabout system, with no main street and most signposts
having been vandalised, leaving Skelmersdale by car can be a problem if
you don't know the town. Usually you will have to stop and ask
directions. Unfortunately, the town planners arranged it so that no
footpath ran alongside any main roads.
Things to Do in Skelmersdale
Skelmersdale is an excellent place to learn to drive, as there are numerous
empty
industrial estates to master stopping and starting. There are many
roundabouts to practice on too, and most have very little traffic so you can go
through the routine of looking in the right place without
worrying about having to stop. For those of you who are nervous about
right-hand-turns at junctions, due to the roundabouts these can be
avoided completely. Once you have passed your test the M58 is a good
motorway to practice getting on to.
The transcendental mediation
movement offers many courses in TM and provides accommodation in
members' homes. There is also an Ayurvedic3 medical centre4.
People in Skelmersdale are keen on sport, especially football, and many are
keen followers of Liverpool and Everton Football Clubs. They may also
play for or watch the local, semi-professional, football club
Skelmersdale Town FC. Also, there is Skelmersdale Cricket Club,
established in 1891.
Living in Skelmersdale
Houses are more affordable in Skelmersdale than in many other areas of the
country. The council housing is of a relatively high quality and
relatively easy to obtain. The Concourse has a wide variety of cheap, if not
always high quality, produce. Thus, Skelmersdale is a relatively
economical place to live. This can lead to a nasty shock for those who
move away. If you have car, commuting to Liverpool and Manchester is
possible.
In the past, the local schools were not of high quality
but they did have sixth forms. However, Holland Park School has been
named by the Government as a Beacon school, one that provides an
excellent example to other schools. There are excellent sixth form
colleges only a bus ride away.
Other provisions for children include a
playground on every housing estate, a sports centre and swimming pool.
As no houses are on busy roads, children often spend much of their time
playing outside with other children on their housing estate. However,
there is very little for older children to do. The nearest cinema and
bowling alley is in Wigan, but the bus service stops in the early
evening. This leads to many teenagers either playing football for hours
on end, hanging around the shopping centre, annoying the town's
residents or creating what is reputed to be the highest teenage
pregnancy rate in the UK.
Skelmersdale in the News
In the past few years, Skelmersdale has been in the national news a number of
times.
* In 1992, the Natural Law Party was established. Members of the TM
movement formed a political Party and fielded many candidates in the General
election. Their leader Geoffrey Clements lived on Skelmersdale's Ashurst Estate
at the time.
* In 1999, Skelmersdale was reported as being a major player in the
illegal trade of cigarette smuggling.
* In 2000, it was reported that Skelmersdale was the place in the UK
where a marriage was most likely to end in divorce.
Skelmersdale in the Arts
In Willy Russell's popular musical Blood Brothers, there is a scene in which
Mrs Johnstone sings about how happy she is to be moving to Skelmersdale:
We're leavin' this mess
>For our new address
>Sixty-five Skelmersdale Lane
Unfortunately, life in Skelmersdale does not work out as planned when the
factory Mrs Johnstone works in closes down.
Things Are Getting Better
Skelmersdale's fortunes took a dive in the 1970s when Courtauld's, the town's
biggest employer, closed their mill.
However, in recent years, more jobs are becoming available in
Skelmersdale, and not just in factories on the industrial estate. Fresh
food is now more easily obtainable since a large new supermarket has
opened. Also, the cash and carry store Matalan has chosen Skelmersdale
for its company headquarters, moving into Courtauld's site.
________________________________
1Highly-respected weekly British medical journal.
2The colloquial term for a person from Liverpool.
3 Ayurveda: the ancient Hindu art of medicine
http://news.bbc.co.uk/dna/place-lancashire/plain/A890561
