Finsley Gate Wharf, known locally as Mile Wharf, is one of the oldest wharves on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal and includes three listed warehouses, a listed canal cottage, outbuilding, former blacksmith forge and boat slipway, dating from between 1700 and 1830.

HLF’s initial development funding award of £262,500, supplemented by £26,800 from the Canal & River Trust, will enable emergency repair work to be carried out to stabilise the buildings from further deterioration. The grant will also allow the Trust to commission a building restoration schedule, business plan and an activity plan to develop educational and volunteering opportunities at the site. This information will be submitted to HLF for assessment to secure the full grant of £2million.

Part of the Weavers Triangle conservation area, this funding will revitalise Mile Wharf through the creation of new local enterprises including a boat repair yard, restaurant, rental cottage and moorings.

Canal & River Trust enterprise manager, Nick Smith, said: “The impressive restoration of the Weavers Triangle area has attracted national attention, including visits from the Queen and our patron Prince of Wales. This wonderful collection of historic canal buildings have been vacant for the last fifteen years and both the trust and the HLF are very keen to see these historic buildings preserved and brought back into use again as a commercial enterprise.

This grant has been awarded through HLF’s Heritage Enterprise programme which has been designed to specifically help, when the cost of restoring an historic building is so high that without additional financial intervention, putting it back into use would not be commercially viable.

[quote= Sara Hilton, Head of HLF North West]Our Heritage Enterprise funding will plug the financial gap to enable Finsley Gate to become a productive part of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal again[/quote]

Sara Hilton, Head of HLF North West, said: “At HLF we recognise the huge financial challenges facing historic buildings like those at Finsley Gate. Our Heritage Enterprise funding will plug the financial gap to enable Finsley Gate to become a productive part of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal again.”

Chair of the Trust’s North West Waterways Partnership, Steve Rumbelow, said: “The grant is great news. It will enable us to breathe new life into an important canalside site in Burnley, complementing the wider heritage regeneration activity and partnership working which is in full swing.”

Notes to editors

The Canal & River Trust is the guardian of 2,000 miles of historic waterways across England and Wales, caring for the nation’s third largest collection of listed structures, as well as museums, archives, and hundreds of important wildlife sites. They believe that 'living waterways transform places and enrich lives' and their role is to make sure there is always a place on your doorstep where you can escape the pressures of everyday life, stretch your legs and simply feel closer to nature. Further details can be obtained from the Canal & River Trust website or follow them on Twitter: @CanalRiverTrust / @crtcomms.

Further information

For further media requests please contact: Lynn Pegler / Clive Naish on 07717 760 284, email: Lynn.pegler@canalrivertrust.org.uk.