Bid to land UNESCO world heritage status for locks

'It's amazing... we have to protect it for future generations'

- BY DECLAN CAREY

RESIDENTS have thrown their voices behind a campaign for a local landmark to be awarded UNESCO World Heritage status.

The 16-lock flight along the Peak Forest Canal in Marple has been part of life in the town for centuries, after its completion in 1804.

It was built to connect two halves of the canal and was used as a key route for trade, along a waterway where the Peak Forest Canal meets the Macclesfield Canal.

Today, the canal locks are a destination for walking and cycling, giving residents in Marple and beyond access to stunning countryside.

Those living in the town say Marple’s locks should be designated a World Heritage site to recognise the role it played in Greater Manchester's industrial past.

“We have to keep it like this for future generations,” says Sue Knott, a Marple resident who has lived on Station Road next to the canal for the last 14 years.

The locks have been a hugely popular place for locals and visitors for as long as Sue can remember, but the 61-year-old says more young people have been flocking to the area in recent years.

"It's an amazing place with its links to the countryside in the area,” she added. “We absolutely love it and go walking every night.

“There’s always people here using it, at the weekends there are people constantly up and down the canal.

“You get all the youngsters coming here too with their TikToks, it’s a wonderful place to be.”

The call to recognise the locks as a World Heritage site was made by Hazel Grove MP Lisa Smart, who was elected to Parliament last year but was previously a councillor in Stockport.

Marple’s 16 locks already enjoy grade II listed status, as well as the aqueduct which is a grade I listed structure.