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Uncovering town's 'secret' medieval castle

Tom Walker,at Halton Castleand
Angela Ferguson,North West
News imageBBC Remnants of the walls of a stone-built castle can be seen, with a grassed area in the foreground.BBC
Halton Castle in the village of Halton, Runcorn, was built by the Normans in 1071

A newly-formed community group has been set on a mission to put a town's "secret" medieval castle "back on the map".

Halton Castle in Runcorn in Cheshire dates back to around 1070, but residents and councillors said the Grade I listed castle was obscured by overgrown trees - meaning many people were not aware of it.

Helen Riley, one of the campaigners, said: "We feel very strongly that Runcorn has a castle and nobody celebrates it."

The castle is one of only two surviving Norman castles in Cheshire, according to the Visit Liverpool website.

Riley, whose pub - The Castle at Halton - is in a Georgian building attached to the castle, said customers at the pub would regularly tell her they did not know there was a castle there "and the ones that did know didn't know there was access to it".

She said the Friends of Halton Castle community group had arranged for new lights and signage, and for plants to be cut back so the castle could be seen from further afield, including from the Silver Jubilee and Mersey Gateway bridges.

News imageA woman with long dark brown hair and wearing a red long sleeved top and blue jeans is smiling while standing in front of some columns at the castle.
The manager of the Castle at Halton pub, Helen Riley, said the castle was "one of Runcorn's biggest secrets"

Reform Councillor John Davies, who represents Halton Castle ward, said: "People don't know this castle's here - they drive past it every day and they don't know we've got this huge medieval castle."

He said the overall aim of the group was to "create more pride in the town and the wider borough".

He said they are also planning to work on a history badge project with local schools, while Halton Council was looking into adopting a flag for the borough and "having that on display around the castle".

'It's been forgotten'

Resident Catherine Gaynor, 54, said she had been visiting the castle since she was a child and "you used to be able to see the castle from most of Runcorn and look up to it, but with the trees overgrown now it's pretty hard to see".

"There's a building here that's older than Liverpool and so why don't we make the most of what we've got here," she added.

News imageA man with short grey hair is standing in front of a Halton Castle display board featuring pictures and information about the history of the castle.
Councillor Chris Loftus said the castle could be a major tourist attraction

Chris Loftus, an independent councillor for Halton Castle ward, said the castle was "one of the major structures within the whole of the Liverpool city region and it's been forgotten".

He said the castle could be a major tourist attraction but was "masked by trees and needed to be visible".

The Halton Castle site is owned by the Duchy of Lancaster and leased to Halton Council.

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