Leeds and Liverpool Canal Flight of 7 Locks and Bridge (Britannia Bridge) is a Grade II listed building in the Wigan local planning authority area, England. First listed on 10 May 1988. Canal locks and bridge. 2 related planning applications.
Leeds and Liverpool Canal Flight of 7 Locks and Bridge (Britannia Bridge)
- WRENN ID
- stranded-chimney-indigo
- Grade
- II
- Local Planning Authority
- Wigan
- Constituency
- Wigan MP: Lisa Nandy (Lab)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 10 May 1988
- Type
- Canal locks and bridge
- Address
- Leeds and Liverpool Canal Flight of 7 Locks and Bridge (Britannia Bridge), WN2 4XL
- OS grid reference
- SD 593 052
- Coordinates
- 53.54268, -2.61465
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Leeds and Liverpool Canal features a flight of seven locks and the Britannia Bridge, constructed in 1816. The locks are made of stone and have timber or iron gates, with ground paddles operated by levers, a characteristic of this canal. Each lock typically has its number displayed in a sunk panel at the lower end on the south side.
The first lock, adjacent to the Manchester Road bridge, is marked "L No. XIV" and has iron gates and an overflow channel. Its lower gates operate with a crank system due to rebuilding and widening of the bridge. The next lock to the southwest, known as No. XV, lacks a panel but features timber upper and iron lower gates, an overflow channel, and a raised footbridge dated 1985.
Lock No. XVI also has no panel and includes upper iron and lower timber gates, along with an overflow channel and a timber footbridge. Lock No. XVII has a panel with a slot cut through it, indicating the missing number X, and features iron gates, an overflow channel, and a steel footbridge. Lock No. XVIII has timber gates, an overflow channel, and a steel footbridge, while Lock No. XIX includes iron gates, a footbridge, and an overflow channel.
Finally, Lock No. XX has iron upper and timber lower gates, with the lower gates operating via a crank system due to the bridge widening, and an overflow channel. The Britannia Bridge itself has an elliptical arch with a key, and the arch to the west displays a panel that reads: "OPENED 1816 OCTR 22," accompanied by two roses. There are later iron extensions on either side of the bridge.
Local climate
Leeds and Liverpool Canal Flight of 7 Locks and Bridge (Britannia Bridge) sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,040 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 84% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 76% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 35 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 54% of listed buildings. Of these, 18 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- Related listed building consents — 2 applications
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
Matched applications, energy data and sale records are assembled automatically and may contain errors. Flag incorrect data.
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