Event Type : Visits

Event Name:   A walk around Heptonstall Village

Date & Time:  Thursday 17^th September at 10.0am

Meeting Place:  Car Park (Bowling Club), Heptonstall.  Free parking HX7 7LT

Description:   We will be looking at a lot of interesting historic buildings around this delightful village including Churches and a Chapel.

Length of walk: 1.75 miles

Directions: From Tormorden, proceed towards Hebden Bridge and turn left at the traffic lights just before you enter the town, then after a quarter of a mile take the signposted left hand turn to Heptonstall.  On approaching the first buildings, take first left into Valley View Road (signposted Visitors Car Park 380 yards) and when you get to the T junction, bare left.

Accessibility: The visitor’s car park is 380 yards from the old part of the village, so there is quite a lot of walking involved into the old village, which itself is situated on a steep hill with steps, uneven pavements and roads.

Cost: A suggested donation of £5 for the upkeep of the church would be appreciated, particularly as the former churchwarden has agreed to talk to us. Also, a donation to the chapel, as it will be opened specially for our visit.

Refreshments: It has been arranged that we can take a picnic lunch and eat it in the church, along with a talk from Graham Kidd, a former church warden. After our walk concludes there are two pubs and a café in Heptonstall that can be visited.

Registration: Limited to eleven. It is essential to book with Barbara.

Walk Leader: Frances Bland

Duration: 4 hours

A Tour of Queens Street Mill

Experience the sights and sounds of Lancashire’s industrial past, when local streets rang with millworkers’ chatter and the sound of their clogs on the cobbles. Visit and discover what it was really like to work in a cotton mill with the sights, smells and sounds of steam. Imagine the deafening noise as nearly 1,000 looms clattered throughout the day. Witness live demonstrations of working machinery and explore the lodge pond, historic steam engine and coal fired boilers. With rows of steam driven looms and its authentic atmosphere the weaving shed at Queen Street Mill has featured in films, such as The King’s Speech, Peterloo and A Christmas Carol. With panoramic views across the magnificent Calder Valley, Queen Street Mill is utterly unique, as it is the last remaining steam-driven weaving shed from the 1800s. Imagine when the imposing chimney was one amongst a forest of such chimneys as far as the eye could see? Take the opportunity to stroll around the village of Harle Syke, once one of the most important weaving villages in Lancashire, or venture further afield on one of the many walks across this fascinating landscape.

Date:  6^th October 2026

10.30am.  We meet for tea, coffee and biscuits.

11.00am.  A private guided tour of the mill and engine room.

12.45am.  Depart for lunch at the HAPPA café, a 10 minute drive away (optional).

Cost £12 per head for the tour and refeshments payable on booking

Organiser:  Roger Grimshaw

Refreshments:  Tea or coffee included before the tour

Reserve your place by emailing roger@digspag.org.uk

Accessibility:  The mill is largely single-storey, with only the engine house requiring guests to go up and downstairs, however there is a lift available to the engine room that can accommodate prams and wheelchairs, but it may not be able to accommodate motorised wheelchairs depending, on their size. The floor is mostly original and therefore a little uneven in places.  Accessible parking directly outside the mill, and also accessible toilets. Folding stools are available for anyone who may struggle with mobility and we can arrange to have additional chairs placed around the museum if required.

If you wish to join us for lunch, you can pay for this on the day but you will need to pre-book your choices.  We visited the café after the recent Briercliffe walk and we all agreed that it was excellent.  We’ll be in touch with those who have booked the tour, towards the end of September.

Description:  If you were lucky enough to attend Heather Davies talk earlier in the year, you may recall that she offered us the opportunity to visit and see the conservationists at work.  The time has come but there are a strictly limited number of places.  We will start with an introduction about the service and what they do, followed by a tour of the studios where we will meet the conservators and see what they are working on at that moment in time.

Date:   Wednesday 18^th November 2026

Time:   1.30pm at the studio in Preston

Meet: We’ll meet at the studio and so train, bus or car are your options.  Parking is available or it’s a 30 minutes walk from the train or 5 minutes from the bus station  Full details will be available after booking.

Accessibility:  Lift and access for wheelchairs.

Cost:   £11 per head or £8 for over 65’s.  Cash only (correct money please).

Organiser:  Roger Grimshaw

Refreshments:  Tea or coffee included

Reserve your place by emailing barbara555@live.co.uk