Euxton
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Euxton is a village in Lancashire, England.
It is situated just to the south of Leyland, and to the west of Chorley. It is pronounced "Exton".
In 1997, Euxton Balshaw Lane railway station was re-opened after a gap of some 30 years. It is on the Preston - Wigan West Coast Main Line. In the near future there will be a second station built, which will serve the new Buckshaw Village development, and is on the Preston - Manchester line.
Euxton Hall, which was a significant stately residence now acts as a private hospital, and is half it's former glory, with the second story being removed in the latter half of the twentieth century along with its grand colonnade. Euxton Hall Gate house can be seen at the bottom of the brow, near the parish church. Balshaw Lodge, which has recetly been redeveloped was originally built as guest lodgings for the hall.
There was a large Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF Chorley) built here in the build up to World War II. At its peak the factory employed over 40,000 people, and had its own railway station. It was probably the biggest munitions filling factory in the world, and it is said that the bouncing bombs used in the Dambusters Raid were made there. ROF Chorley later came under the ownership of British Aerospace, and in subsequent years was closed down with the land being sold. In the early 2000s the former ROF Chorley site was effectively flattened and sanitised, so that the land could be transformed into the new Buckshaw Village.
The former ROF Chorley sports ground is now used by English Premiership football team Bolton Wanderers F.C. as its training headquarters.
The village is also home to Euxton Villa FC and to Euxton Cricket Club. Euxton includes the prestigious Xton Business Park, and lies within Chorley Borough Council.
[edit] Books
- A History of Royal Ordnance Factory, Chorley (Carnegie Publishing Ltd 1999 ISBN 1-85936-063-7)
[edit] Disputes
- ERASE - Euxton Residents Against Sand Extraction is a movement within the Euxton area that is fighting Tarmac's proposals to build a large sand extraction quarry within the borders of the village. If allowed to go ahead this will be the first sand quarry of its type within such close proximity to a residential area and will bring about devastating environmental and soci-economic impacts.
- ERASE UPDATE - At the development control meeting on the 21st September 2006 the committee decided to refuse this planning application, the full text and resons for it's refusal will be decided at the next meeting to be held in November. The committee refused this application despite the officers of Lancashire county council recommending it's acceptance. Euxton Council Sand Extraction Update
- ERASE UPDATE - Tarmac appealed the decision to refuse the planning application in late January.
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