Borough of Rossendale


Rossendale is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Bacup and its largest town is Rawtenstall. It also includes the towns of Haslingden and Whitworth. The borough is named after the Rossendale Valley, the upper part of the valley of the River Irwell.
The neighbouring districts are Burnley, Hyndburn, Blackburn with Darwen, Bury, Bolton, Calderdale and Rochdale.

Toponymy

The name Rossendale is first recorded in 1292. A record of the name as Rocendal suggests Celtic ros "moor, heath", with Old Norse dalr "dale, valley", hence moor valley i.e. the valley of the River Irwell.

History

Rossendale is part of the Forest of Rossendale, which consists of the steep-sided valleys of the River Irwell and its tributaries, which flow from the Pennines southwards to Manchester and cut through the moorland which is characteristic of the area. It was given the designation of "forest" in medieval times denoting a hunting reserve.
The larger settlements grew into market towns, typically through the late Middle Ages. Farming and a cottage woollen industry developed during the reign of Henry VIII, but Rossendale's population only really expanded during the period of the Industrial Revolution. The population of the area that would become the modern borough of Rossendale was 24,136 in 1801; in 1901 it had grown to 89,540. Its wet and damp climate are ideally suited to the development of watermills, and later to the mechanisation of the wool and cotton spinning and weaving industries in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the middle of the 19th century a felt industry developed, and from this the manufacturing of slippers so that footwear also became a major employer in the area.
The area became one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution, and was known as 'The Golden Valley'. There was great hardship among working people during this time, but many fortunes were made among the mill-owning classes. There was large-scale immigration from Ireland to find work building the railways and in the mills, which led to several instances of serious civil disturbances between the two communities. Michael Davitt, the Irish republican leader was among these immigrants, settling in Haslingden, where he received his education after losing an arm at the age of 11 in a mill accident.
The area is also notable for its quarrying, and Rossendale Flagstone was used widely throughout the country in the 19th century. The flagstones in Trafalgar Square in London were quarried in Rossendale. Upland farming is still carried out, largely of sheep but also of cattle. The history of Rossendale is well documented, largely through the efforts of the historian Chris Aspin, a specialist on the textile industry, and Derek Pilkington, whose efforts led to the preservation of Higher Mill in Helmshore, now Helmshore Mills Textile Museum.
The Whitworth Doctors were local surgeons and bone setters in the late 1700s and early 1800s whose reputation spread far and wide, so that they treated patients from throughout the country. In 1819 William Hewitt described them as "the most remarkable men of their class that ever appeared in England".
R.S. Ireland is based near Haslingden; a family-run business of specialist black pudding makers, using only traditional methods and with a recipe dating back to 1879. Rawtenstall has Mr Fitzpatrick's, this is the last remaining functioning temperance bar in England, that makes and sells its own non-alcoholic drinks, such as sarsaparilla, black beers and blood tonic.

Administrative history

The modern district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the whole area of four former districts and part of a fifth, which were abolished at the same time:
The new district was named Rossendale, referring both to the Rossendale Valley and to the associated medieval Forest of Rossendale which had covered a similar area. The new district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.

Governance

Rossendale Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Lancashire County Council. Whitworth is also a civil parish, which forms a third tier of local government in that part of the borough.

Political control

The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Since 1974 political control of the council has been as follows:

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Rossendale. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2004 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election, and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to June 2025, the composition of the council was:
The next election is due in 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 30 councillors representing 10 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four with a third of the council elected each time for a four year term of office. Lancashire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.

Premises

The council is based at The Business Centre on Futures Park in Bacup. It was built as commercial offices called the Kingfisher Business Centre in 2003. The council took some office space in the building before creating a council chamber there in 2009 and consolidating its functions at the site.
Prior to 2009 the council was based at Rawtenstall Town Hall at the corner of Bacup Road and Lord Street. It had been built in 1876 as the "Exchange Club" and was subsequently acquired in 1890 by the Rawtenstall Local Board for use as its offices. The building was later extended into the offices of an adjoining tramway depot.

Transport

The borough is linked by the motorway network to Manchester, Burnley and Blackburn via the A56/M65 and M66 motorways.
There was once a rail link south to Manchester via Bury, but this was closed in 1966 as part of cuts following the Beeching Report. Part of the old railway reopened in 1991 as the East Lancashire Railway operating a service from Rawtenstall to Bury via Ramsbottom and Summerseat, and manned by volunteers. In September 2003 an eastbound extension from Bury to Heywood was opened.
In March 2015, it was proposed to reintroduce a rail service between Rawtenstall, Bury and Manchester. This would use the current route of the East Lancashire Heritage Railway.
The area is well served by public road transport, with bus services provided mainly by Rosso and Burnley Bus Company. These provide regular services to Burnley, Blackburn, Accrington, Bolton, Bury, Manchester and Rochdale as well as Todmorden and other local destinations.

Education in Rossendale

Rossendale contains multiple secondary schools, these are:
In addition, there is Accrington and Rossendale College, based in Accrington.

Media

In terms of television, the area is served by BBC North West and ITV Granada. Television signals are received from the Winter Hill TV transmitter.
Local radio stations are BBC Radio Lancashire, Heart North West, Capital Manchester and Lancashire, Greatest Hits Radio Lancashire, and Rossendale Radio, a community based radio station which broadcasts from studios in Rawtenstall.
The area is served by local newspaper, Lancashire Telegraph.

Arts

Rossendale is the home to a large community of artists with several painters' studios, many of which are centred on the area around Waterfoot. Rossendale's only traditional theatre is in Bacup. The Royal Court Theatre first opened in 1893 and has a thriving Youth Theatre called The Rossendale Musical Theatre Academy. The theatre and arts centre known as 'The Boo' as well as being a regular venue for family theatre shows, music and a wide range of community arts events, is the home of the Horse and Bamboo Theatre Company who specialise in visual theatre, often using distinctive puppets and masks. The painters and other artists who make up the major studios within the valley – Globe Arts, Prospect Studio, Valley Artists – along with the Boo, the Whitaker, Apna Rossendale, and individual artists now work together to open their studios and premises each year at the Rossendale Art Trail Open Studios weekend in late summer.
The first part of the Irwell Sculpture Trail runs from Deerplay, above Bacup, to Stubbins. The actress Jane Horrocks was born in Rawtenstall, Rossendale, and the composer Alan Rawsthorne was born in Haslingden. Betty Jackson, the fashion designer, is a native of Bacup.
In the 18th and 19th centuries the Larks of Dean were an unusual group of working class musicians whose music-making at the Baptist Chapel in Goodshaw Fold became an important local feature. There is also a brass band tradition as well as an amateur theatre scene. There was once over 40 bands in and around Rossendale, including the Irwell Springs Band whose fame was at a peak at the turn of the 19th century. There are currently the Haslingden and Helmshore Band, Rossendale Encore Concert Band, Goodshaw Band, Stacksteads Band, Water Band, 2nd Rossendale Scout Group Band, Whitworth Vale & Healey Band, Whitworth Youth Band, Haslingden Concert Band and the Whitworth Veterans' Band. Rossendale is home to a unique dancing troupe, the Britannia Coconut Dancers, formed in the mid-19th century, and who traditionally dance along the local roads every Easter.
There has been a long tradition of dialect poetry and writing in Rossendale. Local poets have included Andrew Houston, Walter Hargreaves and Clifford Heyworth. Waugh's Well, above Edenfield and Cowpe, marks the spot where Edwin Waugh wrote many of his poems, and is a favourite spot for walkers – a popular activity in Rossendale that does not appear to be in decline.
The Halo is an artwork in the form of an 18m-diameter steel lattice structure supported on a tripod overlooking Haslingden, positioned to be clearly visible from the M66 and A56 approach to Lancashire. Designed by John Kennedy and selected as part of a design competition managed by RIBA Competitions which was launched in 2003. It is lit after dark using low-energy LEDs powered by an adjacent wind turbine. It is the fourth Panopticon in Lancashire. It, and the adjacent landscaped area at Top o'Slate, was opened to the public in September 2007, and was designed by John Kennedy of LandLab and engineered by Booth King Partnership.
Rossendale is also home to touring theatre company Hard Graft. Established in 1999 Hard Graft found notoriety in the UK touring non theatre venues. Their first tour was with their award-winning comedy Thick As Thieves, touring living rooms throughout the UK. They then toured 56 charity shops with Burt n Joyce turning each shop into a theatre for the evening.