Burnley Aylesbury Walk

One fine May afternoon, I was making my way south from the Old Port town of Irvine on the West Scottish coast. I was heading back to Nottingham, so Burnley was an enroute, well, sort of destination to head to.

Irvine is a fine Scottish town, with such highlights as the Scottish Maritime Museum, open, The Big Idea, a semi buried museum about inspiration, closed, beautiful views of the ocean, remnants of Alfred Nobel's dynamite factory. I was there for work, so mostly, I was working off the mobile phone and tethered laptop.

The journey down from Scotland was scenic and spectacular. Lush green valleys, soaring hills, large arcing bends and majestic wind turbines, towering over the landscape. I stopped at a service station overlooking Killington reservoir and sat in the sunny spring afternoon, looking down on canoeists and rabbits. Taking the opportunity to rest before another couple of hours drive.

The approach to Burnley is no less spectacular, with the hills of Lancashire, the tightly packed rows of industrial mass housing and the post industrial towns of the north. Burnley sits squeezed between Barley Moor and Worsthorne Moor.

Bringing us to Aylesbury Walk, sitting coquetishly on a steep slope looking out over the valley. The road and paths clearly have seen better days. Its state is tatty, poorly maintained and the houses, most have seen better days.

The local pub has been turned into a local shop. Nevertheless it looked like a good active street with several local traders, self employed, small businesses and being the time of day I visited, groups of kids hanging out. Two young girls rode their stabilized bicycles down the steep path between the backs of gardens, clearly enjoying themselves.

Burnley looks to be suffering from the post industrial boom and many parts look quite run down. It is hard to see what could be done for towns in the North such as this. I can only think that keeping the emphasis on buying local, supporting local trades, local farmers, local crafts will allow the economy to recover over time. So the large international industry which once buoyed this area along can be replaced by local success stories and locals supporting each other. The government seems to be helping with aid and supporting the excellent aerospace supply industries around it. So Burnley like Aylesbury Walk, although looking like it has seen better days, has a good future and a good growth potential, with excellent spirits.