Bollington Cross Conservation Area has been extended to include Moss Brow and a substantial part of Lowerhouse, and is now known as Bollington Cross & Lowerhouse Conservation Area (January 2021). The primary object has been to provide protection to the buildings and allotment landscape that was developed by Samuel Greg Jnr (1804-1876) into a model industrial village. All the details of this can be seen on the Cheshire East Council website at Bollington Cross and Lowerhouse CAA (cheshireeast.gov.uk).

This Conservation Area (CA) covers a relatively small area of Bollington Cross along Bollington Road. It begins in the east at Mount Pleasant Farm on the corner of Moss Brow and includes from No.2 Bollington Road opposite. It extends to the end of the old cottages, nos 51, and those up the side alley, just before the Millennium Cross including older properties on both sides of the road but not the relatively modern properties opposite St Oswald’s School and Barley Grange. The Cock & Pheasant is included. In 2021 the CA was extended down Moss Brow to include historically significant parts of Lowerhouse – Moss Lane and Long Row.

The following text is taken with kind permission from Macclesfield Borough Council’s Conservation Area Guide for Owners & Occupiers which describes the original Bollington Cross CA …

Bollington Cross marks the entrance to the mill town of Bollington which is in a valley dominated by the foothills of the Pennines. The terrace of stone properties on the east side of Bollington Road and the stone cottages on the west side together with the mature trees form a sense of enclosure and a pleasant entrance to the town. Many of the older buildings are former farmhouses indicating that the area was once farmland. It was developed during the mid 19th century with cottages to provide accommodation for the workers from the nearby Lowerhouse Mill.
The area opens out in front of the Cock and Pheasant Inn which is a Grade II listed building of 19th century date and was formerly a row of cottages. The Greg fountain (left) and seat enliven the stone wall at the entrance to Flash Lane. The fountain is a memorial to the Greg family who lived at Mount Hall and owned the mill at Lowerhouse.

Barley Grange, a former farmhouse is set back from the road at the brow of the hill behind a fine stone wall which is an attractive feature in the area. St Oswald’s Church, completed in 1908 on land provided by Herbert Greg is lower down Bollington Road and is alongside the original school building. Another group of listed buildings close to the Moss Brow junction includes Orchard House with its attractive canted bay windows with leaded lights. On the opposite side of the road is the former Heywood’s farmhouse, now 2 and 4 Bollington Road and adjacent is the former doctor’s house and surgery. This is now a house and retail outlet set at the top of a high stone retaining wall with steps leading to the properties.

The Borough Council may be able to offer grant assistance to owners of stone 19th Century unlisted cottages, now that it is designated a Conservation Area. The repair of external architectural features and the reinstatement of sash windows where the originals have been lost would normally be eligible subject to circumstances and availability of funds. The owners of the listed buildings are already eligible for such assistance but Conservation Area designation may provide additional grant sources.

If you require forms, conservation advice, further information or assistance please contact:

The Chief Planning Officer
Cheshire East Council
Westfields, Middlewich Road, Sandbach CW11 1HZ
Tel: 0300 123 5500
Web site