Stockport Independent Issue 206

AUGUST 2026 8 QUICK CROSSWORD ACROSS 7 Tomb inscription (7) 8 Crustacean (4) 9 Italian sausage (6) 10 Sweet secretion of flowers (6) 11 Storm (7) 14 Lake or pond (4) 15 Rime (4) 16 Greyish-fawn (7) 20 Major German port (6) 21 Security (6) 23 Heel (4) 24 “The great grey-green, greasy --- River” (Kipling) (7) DOWN 1 Distaff (6) 2 Pyramid site (4) 3 Takes fright (6) 4 Repeat rhythmically (5) 5 Frozen dessert (3,5) 6 Injury (6) 12 Companion of a child (8) 13 Lowest card (3) 15 Hard drug (6) 17 Take for granted (6) 18 Legal process (6) 19 Mournful sound (5) 22 Base (4) Answers on page 19. THE demolition of the historic Watling Gate building in Timperley is underway, bringing to an end years of uncertainty over the future of the Grade II-listed property. Trafford Council has con- firmed that demolition con- tractor P. McGuinness has taken control of the Newton Park site, with the work expected to take around 12 weeks. The building will be demol- ished in stages in accordance with the approved demolition method statement. The council says it will continue to work closely with the contractor throughout the project. The latest development comes after Trafford Council discharged another planning condition relating to the sal- vage of historic features from the building. Under the approved plans, significant architectural fea- tures including fireplaces, timber framing, stained glass and the timber verandah will be identified, recorded, labelled and stored wherever they can be safely recovered. Archaeological surveys carried out earlier this year underline why the council says demolition has become unavoidable. Inspectors found the north wall had already collapsed, with much of the roof and floors missing. Because of the unstable structure and the presence of asbestos, the building could not be entered safely and had to be inspected from a cherry picker. Watling Gate was built in 1904 as the home of Colonel Charles Edward Newton before being left to Altrin- cham Borough Council after his death in 1937. It later served as a museum, art gal- lery and children’s nursery before closing in 2003. The building has remained empty ever since, with its condition deteriorating to the point where Trafford Council said earlier this PLANS to subdivide a retail unit in Wilmslow t own cent re have been approved. Hale Barns based Pinelarch Limited have been granted permission to reconfigure 2-4 Water Lane to provide a mix of retail, office and associated storage units across four lev- els. This includes internal and external alterations. The development involves the reconfiguration of the existing retail premises on the corner of Grove Street and Water Lane to provide two separate units. The retail unit became vacant following the closure of Posh ladies boutique. The ground floor will retain existing retail with minor internal alterations and a staff tea room added. Level 1 will also retain retail with office use with partitions added whilst on Level 2 the store and kitchen will be converted to provide office and storage use. The basement will be retained for retail and storage use. External alternations include additional doors to the front and rear to provide direct access to each retail unit along with fire escapes routes and access for bins. Retail plan approved END OF THE ROAD FOR HISTORIC WATLING GATE Watling Gate was built in 1904 as the home of Colonel Charles Edward Newton year it posed a danger and required urgent action. West Timperley councillor Ulrich Stephane Savary said the demolition marked a “really sad” moment for the area. “Since being elected in May 2024, I have worked alongside volunteers and res- idents to try to find a future for the Watling Gate. But by then, years of neglect had already taken their toll. “The gate was closed in 2002 and then simply left to rot – first under the Conserv- atives and then under Traf- ford’s Labour-run council. Since 2021 alone, the council has spent more than £12,000 on fencing around the site, and that waste of taxpayers’ money would have contin- ued had I not pushed for it to stop. “Residents have every right to feel let down. They have lost a valuable commu- nity space and have been left to deal with the consequences – from anti-social behaviour to a building now at risk of collapse. “Together with my col- league Barbara Gerard and local residents, I am now pushing the council to return the land to Newton Park, so we can turn this neglected site back into something the whole community can be proud of.” Robb Thomas (left), achieved A*A*A*A* andWill Gandy who achieved A*A*A*. (Image: King’s School) Neave Stanway (left) achieved A*AB; Katie Harrison (centre) achieved AAB and Chinmaya Aji (right) who achieved AAA. (Image: King’s School) Celebrations and smiles at King’s STUDENTS receiving their A-level results at King’s were celebrating with their parents and teachers as they reaped the rewards of their hardwork with excellent results. Sixth Form students achieved a stunning set of grades and now move on to the next chapter of their learning journey. This won- derful group of young adults achieved around half of all grades at A*/A andmore than three quarters at A* – B grade. A total of 20 students achieved all A* or A grades and over a third of students achieved an A* in one subject or more. King’s Head, Mr Jason Slack, said: “I’m absolutely thrilled with this excellent set of results for A levels and other qualifications. This cohort have worked exceptionally hard and thoroughly deserve their success. Our school aim of ‘challenging pupils to aspire, work hard and achieve’ is well represented by this determined and talented group of young people.” He adds: “They have also demonstrated our holistic approach to education by developing broader skills such as leadership, resilience and independence whilst fullyparticipating in thewider life of the school in terms of music, sports, performingand creative arts. I look forward to hearing of their success in the future. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”