New café with ‘glorious’ views opens at Pennington Flash

Pennington Flash has been “crying out” for a facility like this for years and visitors have finally seen their wish come true.

Sitting next to the main car park, Wigan Council dignitaries and the Leigh Sports Village team running The Hide Coffee House gathered as deputy council leader Coun Keith Cunliffe snipped the red ribbon.

After a big cheer and official photographs, the delegates headed inside to enjoy a coffee, hot food and tasty treats.

Open seven days a week, the wildlife-themed venture combines a menu using local suppliers, a relaxed, friendly atmosphere and stunning views across the water.

Coun Cunliffe said: “Whether you’re enjoying a day out with the family, catching up with old friends or simply walking the dog, The Hide Coffee House is the perfect place to take some time out, relax and enjoy our glorious surroundings with a drink and a bite to eat. We know people have been so excited ahead of our official launch and we hope they’ll be as delighted as we are with the results.

“Pennington Flash is a place close to so many people’s hearts and the team have done an incredible job creating an experience that really complements our wonderful nature reserve.”

The Hide’s manager Yvette Merga, from Lowton, has run mobile cafes and similar venues in the past and has taken ideas from locals when whipping up a menu.

She wanted to make healthy food and drink and match the surrounding wildlife and nature – not just the standard pies and pasties associated with Wiganers.

“I am a runner and have come past here for years and saw this and thought, how do I get involved,” she said. “I kept looking online and saw the job come up for manager.

“I’ve been coming to the Flash since I was a child and it has always lacked something like this. You can see from the response to publicity about this that people are desperate for something like this around here.

“As soon as we opened our Facebook page we got almost 2,000 people to join it. I want people to feel happy, relieved and for them to want to come back again and again.“I think it is a great destination for people to come.”The café and visitors’ centre are part of a £2.7m council makeover at the nature reserve, with new accessible toilets installed along with upgrades to parking – including electric vehicle charging points.

Work on a new adventure playground is set to begin in coming weeks.

Coun Chris Ready, portfolio holder for communities and neighbourhoods, said: “Pennington Flash has been a source of local pride for generations and is now a certified national treasure as part of the Flashes of Wigan and Leigh National Nature Reserve, declared by Natural England last October.

"These fantastic new facilities are all about giving our visitors the best possible experience and allowing more and more people to connect with the beauty of our natural environment, and I’m sure our amazing new café will be a massive success.”

The Hide Coffee House is open from 9am to 4pm from November to March, and 9am to 7pm from April to October.