Engineers test suitability of land near Wigan beauty spot and site of arson-hit listed home for development

Bore holes have been drilled on many acres either side of the A49 link road at Westwood Park, near the flashes nature reserve.

Checks are made for contamination and firmness of ground should it be proposed to build in the area in the future.

Among the plots being tested on behalf of the council has been the site of the former grade II listed Westwood Hall which was demolished last year following an arson attack which left it unsalvageable.

Such tests are carried out all over the borough all the time and do not necessarily mean that homes or businesses will be constructed there in the future.

However Westwood Park, which in years past was home to a power station and a Girobank base, has been on the council’s wish list for further development for decades.

The land being tested sits either side of the first section of link road between the town centre and the roundabout where the route turns right down the side of Scotman’s Flash.

A council spokesman said: “Contractors on behalf of the council are undertaking ground investigations across the Westwood area adjacent to the new A49 link road.

“Once completed the results will inform the council’s future plans for this site.”