work or visit

Barrow-in-Furness:

A Great Place to Live, Work or Visit

This guide will give you an insight into the many and varied places of interest and things you can do in and around the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness. Expect the unexpected! There are hidden gems around every corner and unique wildlife under every sand dune. The great outdoors is there to be explored in this safe, beautiful and yet largely unknown, corner of England.

Whatever your choice, be it good food, sport, entertainment, night life, sea or sandy beaches, you will love Barrow-in-Furness, the nearby towns, villages and surrounding countryside.

Where is it?

In the north of England in Cumbria close to the Lake District National Park. The Borough of Barrow- in-Furness is located at the southern tip of the Furness peninsula on the north shore of Morecambe Bay. Barrow and its islands look across the Irish sea towards the Isle of Man to the west. Morecambe Bay, with its vast intertidal areas, lies to the south and the Duddon Estuary to the north. On a fine day you can see Blackpool tower from Rampside and Roa Island.

It is a stunning part of the world, with fantastic seascapes against the backdrop of the Lake District fells.

The Borough includes the principal town of Barrow- in-Furness, Walney Island and the parishes of Dalton with Newton, Askam and Ireleth and Lindal and Marton. It is home to around 68,000 people, 14% of Cumbria’s population.

The town of Barrow-inFurness is architecturally and visually attractive. It is a planned town, laid out by Sir James Ramsden, the first Mayor of Barrow, engineer and Victorian entrepreneur. It is also the main cultural, commercial and retail centre for South West Cumbria.

A little bit of history

Prior to the industrial revolution, the medieval market town of Dalton- in-Furness was the main town in the area. This ancient capital of Furness and birthplace of George Romney, the renowned portrait painter, lies a few miles to the north. The recent discovery of a Viking Hoard nearby, (which is now on display in the Dock Museum), illustrates the settlement of this area in the 9th and 10th centuries.

The area came under the control of the Cistercian Abbot, based in Furness Abbey on the outskirts of the Town. The monks

spread their influence across the whole peninsula, building Dalton Castle as their Courthouse, using Piel Island as a natural harbour and establishing a Grange Farm at Biggar on Walney Island.

Barrow grew from a village to a major town in the early 19th century as the industrial revolution in England fuelled a need for iron, which opened up the peninsula to haematite mining. In 1843 there were only 32 dwellings and 2 pubs in the hamlet. In 1846 the Furness Railway was built by Henry Schneider (an iron speculator) and James Ramsden (rail engineer) to transport local iron ore and slate out of the area and later was extended to Carnforth to connect with the country’s main rail networks.

The town grew to become the world’s leading steel producer which in turn attracted investment in a deep water seaport and shipbuilding. At the forefront of technological progress and with a tradition of unparalleled engineering skills, the town is world renowned for its engineering technologies, particularly submarine building. It is proud of this reputation as a cradle of advanced manufacturing.

Iron and steelmaking in Barrow ceased in 1963 and today, much of its industrial past is no longer evident, replaced by modern business and retail parks.

MPM

North We st Ltd

About Us

01900 810299 www.mpmnw.co.uk

Design, Build and Installation of Landing and Mooring Systems by Lead-in-Jetty Barrow in Furness

MPM North West Ltd Marine & Civil Engineering Company, provide innovative business solutions and high-quality services & products. The Company’s headquarters are at Maryport, Cumbria, where our highly skilled staff and equipped workshops carry out fabrication, engineering and other services for a broad portfolio of Clients. We are leading specialists in steel construction services which includes design, fabrication, welding and site installation of structural steelwork up to and including Exc 3 BSEN 1090, specialising in the marine environment. MPM North West Ltd have been contracted by Orsted to adapt 3 locations on the Lead-in Jetty into berthing and mooring landing stages for their offshore wind farm service vessels and personnel carrying craft. These vessel mooring points have been designed with a floating bollard anchor system, to allow unmanned vessels to be berthed 365 days a year. These are known as berthing positions 1, 2 & 3. At each location a berthing system is designed to accommodate 2 vessels in double berthing configuration with an access system to safely access the vessels, a water point to allow for the cleaning of vessels and staircases, electrical supplies, handrailing along the Lead-in-Jetty providing segregation for personnel access and fork lifts and fixed cranes at two berthing positions. These Bespoke Mooring Systems are prefabricated in our workshops, transported and installed on site. MPM North West Ltd are at the forefront of the latest advances in engineering. We help drive the innovation that is reinventing the industry collaborating with our highly valued Clients and Associates.

Offshore/Renewable Sector Support

The Company has adapted to provide support and maintenance services for offshore wind energy and has accumulated a wealth of experience from the work already undertaken on Renewable projects. Our portfolio includes: offshore surface protection - blasting, painting, corrosion inspection, design and build of innovative access systems and lifting davit arms.