RESIDENTS are invited to have their say about how they want to celebrate St Helens’ heritage.

The council is creating a heritage strategy which will look to celebrate the borough’s important place in history as a leading location for developments that revolutionised life and helped to build the town into a key contributor to the Industrial Revolution.

Those include the creation of the Sankey Canal which was England’s first from the 1750s, the Rainhill Locomotive Trials in 1829 which led to the opening of the world’s first inter-city railway line in 1830 to the invention of the ‘float glass’ technique by Sir Alistair Pilkington which transformed glass production.

St Helens council leader, Cllr Derek Long said “We’re standing on ground that has changed the world. Rainhill saw the world’s first practical locomotive; Cowley Hill, the first float glass factory. One of the earliest Rugby League matches was played on St Helens grass. Vulcan Foundry built some of the world’s earliest engines.

“We need to preserve, celebrate and promote this heritage which has helped shape our world. This is why we are developing our first heritage strategy. We've already spoken with some key organisations and now we wanted to hear what residents think about how we can preserve our history while opening up new opportunities to discover more about our past.”

The survey is being run by specialist consultants S.G Lingard Consultancy who will help to shape the Heritage Strategy.

Everyone who takes part in the survey will be entered into a prize draw to win a set of original artworks by local artist Drunk Wolf, celebrating the borough’s heritage.

The survey is open until 5pm on Friday, March 29.