Anderton Centre

Polly Checkland Harding

Visit now

Anderton Centre

New Road, Anderton, Chorley, PR6 9HG
01257484220
  • Monday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Tuesday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Wednesday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Thursday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Friday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Saturday8:30am - 4:30pm
  • Sunday8:30am - 4:30pm

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Courtesy of Anderton Centre
Book now

Located between Preston and Manchester, this adventure activity centre occupies four acres of woodland and benefits from exclusive use of the scenic Lower Rivington Reservoir. This body of water is the largest between the Midlands and the Lake District, and provides an ideal spot for school groups, organisations and the public to try stand up paddleboarding, canoeing, kayaking and sailing. The Anderton Centre provides hire without tuition at an affordable price, and prioritises working with young people and community groups.

The centre was built on the site of Anderton Hall, a 19th century stately home for the prestigious Anderton family that was demolished in 1930. Now independently run, there are places to learn archery, tree climbing and abseiling, fire building, problem solving and more on site; The Anderton Centre also organises themed birthday party packages, including a woodland or treetop adventure, raft challenge, canoeing experience and stand up paddle boarding with races and games built in.

Officially opened by the chairman of United Utilities Sir Christopher Harding in July 1999, the centre is also home to a dedicated paddle boarding club, and offers adult courses in mountain leadership, first aid and power boating, among others. Later in the year that the Anderton Centre first opened, Lower Rivington Reservoir was notably low, leading to the discovery of a stone with strange cup and ring markings, which is believed to date back to around 2,000-3,000 BC. It’s now placed at the entrance to the site, a reminder of the long history of human activity on the land.

What's on near Anderton Centre

MusicBlackburn
Confessional Festival

Blackburn’s Confessional Festival turns ten, celebrating with two days of live music set beneath the stained glass and vaulted stonework of Holy Trinity Church.

From £20
A large mechanical puppet controlled by multiple people. Encounter Festival in Preston
FestivalsLancashire
Encounter Festival in Preston

Expect a jam-packed day of outdoor performance, live music, family fun – plus Preston’s iconic Torchlight Procession and fireworks finale.

Free entry

Where to go near Anderton Centre

The Edge exterior
Wigan
Event venue
The Edge, Wigan

Opened in September 2017, The Edge Arena is Wigan’s performance, conference and event venue.

Bolton
Theatre
The Victoria Hall

The Victoria Hall in Bolton is a beautiful entertainment venue which showcases theatre amongst much other live-entertainment.

Bolton Library Theatre
Bolton
Library
Bolton Library Theatre

Bolton Library Theatre is situated inside Bolton Museum, a public museum and art gallery, which is owned by Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council.

Octagon Theatre Bolton
Bolton
Theatre
Octagon Theatre

Currently undergoing an exciting period of redevelopment, the Octagon Theatre Bolton makes nationally-regarded theatre with a strong focus on community.

Bolton
Event venue
Albert Halls Bolton

A colonnaded neoclassical Victorian town hall, now hosting comedy, dance, music and pantomime shows, right in the heart of Bolton.

Culture Guides

Cinema in the North

This month we recommend a season of Film noir, cult Australian movies and a huge celebration of DIY community cinema.

Author portrait
Literature Events in the North

Our latest round-up features plenty of one-off live literature events to wrap your ears about, so get those diaries ticking over...

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

This season’s theatre is gloriously eclectic: from radical cabaret and reinvented classics to new musicals and boundary-pushing performance.

Sprints
Music in the North

10 fresh shows across Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool, threading together noise, ritual, euphoria and release in all their messy, beautiful forms.

Detail of an abstract sculpture, with burned materials and rusty chicken wire at the centre, with rusted metal bars bent around it.
Exhibitions in the North

Chocolate fountains, beautiful batiks and medieval marginalia - this month's supersized Exhibitions Guide has it all.