Serviced Apartments in Saint Helens

Discover the best activities and attractions Saint Helens has to offer, and find out what makes this city a vibrant and exciting place to live or visit.

World of Glass
World of Glass is a museum and visitor centre celebrating St Helens’ long glassmaking history and the Pilkington company. Exhibits combine local industrial history with contemporary glass art, live glassblowing demonstrations, hands-on family activities and a shop and café. Impact: it preserves and promotes a key part of local identity, attracts day visitors from across Merseyside and beyond, supports tourism-related jobs (guides, retail, catering) and provides educational programmes for schools and community groups.

Sherdley Park
Sherdley Park is a large, well‑loved green space on the town’s edge with woodlands, lakes, sports pitches, play areas and marked walks. The park is also a principal site for outdoor community events and annual gatherings. Impact: it improves local quality of life (health, recreation and social space), boosts community cohesion through events and volunteering, and generates economic benefit when festivals and fairs bring in visitors who spend locally on food, stalls and hospitality.

Totally Wicked Stadium (Home of St Helens R.F.C.)
The Totally Wicked Stadium hosts professional rugby league fixtures, community sports programmes and occasional concerts. As the home of St Helens R.F.C. (the Saints), matchdays draw thousands of fans. Impact: the club and stadium are major contributors to the local economy — creating jobs, supporting pubs, restaurants and hotels on matchdays, raising the town’s profile nationally, and delivering community outreach, youth coaching and charity work.

Sankey Valley Park & Sankey Canal
This linear park and historic canal corridor follow the Sankey Navigation — one of Britain’s earliest industrial waterways — and offer scenic walking, cycling and wildlife-watching opportunities. Interpretive boards and local volunteer groups highlight the canal’s industrial past and biodiversity. Impact: the canal and park conserve important greenspace and heritage, encourage low‑cost outdoor recreation (supporting physical and mental wellbeing), attract walkers and nature visitors who spend locally, and provide hands‑on volunteering and education opportunities for schools and community organisations.

The Hardshaw Centre & St Helens Market
The Hardshaw Centre is the town-centre shopping precinct anchored by high-street shops and complemented by St Helens Market (indoor stalls selling food, crafts and household goods). Together they form the retail and social heart of St Helens. Impact: they sustain independent traders and small businesses, provide everyday services and employment, keep footfall in the town centre (supporting cafés and other services), and act as a hub for seasonal markets and community events that draw local shoppers and visitors.

Explore the diverse transport options available in Saint Helens, from efficient public transportation systems to convenient road networks. Whether you're commuting to work or exploring the city, this section will give you an overall look at the available transportation systems.

Public Transit System
- Bus network - A comprehensive local and regional bus network serves St Helens, coordinated by Merseytravel and operated mainly by commercial firms (notably Arriva North West and Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire). Services provide frequent links within the town and to nearby centres such as Liverpool, Warrington, Wigan and higher‑frequency corridors to the wider Liverpool City Region.
- Rail services - Multiple local rail stations serve the St Helens area (notably St Helens Central and St Helens Junction, with intermediate stations such as Thatto Heath and nearby Earlestown providing interchange). Local and regional services are run by Northern (and other TOCs on inter‑regional routes), giving passenger connections into Liverpool, Manchester, Wigan and onward access to the national rail network.
- National and long‑distance coach services - National Express and other coach operators can be accessed from nearby larger interchange points (and from regional bus/coach stops), enabling longer‑distance travel across the UK.
- Community transport and demand‑responsive services - Local community minibuses, Dial‑a‑Ride schemes and volunteer car schemes operate for elderly and mobility‑impaired residents, coordinated via borough social transport provision and third‑sector organisations.
- Taxis and private hire - Licensed hackney carriages and private hire operators serve the town; app‑based ride services (e.g., Uber and similar providers) also operate in the wider Merseyside area, providing on‑demand point‑to‑point travel.
- Airport connections - Regular public‑transport and road links connect to Liverpool John Lennon Airport (closest) and to Manchester Airport (major international hub), with coordinated bus and rail journeys available via Liverpool, Warrington/Earlestown or direct coach options.

Major Highways
- M62 - Major trans‑Pennine motorway providing fast east‑west access between Liverpool, Manchester and beyond; accessible from St Helens via local A‑roads.
- M6 - Principal north‑south motorway in the region (linking to the West Coast Main Line corridor), reachable within a short drive for longer‑distance journeys north and south.
- M57 - Merseyside orbital motorway to the west of St Helens that links into the broader Liverpool area and other motorway junctions.
- M58 - Northern link motorway providing routes toward the A59 corridor, the M6 and the coast; useful for accessing areas north of St Helens.
- A580 (East Lancashire Road) - Important dual‑carriageway A‑road linking Liverpool and Manchester; provides a direct strategic route for commuter and freight traffic passing close to St Helens.
- A570 - Primary A‑road running through/near St Helens, giving direct local connections to neighbouring towns and to the M58/M6 corridors.

Cycling Infrastructure
- Local cycle lanes, shared paths and towpaths - St Helens has a mix of on‑road cycle lanes, traffic‑calmed streets, and off‑road shared paths (including repurposed canal towpaths and former railway alignments). These form local commuting links and connect into wider active‑travel routes promoted by Liverpool City Region and Sustrans; the borough has seen targeted improvements and signage to improve cycle connectivity between residential areas, employment zones and public‑transport interchanges.

Recent and Upcoming Improvements
- Bus and ticketing upgrades - Implementation of Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) measures across the Liverpool City Region has driven timetable, reliability and infrastructure improvements, plus greater rollout of smart and contactless ticketing to simplify multi‑operator journeys for St Helens passengers.
- Active travel and cycle/walking schemes - Investment via national and city‑region active travel funds has supported new and upgraded cycle lanes, pedestrian improvements and safer junctions in and around St Helens to encourage walking and cycling for short trips.
- Station and accessibility works - Ongoing and recent station accessibility upgrades (improved lighting, shelters, step‑free access and ticketing information) at local stations to improve passenger experience and interchange; some car‑park and drop‑off improvements at key stations have also been delivered.
- Road junction and corridor upgrades - Targeted junction improvements and road maintenance schemes on key A‑roads and feeder routes around St Helens to reduce congestion and improve reliability for buses and freight, often funded through local transport capital programmes.
- Strategic rail and integration proposals - Continued studies and local advocacy by the Liverpool City Region and Merseytravel into closer rail integration (better service patterns and potential electrification/operational changes) and improved interchange with nearby hubs (e.g., Earlestown/Warrington) to strengthen connections to national rail and city‑region networks.
- Zero‑emission and greener fleets - Pilot and rollout programmes to introduce low‑ and zero‑emission buses across the region under Clean Air and Zero Emission Bus funding streams, improving air quality and the sustainability of public transport serving St Helens.