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Lancashire’s up and coming coastal village ‘that’s crying out for more visitors’
Nestled between two popular seaside towns is a quiet village that’s bursting with opportunity.
Ansdell is situated in the middle of its overpowering neighbours, St Annes and Lytham on the Fylde coast. Although it’s not an area that is typically frequented by many, it does have some renowned attributes. Fairhaven Lake and part of world-famous Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club can be found there, meaning it is well and truly on the map even if you didn’t quite realise it.
Despite the charming scenery and picture-perfect coastline, it’s debated that the village has become significantly shadowed by the adjacent towns. Lytham, famous for its windmill and buzzing streets, as well as St Annes that boasts a multitude of B&Bs and a famous beach for holidaymakers far and wide.
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Most will have heard of these towns no matter where they live, but Ansdell seems to have been forgotten. In fact, on our travels, we heard that one person from Blackpool South, only 15 minutes down the road, hadn’t heard of the village.
To combat this and celebrate the area and the people living in it, we got in the car and took a trip to speak to those living and working in the village.
Simon Long has worked at Fylde Meats since he took over the business five years ago. As a longstanding butcher, it’s been in Ansdell since World War Two and is the only remaining butchers in the immediate area.
Simon told LancsLive: “We’re just a good local community, people like to shop local. They’d rather shop in Ansdell than Lytham and St Annes.”
Simon talks about the shops in the area, that are particularly enjoyed by locals and the odd visitor that decides to take a trip to the area. These include Tillys Beauty Bar, Rossco’s Float Rooms, The Wild Ginger giftshop and R Coffee.
The butcher also spoke about the side of Woodlands Road that his business is situated on, which has less other shops compared to over the bridge, where a pub, coffee shop and Co-op are situated. He says he wishes there are more business down that end, but the place is getting better.
Simon said: “Ansdell is an up and coming area. When I took over five years ago, this end of the street, there wasn’t a lot going on, but there’s some nice shops here now. It’s nice when the greenery and the flowers are out, but just a bit more passing trade would be good.”
Heading down Woodlands Road and over the railway bridge, a collection of independent shops can be found, with a few residents sitting outside with a drink and a newspaper, enjoying the sunny afternoon. The Wild Ginger is a giftshop on this end of the road, which sells anything from quirky ornaments to jewellery and accessories.
Working there is Jenny who is from the area, before she moved to New Zealand for 15 years. Having returned to the Fylde, she has noted that Ansdell has been somewhat forgotten.
She said: “It’s not publicised, it’s not well advertised, it’s not marketed at all and I think it’s a real shame. Because of that and everything else that’s going on, there are a few businesses that have closed and prior to that, nice cafes and nice little shops – the charity shops are also good – but it does get overlooked.
“We have people come in here [to the shop], from St Annes, saying we didn’t know you existed and this [Wild Ginger] has been here for four years, so how didn’t they know that?”
In an interior shop just a stones throw away, the owners there also believe that Ansdell has become somewhat of a hidden gem. They said: “It’s a great place to live, it’s further out than Lytham which can become inundated at weekends, but still has that high street vibe.
“There’s also more of a community spirit than Lytham and St Annes.”
The locals reference the numerous awards that the village have won for Ansdell in Bloom, as well as the monthly creative markets that occur at The Blossoms pub.
All in all, if you fancy a bit of village life, but you’d rather step away from the business of tourist hotspots on the Fylde Coast, we highly recommend you try Ansdell – and why not pop in to one of the local shops too.
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