NEVER before has a simple sign caused so much controversy.

The new halfway marker on the Leeds to Liverpool canal in situated opposite Enfield Wharf in Clayton-le-Moors.

But the name on the plaque - built to mark the Golden Jubilee of the Inland Waterways Association - is Henfield Wharf.

And what's more, the marker is said to be 80 metres out!

Tania Hindle, of Hyndburn Council, put the facts right. She said: "The spelling was completely intentional. It was a tactic to get the public to take a closer look at the plaque.

"All the same, it is correct. Researchers traced back the history of the area and found that on an ordnance map from the 1800s, it was originally known as Henfield."

Tania added: "If you read more of the plaque it explains the whole story behind the area."

Derek Humphreys, of the Inland Waterways Association, said: "We have no idea why the name changed, but believe it happened around the time of the Second World War.

"And some people say that the marker is too close to Altham, because the original one was 80 metres away, but we believe ours to be a more accurate measurement."

The marker was designed and constructed by Hyndburn Council, the Groundwork Trust and the Inland Waterways Association.

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