Inside the M60

Manchester University’s Jodrell Bank Observatory is on a shortlist for potential nomination for world heritage status.

The leading radio astronomy facility, 20 miles south of the city centre, joins the Lake District and the island of St Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean from a total of 11 sites across the UK and its overseas territories.

Announcing the listing, tourism and heritage minister John Penrose said: “Few places in the world can match the wealth of wonderful heritage we have available in the UK.

“The 11 places that make up the new UK Tentative List are fantastic examples of both our cultural and natural heritage and I believe they have every chance of joining famous names like the Sydney Opera House and the Canadian Rockies to become World Heritage Sites.”

The new Tentative List will now be submitted to UNESCO with the aim of nominating new sites from 2012. Whether sites on the Tentative List are given a nomination slot will depend on the robustness of their case and the likelihood of inscription by the World Heritage Committee.

Dr Teresa Anderson, director of the new Discovery Centre, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to hear that we have been included on the UK Tentative List for World Heritage Site status.“Jodrell Bank has earned its place on the list by being a place where live science has completely reframed the way in which humanity sees its place in the Universe.

The listed sites announced today John Penrose are:

• Chatham Dockyard and its Defences, Kent
• Creswell Crags, Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire
• The Lake District, Cumbria
• Gorham’s Cave Complex, Gibraltar
• The Island of St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean
• Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire
• Mousa, Old Scatness & Jarlshof, Shetland
• Slate Industry of North Wales
• The Flow Country, Scotland
• The Forth Bridge (Rail), Scotland
• Turks & Caicos Islands, West Indies