Sandbach Cobbles with Half-timbered Pubs, including the Black Bear to the left, the War Memorial and the Saxon crosses in the background.

Sandbach is a town in North West England.

Get in

By car

Junction 17 of the M6.

Sandbach is to the west of the motorway. Follow the A534 Old Mill Road and turn right at the first set of traffic lights. This is a one way street that takes you into the centre of the town.

By bus

The nearest large bus station is Hanley, in Stoke-on-Trent. In order to get to Sandbach from here you can either catch the infrequent direct bus, or the much more frequent local bus from Stoke to Crewe and then from Crewe to Sandbach. The bus fare from Crewe to Sandbach is 3 pound on a normal bus or 2 on the mini-bus service which also runs between the two - the mini bus is obviously the better option price-wise, but fills up quite quickly with pensioners who have been shopping.

The Arriva bus no 37 runs three times an hour and starts at Crewe bus station, also calling at Crewe railway station before going to Sandbach via Haslington. The main stop at Sandbach is The Commons after which the bus travels up Middlewich road and drops at several stops including Sandbach railways station before going on to Middlewich and Winsford. The reverse journey also provides three buses an hour.

By train

Sandbach has its own station which is on the Crewe to Manchester line. The station is about a mile and a half from the town centre but a number 37 bus can be caught from the stop on nearby Middlewich Road. Alternatively the no 37 can be caught from Crewe railway station to the centre of Sandbach.

See

Sandbach Crosses.

• Sandbach Crosses. two Saxon Crosses that were reportedly built in the 7th, 8th or 9th century.restored in 1816 

Listed Buildings

Sandbach is also home to many listed buildings, the buildings include Sandbach School, St Mary's Church, Sandbach and the Old Hall Hotel, Sandbach. Many of the local public houses, which were formerly stage coach stops, are listed, for example the Lower Chequer. Many of the buildings of the town were designed by the renowned architect Sir George Gilbert Scott; he designed Sandbach Literary Institution, Sandbach School, St John's, Sandbach Heath and the Almshouses. He also restored St Mary's Church.

The town has Methodist, Baptist, Anglican, and Catholic churches.

• Sandbach Flashes. Site of Special Scientific Interest, series of pools formed as a result of subsidence due to the solution of underlying salt deposits. At least 225 species of bird have been recorded on the Flashes 

Do

There is an annual transport festival in April that celebrates the town heritage: Fodens trucks were built in the town.

Sandbach RUFC play in the national league 3 Midlands.

Buy

There is a small market held every Thursday where it is possible to get specialty items and home-baked cakes, etc., as well as a range of stalls that vary from week to week.

A Farmers Market is held on the second Saturday of each month.

The main supermarket is Waitrose to the east of the town centre. There are also a number of small independent shops offering a variety of goods including artisan chocolates, delicatessen items, crafts, pet goods, DIY items and a beer emporium.

Eat

There are a number of other pubs that offer food. There is a Chinese restaurant near the town centre and another in a former Baptist church on Middlewich Road. There are also a number of Indian and Chinese takeaways and fish and chip shops. An interesting addition to the eateries in Sandbach is a small dining area that has been created in a Lebanese delicatessen on Crewe Road.

• Old Hall Hotel. a listed building that offers a 'gastropub' type menu 
• Grill on the Corner. modern British cuisine 
• The Glasshouse. modern British cuisine 
• Eastern Spices. Indian restaurants 
• The Ganges. Indian restaurants 

Drink

There are a number of public houses clustered around the town centre.

• Black Bear. half timbered, is popular with younger drinkers 
• Lower Chequers. offers a wide variety of real ales 

Sleep

• The Wheatsheaf. hotel offers bed and breakfast accommodation 

Connect

As of Oct 2022, Sandbach and its approach roads have 4G from O2 and Three, and 5G from EE and Vodafone.

Go next

Routes through Sandbach

Manchester/Liverpool ← Middlewich/Holmes Chapel ←

N  S

→ Newcastle-under-Lyme → Birmingham