Marple Aqueduct has had a clean-up operation.

Abandoned cars which had been cluttering up the space around the aqueduct have been removed, following widespread public demand - a public petition calling for the cars to be removed garnered 1,500 signatures.

Hazel Grove MP Lisa Smart and Marple councillor Steve Gribbon worked alongside the Canal & River Trust to get the vehicles removed, in a process which they said involved 'considerable' work.

Cllr Gribbon said he was 'not prepared to but up with this kind of thing in the area'.

"It wasn't easy to get this tackled", he said. "Fortunately, by working together and putting pressure on the right people, they have finally been cleared.

"Marple is a really special place, and we have so many positive things going on right now, particularly with the Marple Hub nearing completion. It's great to tick this one off the list of things that needed sorting too."

Lisa Smart is also leading a campaign to have Marple Locks designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

She said the abandoned cars were 'extremely frustrating' in that they undermined the potential strength of the UNESCO bid.

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"I'm really grateful for everyone's efforts to get this sorted", the MP said.

"It's great to have local councillors who are prepared to do the hard yards on problems like this which can't be easily fixed."

Work is still ongoing to persuade the government to put forward Marple Locks to UNESCO, which decides the heritage status.

In the meantime, a new visitor centre is under construction at Marple Wharf.