STAFFORDSHIRE

There is a parallel between Staffordshire and Lancashire, in that both of these Counties were ‘carved up’ in Local Authority terms, by the civil servants, with the best revenue-producing bits of each taken away to feed the ‘keg counties’ of West Midlands and Greater Manchester respectively. But in Chess terms, Staffordshire fared far better than Lancashire, because no idiot tried to form such a thing as “West Midlands County Chess Association”. So, happily, in chess terms as well as in real terms, the large industrial towns of Wolverhampton, Walsall, and West Bromwich remain in Staffordshire, even though they pay their rates elsewhere.
This is an attractive County. In the far north of Staffordshire, you could well be in the Derbyshire Dales, with lovely hillwalking and other outdoor pursuits available. But the large city of Stoke on Trent and the others of the Five Towns are not far away, while over to the east is the important brewing town of Burton on Trent. It is said that the storage spaces underneath St Pancras station in London were designed to be the correct size for accommodating a given number of standard Burton beer barrels.

Girls’ Chess in Staffordshire
Girls’ team manager required. There are strong players awaiting.

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