Commerce and Industry
The two main commercial and industrial centres in West Lancashire are Ormskirk and Skelmersdale.
Ormskirk is a lively market town, which combines history and character with excellent shopping and thriving local industry. It is a popular destination for shoppers with the bustling Charter market a magnet each Thursday and Saturday.
The market town serves a mainly agricultural area of very high quality land and the town, which has excellent rail links, has increasing become home to people who work in nearby Liverpool.
Ormskirk is the civic heart of West Lancashire and is home of the district council offices and the area's general hospital.
The modern vibrant town of Skelmersdale sprang up in 1961 as the North West’s first New Town, although the area's roots can be traced back to Viking times.
The town itself is a hive of urban activity with a number of thriving industrial estates and busy shopping areas, yet is surrounded by attractive wooded valleys with plenty of wide green open spaces.
