Climbing Walls in Stoke-on-Trent

Kilnworx

Kilnworx Climbing Centre is a community interest company that has turned Wycliffe Hall, an old church and school in Burslem, into the city's roped wall. It lists more than 130 routes on 34 lines from French 3 to the 8s, with top ropes and lead lines on every wall and a few lines without fixed quickdraws for practising leading. There are two bouldering rooms running from slabs to a cave with a stalactite, a 2019 MoonBoard and a training room.

Awesome Walls Stoke

Awesome Walls Stoke, off the A50 in Longton, is the Stoke centre of the Awesome Walls group and is bouldering only. It has more than 150 problems over four areas on two floors, a big overhanging roof, a longest problem of about 10 metres, smaller walls for beginners and children, and a MoonBoard. Its monthly in-house competition, Mint Conditions, runs in four two-week rounds, and there's weekly women's coaching and a monthly ladies and LGBTQ+ night.

Audley and Leek

• Audley Climbing Centre, north-west of Newcastle-under-Lyme and about five minutes from junction 16 of the M6, has around 50 top-rope routes plus bouldering. It is run by Peak Activity Services, sessions are booked by phone, and it takes groups of up to 200.
• The Peak Climbing Wall on Leekbrook Industrial Estate is the indoor base of The Peak Climbing School, with a bouldering wall, café and shop. There's no need to book and no registration fee, and you can hire bouldering pads for the crag.

Prices and passes

Kilnworx charges £12 for an adult (£10 for members, after a £25 lifetime membership) and £40 a month, with a £15 weekly pass. Awesome Walls is £15 for non-members and £12.50 for members, with monthly plans from £39 to £48. In Leek, a day at The Peak Climbing Wall is £13, or £11 on a weekday morning with a hot drink, and a rolling month is £45.

Beginners and children

New climbers at Awesome Walls book a taster or an induction first; sessions are for ages six and over, and the Kids Club runs for ages 6 to 16. Audley's one-hour tasters, two-hour inductions and six-week courses suit beginners, and it runs NICAS levels 1 to 3. The Peak Climbing Wall has kids' clubs by age group and weekly inductions for climbers aged 14 and over.

The Roaches

The Staffordshire edges are the reason many climbers live here. The Roaches, Hen Cloud and Ramshaw Rocks rise above Tittesworth Reservoir north of Leek, with gritstone buttresses up to 30 metres and classics such as Valkyrie, The Sloth and The Swan; the Lower Tier alone has over 300 routes. Parking below the crag is very limited, and a park-and-ride runs from Tittesworth at summer weekends. Audley runs introductions to outdoor climbing at the Roaches and Windgather. See also Manchester and Derby.