The River Bollin is a major

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part ...

in the north-west of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It rises in

Macclesfield Forest Macclesfield Forest is an area of woodland, predominantly conifer plantation, located around south east of Macclesfield in the civil parish of Macclesfield Forest and Wildboarclough, in Cheshire, England. The existing woodland is the last subs ...

at the western end of the

Peak District The Peak District is an upland area in England at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southe ...

, and can be seen in spring form, from the Buxton to Macclesfield road. The stream then descends the through Macclesfield and

The Carrs Park The Carrs Park is a park in Wilmslow, Cheshire, England. The park was gifted to the town by Henry Boddington and follows the path of the River Bollin. History The word 'Carrs' comes from the Old Norse word 'Kjarr' meaning 'meadow recovered fr ...

in Wilmslow where it has a

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

with the River Dean, near to Styal Prison. For the following it defines the southwestern portion of the border between

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority, combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: City of Manchester, Manchester, City of Salford, Salford ...

and

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

before merging with the

north of Lymm. It flows through the

Styal Styal (, like ''style'') is a village and civil parish on the River Bollin near Wilmslow, Cheshire, England. History Styal village grew during the early years of the Industrial Revolution when industrialist Samuel Greg built a cotton mill and ...

country park and was used in the cotton calico factory there,

Quarry Bank Mill Quarry Bank Mill (also known as Styal Mill) in Styal, Cheshire, England, is one of the best preserved textile factories of the Industrial Revolution. Built in 1784, the cotton mill is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a ...

, as a source of power. Near to the Quarry Bank Mill site there is a natural

weir A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

. The Bollin is

culvert A culvert is a structure that channels water past an obstacle or to a subterranean waterway. Typically embedded so as to be surrounded by soil, a culvert may be made from a pipe, reinforced concrete or other material. In the United Kingdom ...

ed underneath the southern runway of

Manchester Airport Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2019, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger numbers and the busiest of those n ...

. The town of

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east ...

used to dispose all its waste and sewage into the Bollin. The profusion of human sewage in the Bollin was still common in 1850.

Tributaries

* Agden Brook (L) ** Millington Clough * Birkin Brook (L) ** Blackburn's Brook (L) *** Shawgreen Brook (L) ***Rostherne Brook ** Mopperley Brook (R) *** Mobberley Brook **** Swim Brook (R) **** Whim Brook (R) **** Whitehall Brook (R) ***** Pott Brook (R) *** Sugar Brook (R) ** Tatton Mere brook (L) ** Pedley Brook (R) ** Marthall Brook Rivers of Cheshire Rivers of Greater Manchester Rivers of Trafford 1Bollin {{England-river-stub