Trafford coat of arms

The Trafford coat of arms brings together symbols from the borough’s history and the communities that make up Trafford.

Meaning of the design

• The River Mersey is shown as a wavy line across the shield, representing the river running through the borough.
• The griffin of the de Trafford family comes from their arms. The family held lands in Stretford, Urmston and Dunham Massey. The griffin has the upper body of an eagle in red on white and the lower body of a lion in white on red.
• The lion of the Massey family links to the barony of Dunham Massey, which covered Dunham, Bowdon, Hale, Altrincham, Partington and Sale.
• The Tau cross represents the letter T for Trafford. It is divided into green and black to show both the rural and industrial character of the borough.

Crest

• The forearm from the Stretford crest holds two blue lightning bolts to symbolise the electrical industry.
• A gold cogwheel from the Altrincham arms represents engineering.
• Branches of oak from the Urmston arms reflect Trafford’s wooded and rural areas.
• The helm, crest wreath and mantling are in Trafford’s colours of red and white.

Supporters

The coat of arms is supported by two unicorns.

• The unicorn of Altrincham is ermine patterned with gold horn, mane and hooves. It wears a blue and white collar taken from the Grey family shield. This supporter represents Altrincham, Bowdon, Dunham Massey and Partington.
• The unicorn of Sale is white with gold horn, mane and hooves. It is marked with three black lozenges from the Carrington family arms. This supporter represents Sale and Carrington.

Representation of districts

Read the policy for use of the Trafford coat of arms.