Just been away for a few days and only now had a chance to look at the website. For the record, there were 28 Whooper Swans on the Flash on Wednesday morning, November 12. They were recorded on the board when our Wigan RSPB midweek group arrived at about 10 am and were still there when I left just after midday.
Because everything at Pennington seems to go straight on to the website and because other birders had apparently seen them I took it for granted that they had been 'phoned in'. Sorry about that!