Civic News

Formby Civic Society

Formby Footpath News

The Society has for many October 2004 years taken a strong inter- est in our network of old footpaths. Unfortunately Inside this issue: some have been lost over the years but we greatly value those that remain. Planning 2 Some years ago we submit- Matters ted an application to have a group of paths in Raven- Civic Trust 3 designated as Public gathering Rights of Way. The status of these was finally made Archive help 3 safe at a meeting of the needed Formby Area Committee on 28th September 2004. Heritage Con- 4 ference These include Albert Above; St Luke‟s Rd recommended the claim Road, (to the shore), Alex- should be progressed for a Formby-by-the- 5 andra Road and St Lukes which the path is situated, Bridleway. It now remains Sea Church Road, (between were agreeable; the Public to be seen whether the two Bushby‘s Lane and Range Rights of Way Officer landowners will object. Art Group 5 Lane, and Range Lane Notes itself, (all to be bridle- ways). Road Future 6 Programme path and St Lukes Church Brenda Lindsay. Road, (Range Lane to Alt- car footpath No. 5 – Pub- lic) are to be a Footpaths. One of the Founder members of the Society, Miss A note for your In addition a Track con- Brenda Lindsay, died after a short illness at the begin- necting Albert Road to ning of October. Brenda was a life-long Formby resi- Diary………. Alexandra Road is be a dent. Her father had been Chairman of the Formby public footpath. Urban District Council. Brenda was the Society‟s first Annual At the same meeting the Secretary and held that position off and on for fifteen more recent application years. She helped to collect the exhibits for the Society‟s Dinner regarding Wicks Lane, first exhibition and kept precise records which we still (between Larkhill Lane have today. She helped, enthusiastically, with a year Saturday 26th and Spruce Way), was also long project to film asparagus cultivation but unfortu- February 2005 nately the film was subsequently lost. Brenda then took considered. Although the at Formby Hall Society had only requested on the post of Amenities Secretary for four years, until recognition as a footpath, on becoming Deputy Head of Alder Hey School she Golf Club. (to which the developers relinquished her more active role. She always spoke of Larkhill Farm and the fondly of the Society and was delighted when earlier Watch out for National Trust, - both this year she was made an Honorary Life Member at owners of the land over our Annual Dinner. We will miss her! B.Y. details in next issue! Planning matters, by Ray Derricott. Planning issues that are the con- The Road proposal. The more transparency about this embargo cern of the Society involve tele- site on Silcock‘s Field is outside the and make it easier to implement. built up area. It is at the bend on the Council land at the side of the by-pass phone masts; advertising on road as traffic approaches Formby. still seems to offer an acceptable siting roundabouts; foopaths; Formby This has been turned down as being of masts. Waste Water Treatme Works: ―visually detrimental to the openness and further proposed residen- of the Green Belt.‖ tial development. There is a proposal to replace the mast Advertising on roundabouts. on the site of Formby High School. At the Society‘s Norton Priory visit a Permission for this was given before a straw poll amongst the members pre- Telephone Masts Council embargo. It is hoped that the sent showed a unanimous opposition Currently planning applications are Council will proceed in a cautionary to this proposal. This view was sub- being considered for masts at manner on this proposal. stantiated at Committee Meetings. Duke Street, opposite the Library, A general point about telephone Subsequently applications to erect small commercial adverts on all of outside the shops at 82&84 Haring- masts. We need masts but if we do not oppose sites near or in the centre Formby‘s main roundabouts were ton Road, in the carpark at the rear of submitted and apparently rejected. the shops in Road and of residential clusters, we will eventu- ally have them everywhere. The Coun- The proposals re-appeared on the a proposal to erect a mast on the west cil has a general embargo on sites on agenda of the September meeting of side of Liverpool Road. their property. Although we cannot the Area Committee. The Committee was asked to make a recommendation Duke Street: a 17.5 metres mast is object on health grounds this seems to be an attempt to protect schools and for Formby. Discussion on this was proposed on the verge of the deferred until the October meeting. I opposite the Library. I assume that therefore avoid protests from parents. There is increasing evidence of the believe that the committee was not this is on Council land. I objected to quorate on that day and the issue was this on behalf of the Society on aes- possible health risks associated with masts. This is not yet recognised by not considered. The background pa- thetic grounds, on its nearness to the pers for the item revealed, to my children‘s play area, its unsuitability the planners. In parts of Europe and in the USA the allowable strength of knowledge for the first time to the because it is close to a bus stop and on general public, some interesting infor- the approach to a busy roundabout. radiographic output from masts is five times lower that it is in UK. mation. As far as back as October Maintenance and servicing may cause 1996 the Council agreed a contract problems. This is (to date) still under A high power conference being held with a company from St. Annes to consideration. this month at the Centre. It have roundabouts sponsored. The 82&84 Harington Road: a mast dis- will be addressed by scientific experts, limited income, it is claimed, was used guised as street furniture is proposed politicians from UK and from the to provide a number of floral round- in front of the shops. I objected to European Parliament. The fee is over about displays. (Which roundabouts this on aesthetic grounds, its nearness £200 for the day and well beyond the and where?). When approached by to flats and other residences, its close- means of the Society. I have asked the another sponsorship organisation in ness to the inadequate parking in Planning Director to produce a report 2001 this was referred to the Cabinet. front of the shops where many acci- on the conference and make it avail- All Councillors were given reports on dents happen or nearly happen. The able to the public. I will follow this up the progress of a new sponsorship possibility of difficulties in this area and if necessary, write to the paper deal. Eventually on 26 May 2004 the will be caused by the need to have presenters and ask for copies of their Council entered into a contract for access for maintenance and servicing. papers. I have no further information sponsorship with Immediate Solu- The application has now been refused. about this. tions. Submissions, objecting to the Carpark at the rear of the Harington Another debatable issue is the Coun- proposals, from the Crosby Area Road shops. This is a re-proposal hav- cil‘s general embargo on masts on Committee and Formby Parish Coun- ing been turned down earlier. This their property. What qualifies as cil were taken into consideration in land belongs to the private landowner Council land? This seems to be inter- signing this contract. Before this and presumably permission has been preted inconsistently. Are verges and came to the September Area Commit- granted. I objected to this again on roadside sites part of Council land or tee the contract had been in existence behalf of the Society for similar rea- not? The situation is unclear. I have for four months. Income from spon- sons for the one above. This has now asked the Planning Directorate and sorship will probably generate about been turned down. some local Councillors to provide £12000 across the Borough. This

Page 2 Formby Civic News Civic Trust, Northwest Association—Autumn Gathering, Kendal. 10th October 2004 English Heritage to assist this work. We began the day by recovering the future excursions? The need to conserve but not freeze Blackpool delegation from being stuck Discussion sessions covered the fol- things so preventing year round eco- in the lift at Kendal town hall shortly lowing :-The Planning and Compen- nomic development was emphasised. before the fire engine arrived to assist. sation Act is now law. It requires Council conservation officers have a Following this excitement around ―Local Development Frameworks‖ duty to do official appraisals but civic twenty five people from around the which must contain a statement of societies can assist by collecting and North West area met under Stephen local community involvement. supplying information to councils so Langtree of Chester Civic Trust who that it is on file when building applica- is the Regional Chairman. Stephen John Miller director of Heritage Trust tions are submitted. sent his regards to the Formby Civic NW spoke about the Restoration and Society and was delighted to hear that Care of Buildings with examples such Education. Civic studies are now part the Formby Parish Council was now as, old barns, Heysham village, of the National Curriculum and it was in being as it was under discussion at Lytham Hall which we visited, Bank suggested that societies could cooper- the time of his visit to us last year. Hall Bretherton and the Midland ate with schools to help them and encourage new young members. Possi- We had a fascinating walk around Hotel Morecambe. As lottery money is ble activities were, talks to schools, part of the town guided by the Kendal for structures only, the necessity of town walks, environmental projects Civic Society. This covered old pas- having an economic use for the build- and inviting children to meetings of sages off the main street, the river, the ings was stressed with examples such interest. northern terminus of the Lancaster as a museum of local history, study canal which it is hoped to reopen into centre, holiday let and tea room. Bar- Altogether an interesting and chal- the town centre basin and finally the rowford tea room has a turnover of lenging day which taught us how castle which overlooks the town on £250,000 per annum. other NW societies were engaging the summit of its rather steep hill. The Conservation Areas. The NW asso- with their communities to assist with Society is very keen to show their ciation is working with English Heri- issues which are often common to us town and offer seven different tours tage to define and publicise them. all. Andrea and Alan Burton. which might be suitable for one of our £2500 funding due November from

Planning matters, (continued from previous page). Our Archives—help needed!

The History Group has existed since the Society‟s foundation and is one of This means about £1000 per round- Bridle Path is on stream. its key strengths . Founder members included Professor and Edith Kelly the about. The background papers con- Formby Waste Water Treatment tain a statement that if Formby object author of Viking Village, published by Works off Hoggs Lane. O2 UK Ltd. the Society in 1973. and still a definitive we might lose money. I am keeping in has a proposal for this. Plans are now reference. Many members share our close discussion on this matter with a available for consultation. interest in local history and contribute Parish Councillor. It is hoped that much knowledge, take photographs, consultation is organised about the Further residential development. The collect information and have in turn use and siting of Advertising Pill last significant area for residential presented the Society with its archives Boxes development in Formby is sited on and Library. This is now used regularly the old mushroom farm. No details by local students of all ages, for help Footpaths: Barbara Yorke reported are yet available but we must monitor with Dissertations, Projects and Course- on the general position about foot- this carefully. work. Copies of these, when completed paths and access on the coastline. are often presented and added. At- The land on the Alt Road site of 2 The Council has accepted the propos- tempts have been made to record and Church Road is signed for develop- index our archives from time to time als for the development of Larkhill ment. There are no plans yet for this and this is an on-going need. Following Farm. I take it that this means that the but the site is on a dangerous junc- the successful completion of a comput- proposal to erect Kissing Gates at both tion. This development will be moni- erised data-base of the Sibley Collection, ends of the small stretch of pathway tored with safety in mind and also in (now on our website); we now need to alongside the development has been relation to the character of any new undertake a similar exercise for our agreed. However Barbara indicated archives. Is there anyone out there inter- that the proposal to make the path a Buildings. ested in helping? Barbara Yorke.

Volume 1, Issue 1 Page 3 Sefton’s Coastal Heritage Conference.

Our long awaited conference was held at Formby Hall Golf station at Formby in 1776. Her presentation ended with a Club on Wednesday 15th September 2004. with over 180 remarkable archive film of the last launch of the lifeboat participants and organised by the Sefton Coast Partner- when the Formby Station closed in 1916. ship’s History and Archaeology Task Group, with the assis- Sylvia Harrop of The University of Liverpool and Chairman tance of this Society. of The and Historical Research Society After Ceri Jones of , welcomed participants, described the role of the shore in the seventeenth and eight- Dr Jen Lewis of The University of Liverpool took the chair eenth centuries as a means of communication in a landscape for the morning session. To provide a context for subse- backed by treacherous and almost impassable mosslands. quent presentations, she described how archaeological and She described a formalised arrangement of ‘fishing stalls’ on historical evidence help us understand how our forebears the beach together with details of the structure and placement lived and worked. of nets. All along the coast, the shore provided opportunities The next three presentations looked at research into prehis- for running in boats laden with smuggled goods from the Isle toric activity on the coast. Ron Cowell of National Muse- of Man to be unloaded and hidden in local houses — an ac- ums Liverpool described the coastal environment and sug- tivity in which many, if not all members of the community gested how it might have been exploited on a seasonal basis were involved. as hunter-gatherers moved across the landscape with no Dr Reg Yorke, member of Sefton Coast Partnership and settled abode. The discovery of large quantities of flint ob- Chair of the organising Task Group, considered the creation jects in Little Crosby and has thrown light on by local landowners of extensive conifer plantations both as hitherto unknown prehistoric communities in the area from a cash crop and as a means of stabilising the dunes from the end of the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago through wind-blow. Dry areas within the dunes attracted new fields to the Bronze Age, about 1,500 BC. for the cultivation of asparagus in the mid Nineteenth cen- Using examples of evidence for human and animal foot- tury. Development of the new railway line from Liverpool to prints in the inter-tidal silts, Gordon Roberts, showed that provided transportation of night soil from the city the coast had been used not only by prehistoric people but to for use as a fertiliser as the fields were brought by mammals and birds as they exploited the coastland re- into cultivation. source. The day concluded with a presentation from Sarah-Jane Farr, Changing sea levels resulting in the sands and silts in which Archaeological Officer. She showed examples of the footprints are preserved, presented Dr Annie Worsley different approaches to archaeological fieldwork and de- of Edge Hill College, Ormskirk with a challenge to see scribed the role of the Sites and Monuments Record as an whether pollen captured within such deposits could tell us archive to hold information about the past and how this can about changing environments. She found that the evidence- be used to advise Local Authorities in the processes of Plan- showed changes from marsh and mossland vegetations to ning and Development Control. She noted the national and woodland over the millennia. She suggested that charcoal regional importance of the Sefton Coast and emphasised that fragments trapped in silts deposited long before the intro- management of the archaeological and historical heritage duction of metalworking showed evidence for the use of requires understanding of what it represents. fire at temperatures higher than expected from accidental The Formby Hall Golf Club proved an excellent venue and burning. Microscopes set up in one of the Conference side there were some interesting displays by the Society, (Muriel rooms allowed delegates to examine the exciting remains Sibley’s Coastal Drawings), Liverpool Hope University Col- captured within the silts. lege, Sefton Library Services, Liverpool Sailing Club Mer- Moving forward in time Dr Rob Philpott of National Mu- seyside Maritime Museum, Crosby Museum and RSPB seums Liverpool drew on current research into the archaeo- Southport Group. logical and documentary evidence for lost settlement at Feedback following the Conference has been extremely posi- Meols off the north Wirral coast and suggested that Sefton tive with over 91% indicating that they felt better informed dune sands may conceal similar evidence. Whilst the occa- about the Coast and 85% positively stating that they would sional discovery of Roman material on our coast gives cre- be interested in attending future events of this kind. The dence to the possibility of Roman exploitation before the Conference proceedings will be published by Sefton Library 5th century, Norse Viking place names indicate the pres- Services towards the end of next year. ence of coastal communities here before the 11th century. The organisers are grateful to Sefton Council for their gener- After lunch, John Houston, former Sefton Coastal Manage- ous financial backing of this event and the sterling adminis- ment Officer and currently Consultant to the EU Life Fund trative assistance provided particularly by Lorna Lander and took the chair. Barbara Yorke, Formby Civic Society, con- Sue Rudkin of Sefton Planning Department. sidered how problems of navigating a changing coastline We are also very grateful for a number of complimentary were faced as the port at Liverpool developed and shipping letters of appreciation from participants who enjoyed the in the Mersey estuary increased. She identified the location event. and structure of navigation beacons and lighthouses and described the establishment of the country’s first lifeboat Report by Jen Lewis and Reg Yorke.

Page 4 ‗Formby-by-the Sea‘.

This was one of the few houses constructed at the sea-ward end of Alexandra Road, in the late 19th Century attempt to create an ambi- tious building development called „Formby-by-the-Sea‟. Alexandra and Albert Roads, then constructed, were joined by a split-level Prome- nade, the (still surviving under the sand). Curb-stones for these roads were laid and may still be seen. The 1930 “Future Development Plan” for Southwest showed a proposed new coastal road sweeping along the coast immediately behind the Promenade and closely following the line of a previously proposed sin­gle track railway line which actually gained Parliamentary approval. The Company however “ran out of steam” and beyond a few houses development never took off.

One of the best known of these houses was Stella Maris, which was a home for Liverpool children before WW2. During war-time it was requisitioned for use as a Radar Station, to aid the defence of the vital sea approaches to the Mersey. It is now left as one of the best loca- tions for autumnal dew-berry picking and its access roads and tracks are now finally officially designated as public rights of way R. A. Y.

Art Group Notes by Barbara Mossop

Many thanks to those members who have said they would like to be involved in running next year‘s Exhibition. We will discuss this further when we hold our annual get-together in January. The Society now has its own stands, pur- chased recently from the Association of Formby Artists. I have managed to arrange a visit to the Herdman Photographic Exhibition and home in Rodney Street. This is now owned by the National Trust and at present is only open for short periods each week on a pre-booked basis. They take parties of 6 on each tour at 15 minute intervals throughout the day. Each tour takes 1 hour 15 minutes. The Exhibition is free to National Trust members and non-members pay £3.50 each. Please let me know if you would like to join us, so that if necessary I can book more slots in their time-table. The Exhibition will be closed from December to March. We intend going to the Philharmonic Pub for lunch following the visit – to study archi- tecture, (of course!). November seems to be the month for exhibitions and I have listed some of these in our Diary Dates. I hope to see some of you at these. We usually go to Ribchester in November to see Geoff ? Exhibition but this year he is not holding one as he has too many commissions to finish

Page 5 Formby Civic Society Society . Chair; Dr Reg Yorke, 3 Wicks Lane, Notelets Formby. 01704 872187

Hon Secretary; David Willis, The possible pro- 5 Phillips Close, Formby. 878994 duction of a series of attractive Treasurer; Mike Belshaw, notelets is actively 38 Graburn Rd, Formby. 01704 being considered. 874940 These would be based on a selec- History Group; Barbara Yorke tion of Muriel Art Group; Barbara Mossop Amenity Secretary; Ray Derricott. Sibley‟s drawings and would come in packs of eight with four different de- signs. Please let us www.formbycivicsociety.org. know what you uk think!

Future Programme 2004—2005

GENERAL MEETINGS. Friday 26th November; ‗Formby Footpaths‟ , Val Hough, Sefton MBC, Technical Services Friday 28th January, ‗Alien Plants in the Sand Dunes‟, Dr Philip H. Smith. Friday, 25th February, ‗The Leverhulme Story‟, Mr Gavin Hunter.

HISTORY GROUP MEETINGS. Thursday, 2nd December, Films on Martin Mere and Southport‟s Lord Street, Jim Morris. Thursday, 5th January, ‗Punchinello in : „The History of Punch and Judy‟ , Judge Martin Grundy. Thursday, 3rd February, ‗A look at the FCS Newspaper Cutting Archive‟, Barbara Yorke.

ART GROUP EVENTS. 20th November. Association of Formby Artists, Holy Trinity Church Hall. 25th—28th November. CHET Art Fair, Little Crosby. 27th November. Visit to Hardman Photographic Exhibition and House; meet 10 am Formby Station. (Please contact me as soon as possible if interested. Limited places). 15th January 2005. Annual Get-together. The Pinewoods, Formby 12 noon. We will then dis- cuss 2005 Exhibition. Please contact Barbara Mossop by 7th January, if attending. .

This Newsletter is edited by Dr Reg Yorke and printed by Merseyside 3tc, Crosby, Liverpool