A Little Bit of History…
The Wirral Society was formed in May 1928, following a public meeting at St Michael’s Church Hall, Claughton in Birkenhead. The meeting, was chaired by the Professor of Civic Design at Liverpool University, Sir Patrick Abercrombie. Concern was voiced at the many unplanned developments that were taking place around the Peninsula, which were affecting its character.
It was agreed that a Society should be set up, called ‘The Wirral Society’. It was to act as a non-political ‘watchdog’ for the Wirral environment. An Executive Committee was established, to act on the Society’s behalf.
A Constitution was drawn up with its objectives being to protect the Wirral Peninsula’s natural beauty, architecture, flora and fauna and its sea coast.
Ninety-plus years on, those objectives still apply, but have now been extended to include the urban and suburban areas of the Peninsula.
An early action of the new Executive Committee, was to agree to an invitation to become the Wirral District Branch Committee of a national organisation, the then Council for the Protection of Rural England (C.P.R.E.) – now the Campaign to Protect Rural England.
The Society has been pleased to accept this dual role, which has continued with only a short break, to this present day.
For the last ninety-plus years, the Society, through its Executive Committee, which meets monthly, has done its best to take an active role in preserving what makes Wirral unique. It has tried to keep a careful eye on any proposed plans or developments which it believes threatens or is detrimental to, what currently exists.
The Society aims to be constructive about change, and whenever possible, will offer an alternative solution to anything we consider to be undesirable. Over the years, thanks to the “eyes and ears” of members, the Society has been able to act effectively on many local environmental issues – some successful and some not (you win some, you lose some!)
The Society is a Registered Charity and currently has some 300+ members, which it tries to involve wherever possible. A quarterly newsletter, “Wirral Matters”, is sent to all our members, and also local Councillors, local MPs, the media and libraries. This includes news and information about our current activities, and is now included on this Website as an archive.
If you also feel strongly about the Wirral peninsula, you might like to consider joining us in the ongoing task of helping to protect and improve its environment.