WIRRAL NEWS REVIEW OF 2011: Riots, royalty and the cat who received a bravery award

Jan 4 2012 by Lorna Hughes, Heswall News

RIOTS, royalty and the cat who received a bravery award – that was 2011.

Wirral enjoyed its first visit from the Queen in 15 years and patriotism swept the borough for the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton in April.

Over at Wirral Council Labour took control again in May and Liberal Democrat leader Simon Holbrook lost his council seat in a local election nightmare for his party.

The authority was later engulfed in crisis in the wake of a highly critical report into how it has been run. Commissioned by former council leader Jeff Green, it followed the whistleblowing allegations of former social services employee Martin Morton.

But a further report into his allegations of mismanagement has still not been published.

There were animal antics in September, when Wallasey cat Pyro was given a posthumous bravery award for his exploits during the Second World War.

2011 was also the year Wirral lost too many of its young people in tragic circumstances – those we paid tribute to included Charlotte Churchill, Jonathan Brown, Dale Fleckner, Georgia Varley, Paul Macaulay, Chris Smith, Robbie Crofts and Hayley Holmes.

Here’s a reminder of some of the main stories from the last 12 months – but what were your Wirral highs and lows?

Send them to Letters, Wirral News Group, PO Box 48, Old Hall Street, Liverpool L69 3EB or e-mail newsdesk@wirralnews.co.uk

JANUARY

STAFF at Burton’s biscuits in Moreton received a bonus in their wages – days after they were told bosses wanted to close the Pasture Road factory. Hundreds of workers left for the final time in December – 51 remain on site at a chocolate refinery.

MORE than 1,000 fish died in park lakes across Wirral after another harsh winter reduced oxygen levels in the water.

A CHARITY threatened to launch a legal challenge against plans to close five council-run care homes. Staff and residents were told Maplehome in Birkenhead, Pensall House in Pensby, Poulton House in Wallasey, Meadowcroft in Bromborough, Manor Road in Wallasey and Fernleigh in Leasowe would shut by March 31 to save Wirral Council £2.7m.

FEBRUARY

UPTON Apprentice star Christopher Farrell told the News he would learn from his mistakes after being sentenced for fraud.

A VOTE by a Sefton councillor saw tunnel tolls increase by 10p. The crucial vote was split, leaving Cllr Mark Dowd with the decisive casting vote. The proposals had been condemned by political and business leaders in Wirral.

STORM force winds battered Wirral, causing trees to block roads and forcing Hoylake lifeboat into a dramatic rescue against the tide.

MARCH

NESTON musician Colin Pownall said he felt lucky to be alive after a powerful earthquake struck Japan while he was on tour in the country with the BBC Philharmonic orchestra.

A COMMUNITY group moved a step closer to re-opening Byrne Avenue Baths. Wirral Council granted Byrne Avenue Community Trust (BACT) a lease on the building.

SIX people were arrested after demonstrators stormed Birkenhead County Court in support of a man challenging his council tax bill.

APRIL

ROYAL wedding fever swept Wirral. Thirty-eight roads threw street parties to celebrate the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

WALLASEY MP Angela Eagle branded Prime Minister David Cameron an “old-fashioned sexist”, after he repeatedly told her to “calm down, dear” during clashes in the House of Commons.

THOUSANDS of bikers took to the streets of Wirral for the 31st annual Wirral Egg Run.

MAY

AN energy firm unveiled £450m plans for an expansion of the Burbo Bank windfarm off the coast of Wirral.

WALKERS braved blustery conditions for the 25th annual Wirral Coastal Walk.

WIRRAL’S Lib-Dems put Labour back in power in the borough, after abstaining on a crucial vote on the council leadership. They held the balance of power, despite being reduced to just nine councillors following the local elections. Bromborough Lib-Dem councillor Steve Niblock left his party for Labour and called on others to follow him across the floor.

JUNE

THREE Wirral beaches were declared among the cleanest in the UK. New Brighton, Moreton and Meols flew the flag in the annual Good Beach Guide survey by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS).

BIRKENHEAD impressionist Les Gibson said he was still optimistic of a future in television, despite losing in the final of Britain’s Got Talent.

KITE enthusiasts from all over the world headed to Wirral for the borough’s annual kite festival on New Brighton Dips.

THE Duke of Edinburgh recalled his birdwatching visits to Hilbre Island during a visit to West Kirby for a model yachting competition.

JULY

A PROMISING young footballer was electrocuted on a Wirral railway line. Dale Fleckner, 16, from Tranmere was found on the tracks between Rock Ferry and Green Lane stations.

NEW Ferry Butterfly Park won a long-running legal battle to stay open.

WIRRAL public sector workers joined a national strike over proposed changes to pensions. More than 70 schools across the borough closed for the day.

A BUST of war poet Wilfred Owen which lay unwanted in a garage for 10 years finally found a home at the Wilfred Owen Story in Birkenhead.

A WALLASEY woman who left her mother’s body unburied for months was jailed for 11 months. Hazel Maddock admitted taking a payment from Olive Maddock’s pension after she died, and preventing her burial.

AUGUST

THE Tranmere Rovers Supporters Trust revealed its plans to take the club into community ownership. In the same month Rovers submitted controversial plans to build almost 100 homes on a World War I memorial field at Ingleborough Road – hoping to boost club funds by £5m.

TRIBUTES were paid to Wallasey mother-of-two Anne Marie Cleary. The 41-year-old Wirral Partnership Homes worker was stabbed to death at her home in Oarside Drive

RESIDENTS and businesses in Birkenhead were left counting the cost after riots which broke out across the UK spread to Wirral.

WIRRAL residents were asked to help the council balance its budget – by going online to say where they would spend the money.

SEPTEMBER

WIRRAL Council’s leadership promised decisive action following a damning report into how the authority has been run.

MPs blasted a proposed parliamentary boundary shake-up which would see one Wirral seat axed – with another stretching across the River Mersey and into Cheshire.

WIRRAL Council dropped plans to privatise its parks and countryside services.

THE family of teenager Hayley Holmes said she was “one in a million” after her body was discovered on New Brighton beach. The body of her missing boyfriend Robbie Crofts, 21, was found two weeks later after a massive land and water search. The couple are thought to have drowned after making a late night visit to New Brighton after the Mathew Street Festival.

OCTOBER

THOUSANDS of runners took to the streets of Wirral as the Liverpool Marathon returned after a gap of nearly 20 years

THE parents of Upton teenager Jonathan Brown, who was killed in a car crash on Telegraph Road, said he was a “remarkable and inspirational” son.

TRIBUTES were paid to New Brighton teenager Georgia Varley, who fell between a train and a platform at James Street station in Liverpool.

WIRRAL Council joined forces with the wealthy Chinese city of Taicang in a bid to promote jobs and encourage investment in the borough.

NOVEMBER

HUNDREDS of homes in Moreton and Leasowe spent up to five days without gas after supplies were cut off by a burst water main.

WIRRAL braced itself for transport chaos as public sector workers went on strike in a row over pensions, forcing the closure of both tunnels and the cancellation of ferry services

VIEWERS were moved to tears by films on Children in Need and the X Factor featuring the story of Higher Bebington schoolboy Elliot Wild and Wallasey’s Lloyd family. Elliot died in March after a brave battle against leukaemia.

Tom, Dan and Sam Lloyd all have the genetic muscle wasting condition Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

IT was revealed Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology would become a satellite centre under plans to transfer Merseyside’s cancer services to Liverpool

DECEMBER

THE Queen made her first visit to Wirral in 15 years. Accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, she unveiled a plaque at the Floral Pavilion Theatre and enjoyed lunch cooked by Wirral Masterchef champion Claire Lara

IT WAS revealed tunnel tolls could rise to £1.70 in 2012 under figures released by Merseytravel.

PROTESTORS fighting plans to build on a World War I memorial field on Ingleborough Road field said they were outraged at council plans to review a covenant restricting development on the land.