Lake 25

Issue 25 • March/April 2017

The local interest magazine for West Kirby, Hoylake, Meols and Caldy

The Archaeology of Hilbre Islands • The Last Minstrel of Hoylake • Woggle Talk

Welcome to issue twenty-five of The Lake, the local interest magazine for West Kirby, Hoylake, Meols and Caldy.

We would like to thank our readers for your kind comments and to encourage you to keep writing to us with your thoughts and stories.

@lakewirral

We’d also like to thank our advertisers without whom this magazine wouldn’t be possible – we are extremely grateful to them for their continuing support.

The Lake provides local interest and historical stories on a bi-monthly basis and we hope you enjoy it. Please get in touch if there is anything you want to see in future issues, or if you have any stories or pictures of your own that you want to share.

Published by: Wirral Advertising Media Ltd, Royal Standard House, 334 New Chester Road, Rock Ferry, Wirral CH42 1LE.

Contact the Editor by email: jon@lakemagazine.co.uk Or by post to: Jon Bion, Editor, The Lake, Royal Standard House, 334 New Chester Road, Rock Ferry, Wirral CH42 1LE. Telephone 07796 945745.

Contacts:

Our team has years of experience in design, production and distribution.

The magazine is delivered door-to-door to 12,500 homes and businesses in the area and copies are available from various outlets.

Editor Jonathan Bion 07796 945745 jon@lakemagazine.co.uk

If you feel that advertising in The Lake would benefit your business, we would welcome the opportunity to discuss this with you. Please contact Alan Strange on 07788 510868 or email: alan@lakemagazine.co.uk

Sales Director Alan Strange 07788 510868 alan@lakemagazine.co.uk

www.lakemagazine.co.uk Cover image: © Paulfarrell2013 | Dreamstime.com - September Sunrise Photo (Meols) Photographs and original material are submitted at the sender’s risk and must be accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope if you wish them to be returned. The publishers will not accept responsibility for loss or damage.

Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of material published, Wirral Advertising Media can accept no responsibility for the veracity of the claims made by advertisers. Any views expressed in The Lake are not necessarily the views of the publisher.

CONTENTS

Accounts accounts@lakemagazine.co.uk Delivered free to 12,500 homes and businesses in West Kirby, Hoylake, Meols and Caldy For distribution queries please call 0151 644 9475

04 Wirral Open Studios

26 The Wirral Society

07 A History of Open Spaces

28 The Wirral Bikeathon

08 The Archaeology of Hilbre Islands

30 Maggie’s Cancer Charity

10 The Last Minstrel of Hoylake

31 Fad versus Facts

12 West Kirby Sailing Club

32 All Things Auctioneering

13 Woggle Talk

34 Shorelines

18 Famous Faces from West Wirral

36 What’s on the Big Screen

22 Strictly Come Dancing at The Hazelwell

37 The Clatterbridge Cancer Charity

24 Wine Column

38 Fitness Queen

Let us know how we can help promote your events

The Editor, The Lake, Royal Standard House, 334 New Chester Road, Rock Ferry, Wirral CH42 1LE Email: jon@lakemagazine.co.uk • Telephone 07796 945745.

04 The Lake

Wirral Ramblers Wirral Ramblers offer beautiful countryside walks in areas such as Wales, Yorkshire, the Lakes and the Peak District. Choose from a variety of levels from beginner to experienced. All you need are a good pair of walking boots and lots of enthusiasm!

Come along, make new friends and enjoy our beautiful countryside.

For more information contact Linda Starkey 07518971074 or Sarah Head 07515254995 or visit www.wirralramblers.org.uk

Amanda Oliphant

Wirral Open Studios June 10th and 11th 2017 This June, Wirral artists will once again throw open their studio doors to visitors. You are cordially invited to meet the wide range of talented local professional and semi-professional artists who will be showcasing their work at the eighth annual Wirral Open Studios Tour (WOST).

This weekend gives you the chance to see at first hand the work of local artists displayed in their studios, homes, gardens and exhibition spaces. It’s an opportunity to meet, chat and engage with painters, photographers, printmakers, potters, glass designers, illustrators and textile artists. If you enjoy art and crafts, this is definitely a date for your diary.

We hope the informal and relaxed settings of this event will allow visitors to understand our artists’ inspirations and creative techniques, share in their passion for creative arts, and help celebrate this eminently popular culture-filled Wirral weekend.

With more than 1,500 people visiting the event from across the North West in 2015 and 2016, the tour continues to grow in popularity and reputation since its inception in 2009. As all is work for sale, visitors will also have the opportunity to take away a piece of original art to treasure, if they choose.

You can download a map and plan your tour route around the exhibiting artists via: www.wirralart.com

Suzanne and her team have had a great opening weekend at their new showroom and design studios at The Mount Heswall. Starting on Thursday 9th March they launched with an exclusive invitation evening for their previous clients and special guests. To reflect the history of the building at The Mount, the evening was a 50s theme with milk cocktails, canapes and rock ‘n’ roll in celebration of the old Milk Bar venue in Heswall.

The following two days was an open house to their showrooms with plenty of fizz flowing along with special gift bags for all visitors over the weekend.

Derek King

Don’t worry if you missed this though - the showroom is now open Monday to Saturday 10am - 4pm so come in and get inspired.

Wirral Map Reproductions

Bespoke and Personal Map Service We offer a comprehensive mapping service, from one-off high quality prints to a complete mounting and framing package.

All of the high quality prints are faithfully reproduced from our collection of original O/S Maps, (with kind permission of the Ordnance Survey).

All areas of Wirral covered from 1840 to 1950s.

For further information please ring Brian on 07585 778291

or email: wirralmapreproductions@hotmail.co.uk

The Perfect Easter Gift

The Lake 07

A History of Open Spaces, Parks and Gardens of West Kirby

by Heather Chapman Have you ever wondered how different West Kirby would have been if Caldy and Grange Hills were covered with houses? It was our forward-thinking Urban District Council of Hoylake and West Kirby, along with some very generous benefactors, who secured these wonderful open spaces for the use of the public in perpetuity.

The Wirral Footpaths and Open Spaces Preservation Society was formed in 1888, ten years before the National Trust. The Society ensured that West Kirby retained the attractive hillsides with public footpaths, bridleways and byways. The hillsides are a walker’s paradise and contribute to the enjoyment and health of all. The West Kirby heaths were a joy to Victorian botanists and there was a growing desire for access to the countryside.

laid out and pathways surrounded a lake (surface expression of the River Birket), with a bridge over the railway line from the lower to upper park. Bowling, croquet and tennis were among the sports played there and people could stroll in safety. Flower shows and other entertainments took place during the summer months. When winters were severe, ice skating was enjoyed on the lake.

The council bought land on West Kirby Promenade in order to build the Victoria Gardens, which opened in 1915 without ceremony.

There were tennis courts and bowling and putting greens. A pitch and putt course opened at the bottom of Dee Lane in 1931, opposite the boathouse, where rowing and motor boats could be hired on the Marine Lake.

The local newspaper of 1926 reported: “The tide of housing was rapidly sweeping over the Peninsula of Wirral and it had been urged that if Councils and local authorities did not now provide for open spaces the opportunity to do so would soon disappear. The people of Liverpool must find somewhere to live and they were coming over to the Wirral Peninsula more and more every year. The value of the open spaces would be acknowledged by future generations.”

Sandlea Gardens

In 1936, the council bought Sandlea House and converted it into a library, which opened in 1938. Sandlea Gardens were open to the public and admired by everybody.

Caldy Hill and Beacon

Generous donations of land were made by several local men, including John Shaw Leigh, Sir Alfred Paton, Joseph Brocklehurst, Arthur Kilpin Bulley, Robert George Morton, William Clibbert Stapledon, Olaf Stapledon, Frederick Cox and J D Rutherford.

Without the generosity of these men, West Kirby might have been a sprawling development with very few green and open spaces.

After the railway came to West Kirby in 1878 there was a massive population explosion. In addition to lots of new residents, the seaside town was popular with holidaymakers and day trippers.

There was an increasing need for pleasure grounds with recreational facilities. Residents and visitors wanted open spaces to relax in and where they could enjoy the good clean air of West Kirby.

West Kirby Park (later known as Ashton Park) opened in 1901, firstly the lower park and then later the upper park. West Kirby Park provided various facilities – the flower gardens were attractively

Coronation Gardens

Coronation Gardens opened in 1938. These beautifully manicured gardens had alcoves with seating (known as ‘the ovens’ by locals) overlooking the promenade.

Newton Park was a welcome recreational facility for the expanding village and Grange Community Park opened more recently.

In 1969 Cheshire County Council bought the land of the redundant West Kirby to Hooton railway line. This was transformed into Wirral Country Park which opened in 1973 and was the first country park in Britain.

One must not forget the Nature Reserve at Hilbre Island, famous as a bird sanctuary, and the more recent Gilroy Nature Reserve.

Ashton Park

If you are interested in finding out more about the history of the ‘Open Spaces, Parks and Gardens of West Kirby’, Heather Chapman will give an illustrated talk on Thursday 6th April at 2.30pm in West Kirby Library. The talk is free, but booking is essential beforehand as space is limited. This talk is just one of several taking place during April as part of Wirral Libraries’ Local History Month.

08 The Lake

The Archaeology of Hilbre Islands Christine Longworth tells The Lake readers about the display at West Kirby Museum, including the results of the 2016 Community Dig

Hilbre 1907

Everyone living in West Kirby and Hoylake is familiar with the outlines of the Hilbre Islands in the Dee Estuary. The natural history of the islands is well known, but people may not be aware of the very long record of archaeological activity on the islands from about 5000 BC to the present.

The first visitors to the islands were Middle Stone Age (Mesolithic) hunter-gatherers. They came to Little Eye and Hilbre and left shell middens and remains of flint knapping. They lived off the land and sea around them where there were plentiful supplies of food, including fish, shellfish, berries and deer. They rarely settled for more than a few days in any one area.

Over the following centuries subsequent visitors to the islands left such evidence as flint and bronze tools and the Romans left behind pottery fragments and bronze buckles.

We know that Chester Abbey sent two monks to live on Hilbre Island in about 1140. They had servants to help manage the medieval fishery and harbour of Hyle Lake and to collect the tithes for West Kirby. This arrangement continued until the dissolution of the monasteries in the 1530s. There are no remains of any buildings from this early date. Chester Abbey survived the dissolution and became a cathedral, maintaining ownership of the islands until the freehold title was sold to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in the 19th century. In 1945 they were sold to Hoylake Urban District Council. They are now owned by Wirral Borough Council.

Chester was the major port for this area before Liverpool developed.

Hilbre became an important outport of Chester because of its proximity to the deep water at Hyle Lake. The modern town of Hoylake was not built until the 19th century. Hilbre was often used as a departure point for the movement of troops to Ireland. It is well documented that King William III embarked for Ireland at Hoyle Lake in 1690 on his way to fight the Battle of the Boyne. He was accompanied by soldiers and horses taking ship from several small north Wirral ports, including Hilbre.

Telegraph Station

Hilbre Island also had a role to play during WWI and WWII. Army personnel from the Cheshire Regiment were based on Hilbre during WWI. In WWII the RAF set up a starfish decoy on Middle Eye in 1941. The aim was to confuse the German bombers raiding Liverpool and Birkenhead. It was described as a street of rabbit-like huts with windows along the central pathway of the island. Power came from the dynamo house on Hilbre, with cables across to Middle Eye. Over the past ten years, several archaeological excavations have taken place on Hilbre Island. In 2006 evidence of an ancient building was uncovered. The postholes of a rectangular structure were found which may belong to the early medieval period (AD 400–1100). Dwelling houses from this period are rare finds in north-west England, making this a particularly important discovery.

The 2016 Community Dig explored this area further to reveal more of the rectangular structure and what appears to be a cobbled entrance threshold to the building.

Dr Rob Philpott will be giving a talk at St Bridget’s Centre, West Kirby on Friday 31st March entitled ‘New Archaeological Discoveries on Hilbre – The 2016 Community Dig’. Tickets: £3.

Time: 7pm for 7.30.

An exhibition about Hilbre archaeology will be on display in West Kirby Museum from 31st March until the end of May. The museum is part of St Bridget’s Centre and is open every Saturday between 10am and 1pm. Admission is free.

It is a surprise to discover that salt refining was carried out on Hilbre at the end of the 17th century after rock salt had been discovered in Cheshire. The rock salt was refined by boiling it in seawater with coal as the fuel. Both the rock salt and coal were brought to Hilbre by sea. There are hints of this industry still visible on Hilbre Island and on the foreshore.

A striking building on Hilbre Island today is the Telegraph Station on the highest point of the island. It was built in 1841 as part of a chain of stations from Holyhead to Liverpool to provide shipowners with advanced notice of approaching merchantmen. This allowed them to prepare the docks in good time and to plan the next voyage.

2016 Community Dig

The Lake 09

Lees Solicitors Family team welcomes back Sarah Fox “I am very much looking forward to returning to my work and advising my clients. I greatly enjoy meeting new clients and hearing their stories and hope that I am able to continue to assist them in what is often a very difficult and traumatic time in their lives.

Sarah Fox

Lees Solicitors are delighted to welcome Sarah Fox back to the Family team.

Sarah has returned to Lees Solicitors after maternity leave.

Sarah is a Chartered Legal Executive in our Family Department at Lees Solicitors.

She has been with the firm since 2005 after graduating from Bangor University with a Sports Science degree.

Sarah has also spent six years studying with the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives while working in the Family Department at Lees Solicitors, and after many years of hard work she became a Chartered Legal Executive in 2012.

Sarah comments on her return to our Family Department: “I have had a wonderful year welcoming my new baby into the world and becoming a parent again. It has been a very special time for me and my family and we are looking forward to the future ahead of us.

“I am a member of Resolution – First for Family Law. We are a group of family lawyers who specialise in advising our clients in the most nonconfrontational way possible and to ensure our clients are able to deal with their case in the most cost-effective way as possible. Resolution members have to follow a strict Code of Practice and we strive to deal with matters on behalf of our clients as quickly as possible.

“Resolution members also try to encourage solutions to assist and support the family, keeping in mind that the best interests of the children are the priority. By dealing with matters this way we are able, on the majority of occasions, to keep matters away from the courtroom by encouraging alternative dispute resolution.

At Lees we understand that a breakdown of a relationship is upsetting and can be one of the most difficult times in your life.

We will provide you with expert, professional and sensitive legal advice, helping you deal with divorce, financial matters and any questions you may have as a parent.

What Lees Solicitors can do for you…

• Fixed fee options available • Out of hours appointments from 5-7pm on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

• Heswall office open on a Saturday (book for an appointment) • Three local offices to choose from • Collaborative Lawyers • Trained Mediator

“All of us in the Family Department are looking forward to the year ahead, and we will be doing our very best to assist our clients with any difficulties that they may have encountered.”

If you are in need of family law advice, contact our team at one of our nearby offices to book an appointment or to chat through your options:

If you would like to talk to one of our specialist family law advisors, please call us free on 0800 387 927 (and ask for your nearest office) or email family@lees.co.uk or visit our website www.lees.co.uk/family

Heswall 0151 342 6273 West Kirby 0151 625 9364 Birkenhead 0151 647 9381

10 The Lake

The Last Minstrel of Hoylake Heather Chapman tells readers about ‘Pete’ Dwight (1857–1940) In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Hoylake was a vibrant seaside town. Popular with day trippers and holidaymakers alike, there was also a rapidly expanding residential population, which created a need for entertainment. Before the days of cinema and television, travelling troupes of entertainers performed regularly at public halls, theatres and seaside pavilions. One such venue was the Concert Lighthouse Pavilion at the promenade end of Alderley Road, Hoylake, which later became the Winter Gardens Cinema.

Older readers may remember a well-known local character ‘Pete’ Dwight, the minstrel who entertained the crowds on Hoylake beach.

Pete’s Music Hall Family Pete’s real name was Albert and he was born with the theatre in his blood. For the purpose of this article I will refer to him as Pete.

He was born on 26th August 1857 in London to the entertainer Henry Charles Dwight and his wife Sarah Eleanor Dwight (nee Gale).

Henry and Sarah were married in Liverpool in 1847. All their children worked in the theatre business. Henry was the founder and proprietor of ‘Dwight’s Male and Female Ethiopian Troupe of Maryland Minstrels’, a talented group that included his wife and all their children. The troupe travelled the length and breadth of the country, delighting the audiences with their entertainment.

Henry died in 1889, leaving seven living children who continued in the entertainment business. He named two of his children Romeo and Juliet. Sadly Alfred Romeo Dwight died as a young child in 1853. Juliet was born in 1852 and performed with the Dwight’s Maryland Minstrels. She married William Revill, a famous theatre manager from Stockport.

Sarah Eleanor was born in 1847. She married Thomas John Browning, another musician and composer, who took the stage name of Kent.

Two of Thomas and Sarah’s children, Beattie and Cora, both married comedians, and Miss Cissie Kent was famous as a Victorian daredevil parachutist. Henry James Dwight was born in 1850 and died tragically in 1875. The headline read: “A negro artist killed”.

Celia Emily was born in 1854 and was an actress and vocalist. She married Glasgow theatrical manager, Frank Sephton. Gale St John Dwight (Gale was his mother’s maiden name) was born in 1855 and became a music hall star. He acted first with his siblings and later with his own children and stepchildren. Gale’s stepdaughter, Vera Smart, married James Enrique Carreras, a founder of Hammer films.

Gale’s family settled in Wallasey. Christina was born in 1860 and also active in the world of the music hall. She is described in the advertisement for the Maryland Minstrels as ‘Mademoiselle Christine’.

Christina died in 1889.

Pete certainly had a theatrical family with both parents and two brothers and four sisters following a music hall career. It must have been an exhausting life entertaining and travelling. Censuses show how the family moved around the country. In 1861 the family were living in Northumberland and his father was a vocalist.

By 1881 Pete had left home and married Anne. He worked as a comedian and lived in Birmingham. In 1891 Pete and his family were living in London, then in 1901 they moved to Abergele, North Wales.

In 1892 Pete was mentioned as being a solo banjo player with the Moore & Burgess Minstrels, playing at St James’s Hall, Piccadilly.

The Wandering Minstrel settled in Hoylake Pete and his wife and family eventually settled in Hoylake in the early 1900s. At the 1911 census they were living at 8 Back Sea View with two of their three sons, Thomas and George. Pete was described as a street musician. Sadly, two of their sons died as a result of the Great War. In the 1930s Pete and his wife moved to West Kirby, where Pete died in 1940. Pete had possibly visited Hoylake while he was touring and approaching retirement age saw Hoylake as a welcoming town where he was able to continue entertaining on the seashore.

Pete and his wife were living at 38 Church Road, West Kirby, when he died aged 83. The newspaper report of his death said: “Locally, Pete was a great favourite with the young people, who were attracted by his black face, twanging banjo, and rippling merriment.”

12 The Lake

West Kirby Sailing Club

By Phil Shepherd

The recent sailing highlight has been the Winter Tidal Series, with 20 dinghies so far competing in 12 races. The boats have ranged from Lasers and Solos to Albacores, though mention must be made of Dan Skinner’s leading RS300. The weather conditions have ranged from light winds and warm sunshine to the squally cold winter winds that only a few have ventured out in. There has also been a Winter Lake Series to keep the hardy in practice.

Junior training has continued through the winter, and includes our own Optimists, Cadets and 420s, together with visiting RYA Zone Squads from Topper and Optimist fleets.

A squad of WKSC Optimists has also been touring the North West, training and competing with youths from other clubs.

At the end of January, the young match racing team of Octavia Owen, Hebe Hemmings, Amber and Ruby Riggs competed in the RYA Winter Match Racing Championship, which is open to all, and came second, only losing one race narrowly, to the eventual winner.

Forthcoming Events Start of lake fleet racing: 28th March President’s Race (tidal): 15th April Summer Optimist Dolphins: 21st April Onboard Junior Training: 22nd April

It is the team racing season, and the club is busy hosting some major events this year, including the UKTRA Championships, British University finals, and the Wilson Trophy.

Wilson Trophy: 5th, 6th & 7th May

As the tidal boats are refurbished for the summer, WKSC has acquired a fleet of nine Limbo 6.6 yachts, which will compete at low water, but will also have longer races to Rhyl and Beaumaris and be ideal for day sailing.

Contact

Monday Night Adult Beginners: 8th May

office@wksc.org.uk 0151 625 5579

The Lake 13

Woggle Talk – by Rastus This series of articles looks at West Wirral Scouting over the last 100 years and, in particular, highlights the jottings and memories of the 1st West Kirby Group.

Old Birkenhead YMCA

Lord Baden-Powell in 1929

1: Birth of the Scouting Movement and inception of a local Scout Group Readers may be aware that the Scout Movement was officially launched by Lord Baden-Powell on 24 January 1908, but it seems that there are records of Boy Scouts and Scouting Groups from as early as 1900. Although it is reported that The Boys’ Brigade began its scouting scheme in 1906, scouting is usually considered to have started on 1 August 1907 with a camp run by Robert Baden-Powell on Brownsea Island, Dorset. Thereafter, the publishers C. Arthur Pearson Limited and Baden-Powell began promoting scouting in Britain, and Scouting for Boys was published, initially in six fortnightly instalments from January 1908 and then in complete book form. Boys soon began forming Scout patrols and flooding the C. Arthur Pearson Limited’s Scout office and Baden-Powell with requests for assistance. The Scouting Movement developed rapidly from here.1 The first Scout patrols and troops were formed in the United Kingdom in 1907. There are a number of claimants to be the first troop. The 1st Birkenhead (YMCA) has a claim to be the oldest Scout troop as it was founded on 24 January 1908 when Baden-Powell attended a meeting at the Birkenhead YMCA. Documents at the YMCA, including a wall plaque, confirm this fact.

Baden-Powell at the 1929 ‘Coming of Age’ Jamboree in Birkenhead (Arrowe Park) confirmed that: “It was here in Birkenhead that I first mooted the idea of Scouting.”

Baden-Powell’s dream for the youth of the world and his legacy Although the Scout movement encompasses ages of boys (and now girls) from Wolf Cubs, Scouts, Senior Scouts and Rover Scouts, this short summary is restricted to Scouts. Baden-Powell defined the purpose of Scouting: “to contribute (together with family, school and other social institutions) to the development of young people in achieving their full physical, intellectual and spiritual potentials as individuals, as responsible citizens and as members of their local, national and international communities” Continued...

14 The Lake to protect himself from sun and rain. If it was good enough for the founder it was naturally good enough to be worn proudly by Scouts worldwide.

The original Scout uniform consisted of a khaki button-up epaulette shirt, khaki shorts and long khaki socks secured with garters and tabs. While designed for neatness and comfort, the early uniforms were also very practical. The shirts were made of strong cloth with thick seams to make them ideal for temporary stretchers with staves. The epaulettes were useful for carrying papers, etc., when the arms were laden. Neckerchiefs, in unique troop or country colours, could easily be used as a sling or triangular bandage, if and when needed. The woggle could be used to secure bundles of kindling wood, etc. The elastic garters and the leather straps of the hats, lanyards and Wood Badges could be used where string was needed or as an emergency tourniquet.

Other optional, but useful items were a belt with Scout buckle – ideal for opening bottle tops, a sheath knife (sign of the times!), penknife, compass, whistle, pencil and paper. The shirt was, of course, proudly decorated with troop name tags, patrol colours, merit and rank badges, including second class, first class and King (Queen) Scout insignia.

In the 1950s the 1st West Kirby Scouts met twice a week on Wednesdays (casual clothes) and Saturdays (full uniform) evenings.

Full uniform was always, regardless of the season and weather – shorts for both Scouts and Leaders (still official wear in early 1960s).

Scout stone in Brownsea

Nowadays there are modifications to the uniform items and colour.

Sea Scouts are easily recognised by their distinctive uniform.

To achieve these principles, the basic tools are the Scout Promise and Laws. Through the promise and law, a young person makes, of his own free will, a personal commitment to a given code of behaviour and he accepts, before his peers, the responsibility to obey them. To this day, and I am an old man, I can still remember the ‘rhyme’ to remember the ten Scout laws: Trusty, Loyal, Helpful, Brotherly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Smiling, Thrifty, Clean in Body and Mind.

The Scout Movement also has unique communication signs alerting like-members of the brotherhood, such as the three-fingered Scout Salute and Handshake (left hand). Its motto is ‘Be Prepared’ (Baden-Powell) and the universal, very recognisable emblem is the fleur-de-lis (trefoil for Guides), which is on all uniforms worldwide in some form. The significance of the fleur-de-lis may not be well known to many readers. The Scouts adopted the fleur-de-lis symbol from its use in the compass rose because “it points in the right direction (and upwards) turning neither to the right nor left, since these lead backward again”. The three petals represent the threefold Scout Promise (God, Country and Duty): On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, To do my duty to God and to the Queen, To help other people at all times, And to keep the Scout Law.2 The two five-point stars stand for truth and knowledge. Together their ten points represent the ten original Scout laws. The reef (flat) knot represents the strength of World Scouting. The rope is for unity of worldwide scouts. The ring (woggle) holding the petals together represents the bond of brotherhood.

Scout uniform Although the scout uniform has been modified over the years, it is still recognised worldwide as a characteristic of Scouting. In discussing the uniform, Baden-Powell pointed out that it: “hides all differences of social standing in a country and makes for equality; but more important still, it covers differences of country and race and creed, and makes all feel that they are members with one another of the one great brotherhood” Perhaps the main focus of the original uniform was the quintessential broad-brimmed ‘campaign’ hat with a badge of rank pinned to the crown. Baden-Powell had worn a similar hat in his Mafeking days

Scouting in West Kirby during WW1 years WW1 must have been such a shock and upheaval for family units.

Fathers and eligible sons would have enlisted for the war effort and left for the front. Suddenly, overnight, younger boys left at home, matured and became men with new-found responsibilities. Many would become breadwinners to keep the family home fires burning and many, through necessity, would have left school at 14 years of age.

Many of these young boys joined the Scouts not only to learn new life-skills, but also for confidence and comradeship. Young Scout Leaders would also have enlisted and presumably the new Leaders were older men. The shortage of young boys in the district affected everyone, either directly or indirectly. The News of 23 January 1915 highlights this: SHORTAGE OF BOYS “We hear that many local tradesmen are finding the greatest difficulty in securing labour for the delivery of their goods. Boys are becoming scarce commodities, and the reason is not far to seek, the call of the colours having almost drained the district. As a consequence, customers should try to avoid unreasonable demands on resources which are extremely limited”

The Lake 15 LITTLE ECONOMIES. BIG RESULTS. Old newspapers are worth more than ever today. Won’t you give yours for the National Relief Fund? The Organisers of the Old Newspapers Scheme desire to draw the attention of householders and others in the West Kirby and surrounding districts to the collection of Old Newspapers which are being organised by the North West Wirral Boy Scouts Association in aid of the above fund.

Communication should be sent to: C. A. Lee, Hon. Sec. Boy Scouts Assoc, 21, Sandy Lane, West Kirby, and bundles to: The Christian Institute, Grange Road, West Kirby.

All willing to give their old newspapers should send in their names and addresses to the Secretary. The Scouts will then call for bundles of papers periodically. Only Morning, Evening, Weekly and Sunday newspapers are required. Coloured paper is acceptable, but must be bundled separately. No stitched Journals, Magazines or Booklets must be included in the bundles. Neglect of this rule will result in the rejection of paper.

1st West Kirby Scout Group Under these tragic circumstances, Scouting in the Wirral continued as normal as possible, despite the sad news all around. Scout Notes in The News dated 26 August 1916 demonstrate this: “The local Scouts, accompanied by Asst. Scoutmaster Atkinson, 4th Wallasey Troop went to Eastham on Saturday last. It was a 14-mile journey to qualify for 1st Class. They passed through Heswall, Gayton, Raby, Hinderton and Bromborough and despite several minor accidents to machines, they reached Eastham Ferry about 7pm.

Port Sunlight and Bebington were touched on the way back, and later Greasby, Frankby etc.; the whole producing an interesting and enjoyable journey” The 1st West Kirby scouts were active volunteers during the WWI years as evidenced by letters to the editor in The News of 17 October 1914.

Only two years after the experimental Brownsea Island camp and one year after the launch of scouting by Baden-Powell in Birkenhead in 1908, the 1st West Kirby Group was founded. The Group was originally affiliated to and controlled by the West Kirby Parish Church of St Bridget’s and met in church-related properties until about 1928. From 1909 to 1919 it met in the West Kirby Christian Institute (YMCA – opposite West Kirby Railway Station). From 1920 to 1926 it met in West Kirby Parish Church Schools, moving to a West Kirby Parish Church Old School Room from 1927 to 1928.

From 1928 to 1929 it met in a loft in the Old Village and from 1929 to 1932 meetings were held in a loft in Albert Road. [Many thanks to Mrs Pam Howarth for this research]

LEFT OFF CLOTHING To the Editor of The News Sir – Seeing an appeal in a daily paper for clothing for the relief of Belgian Refugees in this country or sheltering in West Flanders, I feel sure there are many who have old or new clothing for men, women and children at their disposal that they would gladly give for this purpose. Parcels can be sent (mended, in good condition) with a donation for carriage of same to the matron Lear Home, West Kirby, who will pack and forward them to the Relief Centre. P.S. – The Scouts can collect parcels for this object if notice is sent to the Scout Master, T. D. Lee Esq., Kirby Park, West Kirby.

We learn from the letter to the editor that Mr T. D. Lee is the 1st West Kirby Scout Master in 1914. He is likely to be Mr Thorold Dracup Lee (1881–1963), a son of the family Arthur H. Lee & Sons Tapestry Works (est. 1908) in Stanley Road, Birkenhead. In 1911 Thorold Lee was still a bachelor living with the Lee family at Redcliffe, Devonshire Road, West Kirby. I am not sure whether Thorold Lee was the inaugural 1st West Kirby Scoutmaster.

The North West Wirral Scout Association was also proactive in HRH The Prince of Wales National Relief Fund as advertised in The News of 18 March 1918: PLEASE SUPPORT HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS, THE PRINCE OF WALES NATIONAL RELIEF FUND Old Newspaper Scheme By supporting this Newspaper Fund you will be: 1. Aiding National Resources by reducing imports.

2. Assisting National Economy by the utilisation of waste material.

3. Helping to keep British Paper Mills going.

4. Make a contribution through the Fund for the alleviation of suffering and distress caused by the war.

St Bridget’s Parish Church

In the post-WWI years and early 1930s, Scouting was not only very popular but it was the proud and ‘in thing’ to be seen as part of the brotherhood. Not only was 1st West Kirby Group growing, but there were increasing numbers of Scouting Groups in West Wirral as attested by a 1st West Kirby Boy Scouts report in The News of 6 May 1932: The Fifth Anniversary and Church Parade of the 1st West Kirby Group took place on Sunday last, May 1st, at the West Kirby Parish Church. About 180 boys and officers were present, and these included representatives from 1st, 3rd and 4th West Kirby Groups, 1st, 2nd and Hilbre Hoylake Groups, 2nd Moreton and 1st Heswall. The service which was conducted by the Rev. F.J. Mitchell, MA was preceded by a short parade. The Rev. Mitchell’s sermon was fully appreciated. The hymns chosen were ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’. ‘Fight the Good Fight’, ‘Soldiers of Christ Arise’, ‘Jerusalem’, and the 1st West Kirby Group’s special hymn ‘Be Prepared’. The prayers were taken from the Scout Prayer Book. Refreshments were afterwards served in the Parish Church Hall by members of the general and ladies committees. The officers of 1st West Kirby Group wish to thank all visiting Groups for their support and all those who so kindly helped in other ways.”

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_oldest_Scout_groups 2. http://members.scouts.org.uk/supportresources/2943/scout-promise-law-and-motto?cat=7,132

Next issue: Woggle Talk # 2: “Coming of Age” – West Wirral Scouting on the World Stage

16 The Lake

St Bridget’s Centre, St Bridget’s Lane, West Kirby CH48 3JT The museum is open every Saturday morning 10am–1pm Free admission West Kirby Museum is situated within St Bridget’s Centre alongside St Bridget’s Church. The refurbished museum opened in 2013 and tells the story of a thousand years of St. Bridget’s Church and the ancient history of West Kirby village and the parish.

Forthcoming events Friday 31st March 2017

‘New Archaeological Discoveries on Hilbre - The 2016 Community Dig’ Illustrated talk by Dr Rob Philpott Tickets £3 7.00pm for 7.30pm at St Bridget’s Centre, West Kirby

Saturday 8th April 2017

Local History Fair West Kirby Library 10.00am-12.30pm

Changing exhibitions in our new display cases These small exhibitions are changed every few months March History of Little Caldy April/May Hilbre Archaeology – the 2016 Community Dig

For more information, visit the website www.westkirbymuseum.co.uk

Tony Jarrett at West Kirby Methodist Church Olympic and Commonwealth Games hurdler Tony Jarrett will be speaking about his sport and his faith at West Kirby Methodist Church on Saturday 25th March. The evening will start at 7pm with a buffet meal. Tickets cost £12.50 and are available from the church office on 0151 625 3224 or by calling Dirk on 07847 739 533.

Tony obtained many medals during his 20-year career, including the 4x100 relay silver medal with fellow athletes Linford Christie, John Regis and Colin Jackson, and a gold medal at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur. He came 4th in the 110m hurdles at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, narrowly missing out on a bronze medal by 1,000th of a second to Jack Pierce of the USA. In spite of his success on the track, he often felt that something was missing in his life. Although he had won 12 medals during his career, the gold medal had always eluded him. It was not until he became a Christian that he finally won his first gold medal at senior level and his personal void was filled.

Tony has now turned to coaching as a way to share his knowledge with up-and-coming athletes, as well as coaching accomplished sports professionals in sprint and endurance conditioning. Tony also enjoys sharing his testimony, with an emphasis on seeking the things of God as opposed to what the world has to offer Dirk Uitterdijk, the church’s Community Development Worker said: “We are delighted that Tony will be speaking at West Kirby Methodist Church about his sport and faith. In a world where sport can cross borders it will be fascinating to hear about one man’s journey of faith and his continuing mission to coach and motivate the sports stars of tomorrow.”

West Kirby Methodist Church is on Westbourne Road in West Kirby, CH48 4DQ. The church is within walking distance from the station and town centre bus stops. Further details about the church’s heritage and its current activities are available on the church website: www.westkirbymethodist.btck.co.uk or by calling the Church Office on 0151 625 3224.

The Lake 17

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18 The Lake

Rob Foster tells readers about some famous faces who hail from West Wirral Merseyside is home to a plethora of famous faces and world-renowned celebrities. It may surprise some to find that Wirral – and West Wirral in particular – has produced a string of legends that will go down in history for their achievements.

Though, all too often, Wirral’s finest are overlooked in favour of big names that hail from the other side of the water. While talentless D-list wannabes are now synonymous with the term ‘celebrity’, our local heroes are true greats who fully deserve the plaudits their achievements have earned.

Music aside, Liverpool has a fantastic sporting pedigree that has brought buckets of celebrity culture to our doorstep. With two top Premier League teams just a stone’s throw away, it comes as no surprise that many of the most famous faces to be seen locally belong to footballers. In fact, celebrity footballers and their glamour-puss girlfriends are scattered across West Wirral like confetti.

John Barnes, Paul Ince and Robbie Fowler are undoubtedly soccer legends who deserve high praise, but in my eyes there are two local heroes whose sporting achievements really make them stand out.

Few would contest the fact that Merseyside’s most famous exports are those talented mop-tops who turned the music world on its head when they burst onto the scene in 1960. Of course, I’m talking about the Beatles. Not only are Lennon and Co. the most famous musicians to hail from Merseyside, but they are possibly the most famous band ever. They pushed boundaries and experimented, creating a string of fantastic albums that are still revered today.

Their creativity also touched the soul of one aspiring local music fanatic who would go on to rival the Beatles in terms of his services to music. Legend has it that a young DJ, bobbing around in a pirate radio boat moored off the Essex Coast, was brought to tears the first time he heard Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

That young DJ was John Ravenscroft – better known to music fans as John Peel.

Long before Bradley Wiggins and Chris Hoy rode to the front of the peloton, Hoylake’s own Chris Boardman was the untouchable king of British cycling. Perhaps most famous for his success in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where he pedalled like the wind and won gold for Britain in the individual pursuit, he instantly became a national hero. Not content with being the best cyclist in the world, Chris then went on to start one of the leading UK bike manufacturing companies, Boardman Bikes, which has established a fantastic reputation in the cycling industry. On a local level Chris is always keen to give back to the community through his charity work, as those who have participated in the Wirral Bikeathon will know all too well – he’s a staunch supporter of the annual event.

Born in Heswall in 1939, he was renowned for pushing boundaries and promoting bands who may otherwise not get the exposure their talent deserved. He is rightly revered with god-like status among music fans for bringing bands such as The Undertones, U2, The Smiths and Nirvana to the public’s attention. He was the man from whom every band craved approval; a sign of how well respected he was within the music industry. The ‘Peel Sessions’ were a series of over four-thousand live music sessions recorded with various bands hand-picked by John Peel for their commitment to quality music rather than their desire to chase fame – it couldn’t be any further from the X Factor.

Merseyside bands were always a regular fixture on John Peel’s playlists. Groups such as The Teardrop Explodes, OMD, Echo and the Bunnymen and Half Man, Half Biscuit were all featured on Peel Sessions. Sadly, John passed away suddenly in 2004, leaving a nation of music lovers in mourning. It seems a certainty that if he was still with us, other fantastic local bands would have received his seal of approval. Hoylake musical royalty The Coral were certainly on his radar after their 2002 self-titled debut album was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, and Meols favourite Miles Kane would have surely been right up Mr Peel’s street.

Generosity must be in the blood of local celebrities, particularly for Heswall-born Sir Ian Botham, who was knighted for his services to charity in 2007. He is estimated to have earned in excess of £10 million for various organisations through his long-distance charity walks and it appears he shows no signs of slowing down. Famously nicknamed Beefy, Botham was a controversial figure who was often in the limelight for the wrong reasons. However, he remained unrivalled at the crease throughout the 1980s, striking fear into the heart of opponents whether wielding a bat or clutching a ball. Few would question that he was the greatest all-round cricketer of his generation – not bad for a local lad.

I bet there weren’t many pupils at Hilbre High School circa 1981 who realised they were sitting next to a future James Bond as Daniel Craig sat sharpening his pencil at the back of the class. I imagine the head teacher at Gayton Primary School didn’t expect a young Fiona Bruce to grow up to become the darling of the BBC. And I’m absolutely certain no one predicted that Heswall’s Jim Bowen would cement his place as a ‘legend’ by giving speedboats to pensioners on the world’s premier darts-based quiz show, Bullseye.

West Wirral has produced a myriad of stars who stand head and shoulders above the crowd and give us locals a real reason to be proud. We don’t know who our next world-famous celebrity will be, but I’m sure there will be plenty more to come.

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20 The Lake

ParkgateFest will take place on the weekend of 3rd and 4th June 2017 in fields next to Marsh Nurseries in Boathouse Lane, Parkgate, Cheshire.

Organised and run by local residents and traders, it will celebrate and promote the uniqueness and heritage of Parkgate Cheshire’s only coastal village - and its wonderful community, in a beautiful setting.

Over two days, visitors to ParkgateFest will enjoy live music from new, established and tribute artistes; classic cars and steam engines; stalls run by traders from Parkgate and The Parade and beyond; exhibitors; competitions; a children’s entertainment area; Champagne, beer and gin marquee; street food stalls and much, much more.

Truly a weekend for all the family, it is envisaged that ParkgateFest will become an annual event, with proceeds supporting projects under the ‘Vision for Parkgate’ banner.

If you are interested in performing, or would like to book a stall or sponsor the event in any way, please email: parkgatefest@gmail.com

Could advertising in The Lake help your business?

Our distribution covers over 12,000 homes and businesses in West Kirby, Hoylake, Meols and Caldy

Hoylake RNLI hovercraft launches to person cut off by rising tide.

The Hoylake RNLI hovercraft was called out by UK Coastguard to the assistance of a person cut off by the rising tide on a sandbank off Meols on the North Wirral coast.

At 1.42pm UK Coastguard requested that the volunteer crew from the Hoylake RNLI station should launch the hovercraft and proceed to assist a person seen cut off by a member of the public. The hovercraft was launched at 1.55pm and proceeded along the coast to reach the casualty just two minutes later.

The casualty was walking four dogs along the beach on the far side of a gully which was rapidly filling with water on the rising tide.

He was unfamiliar with the local area and had not appreciated the speed with which the incoming tide filled the gully, preventing him from reaching the safety of the embankment.

The crew of the hovercraft were able to pick up the gentleman and his dogs and carry them safely to a nearby slipway where they were met by local Coastguards who ensured that he was not in need of any medical attention and offered safety advice.

Contact Alan for further information Telephone: 07788 510868 Email: alan@lakemagazine.co.uk

RNLI Crewman Harry Jones offered this advice; “The sandbanks can look very inviting to walkers but please be aware that they are also extremely dangerous on a rising tide. The water can come in along gullies faster than a person can walk. Please check tide times before venturing out on to the banks.”

The hovercraft returned to station at 2.15pm, where it was washed down and prepared for service.

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22 The Lake

Strictly Come Dancing at The Hazelwell Residents at a care home in the Wirral got into the groove with a live dose of Strictly Come Dancing this month.

The Hazelwell, a new ‘all inclusive’, residential, nursing, palliative and respite care home in Heswall, invited dance duo Stephen Atkins and Samantha Hewitt from Havana Nights to put on a themed tribute performance of the popular BBC TV dance show.

The residents were missing their weekly fix of Strictly Come Dancing since the latest series finished in December, so it was perfect timing for Havana Nights to come and strut their stuff at the £5.5million care home.

Stephen and Samantha treated the residents to several dances, colourful outfit changes and had them up on their feet and joining in, on what was the couple’s first visit to The Hazelwell. Photos of the Strictly judges were displayed and residents even had the opportunity to award the famous ‘10’ scorecard.

Mr Atkins and Ms Hewitt are a real-life couple as well as being dance partners and have been together for 10 years. The duo had a passion for dance from an early age, but it was only when they first met that their dancing really took off and they formed a professional partnership.

The couple have since performed on stage to thousands of people and appeared on TV’s Britain’s Got Talent, Got To Dance and Strictly Dance Fever.

The Hazelwell’s Care Home Manager Liza Millington said: “The Hazelwell residents and staff alike had a wonderful time when Havana Nights came to perform for us.

“Several of the residents joined in with the dancing and were so excited to watch the formal dances. Lots of the residents are big Strictly Come Dancing fans and it was a fantastic group activity.

“Dancing can promote both physical and emotional wellbeing, so the Havana Nights visit provided our residents with the opportunity to enjoy some gentle exercise and some top-notch entertainment.”

For more information call Liza on 0151 342 9654, email info@thehazelwell.com or visit www.thehazelwell.com

The Lake 23

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24 The Lake

W NE COLUMN

By Graham Simpson, Whitmore & White

Two Gentle Wines of Verona Perhaps, as one of the heroes in the play of a similar name by Mr Shakespeare was named Valentine, this article should have been in the last edition of this magazine? However, who said that the course of true love ever ran smoothly? And love is very much in the air when it comes to the two wines I am going to talk to you about this month. Two wines intertwined at the very heart of the hills around Verona. Two wines that evoke such passion and desire. Two wines encompassing all that is great about winemaking in 21st century Italy. The two wines, of course, are Valpolicella Ripasso and Amarone della Valpolicella.

For those of you who are yet to venture any further than Chianti when it comes to Italian wines, then you are in for a treat. These are sumptuous wines – some would even say decadent wines. Let me tell you a little more about these wines.

Valpolicella Ripasso The main grapes used are Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Molinara, all of which are indigenous to the region. They are harvested, fermented then macerated for a week to ten days before passing into a fermentation vessel which contains the spent lees of a prior Amarone fermentation, before ageing in oak barrels. This “re-passing” of the fermented wine over the remnants of a fermentation of a richer wine (“Ripasso”) gives the wine a fuller body and smoother style than otherwise. We like to call them “Baby Amarones”.

Here are a couple of examples available in store: Torre del Falasco Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore £14.95 Zenato Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore “Ripassa” £22.95

Amarone della Valpolicella We touched on Amarone when talking about the Ripasso above. The grapes used are the same, although usually of a higher quality, from better situated vineyards but the method of production, called “Appassimento” is slightly different to the Ripasso method above. Here, the grapes are harvested as normal but they are then laid out on large straw mats or in large baskets in a part of the winery where they are allowed to dry over the course of three to six months. The concentrated, raisined grapes are then fermented in the usual way, but the high sugar content means that to ferment fully, at least 15% alcohol must be reached and often fermentations will produce a wine up to and sometimes over 17% alcohol. The wine is then aged for two years or more in oak barrels prior to bottling. The result is something almost Port-like in intensity, but without that spirity-alcohol style that comes with fortification. Amarone wines are not fortified but have a rich, concentrated, bitter-sweetness like no other wine. Once tried, never forgotten.

Here are a couple of examples available in store: Casa Benatti Amarone della Valpolicella “Elite” £29.95 La Giuva Amarone della Valpolicella £55.95

Lulu comes to New Brighton Due to phenomenal demand, legendary singer Lulu has confirmed that she will embark on the biggest tour of her incredible career throughout October and November 2017. The ‘All About The Music Tour’ will see the Grammy-nominated singer play 39 dates across the UK, which includes New Brighton’s Floral Pavilion Theatre on Wednesday 22 November 2017.

Performing hits from a career spanning over 50 years, fans can expect to hear huge hits such as Shout, To Sir With Love, Relight My Fire and The Man Who Sold The World, amongst many others.

After a ten-year period of relative inactivity on the live scene, the release of Lulu’s most critically acclaimed album to date, 2015’s self-penned Making Life Rhyme, sparked the most prolific touring period of her entire career, leading to sellout tours in both 2015 and 2016.

Lulu said: “I absolutely love playing live and can’t wait to be out on the road again in autumn this year. My life has always been all about the music, so come and join me again or for the first time and let’s have a great night of music.”

Tickets are now on public sale from 10am on Friday 17th Feb at floralpavilion.com

The Lake 25

Do you recognise anyone in this photograph?

Veronica Giles has sent us this photograph via email. Veronica says: “I recently found this photograph which I believe is in the Newton, Grange or Greasby area and wonder if any of your readers recognise any of the passengers on this Crosville bus. I no longer live on the Wirral having moved to Somerset, but love receiving every issue of The Lake from my family.�

26 The Lake

Chairman Rod Tann discusses current issues concerning The Wirral Society Wirral Borough’s Green Belt policy The Wirral Society has written to Cllr Davies welcoming his recent public statement supporting the retention of the Green Belt in the borough, and his recognition of the difficulties of satisfying unrealistic housing targets set by the government.

It is good that he has also recognised the related problem of the number of long-standing planning permissions the council had approved, but where no development has taken place. We have reminded him that in the context of Merseyside, Wirral has just 46.65 per cent of Green Belt land, which is less than any of the other outer boroughs: St Helens has 65 per cent, Sefton 51.4 per cent and Knowsley 48.7 per cent. As a tightly populated peninsula, bounded on three sides by water, Wirral’s Green Belt is of particular significance.

As an authority we must be almost unique in England and Wales in having no opportunities for landward expansion or for the Green Belt to be rolled over.

Diamond Farm, Saughall Massie A recent Application to build houses on the ‘footprint’ of the farm buildings of this working farm has thankfully been rejected by Wirral Council. We are hopeful this decision will not be overturned if there is an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate. It would appear that this Application was an attempt to close down the farm operation. This would have then meant the applicants could turn their attention to building on its Green Belt farmland, which currently also functions as a buffer between Moreton township and Saughall Massie village.

Proposed Hoylake Golf Resort We commend the work being undertaken by the ‘Stop the Golf Resort’ Committee. The Society has made a financial donation towards the cost of leaflets now being circulated to households. They are already proving to be useful in enlightening many people in north-west Wirral about the public money that has, and is, being committed to this proposal, and also just what the scale and impact this scheme would have on the area, should it be built. Do take the opportunity to find out more at www.stopthegolfresort.uk

Proposed Saughall Massie Fire Station

‘The Scrape’, adjacent to Gilroy Nature Reserve, West Kirby We are aware that a meeting took place with the council on 18th January, at which it was hoped that the proposed Hoylake Langfields (including Gilroy) Site of Biological Importance (SBI) would be finalised.

Unfortunately this didn’t happen, as more bird records for the area were needed. They have now been obtained and this will help a sensible boundary for the SBI order to be decided on at a future meeting. Also, Natural England is to be asked for the Scrape to be made a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), along with a few other sites along the Dee Estuary not already covered – but there are doubts this will happen in the foreseeable future.

Our contact tells us that nothing appears to be happening to restore water to the Scrape itself. While the mud is still very wet and attracting some birds, it will only be from April onwards that we will know whether the Godwits will return and stay to breed.

The saga of this proposed relocation continues. We were pleased at the outcome of the Wirral Council Planning Committee meeting last December. Although the committee rejected it on the grounds of the closeness of the proposed site to the adjacent sheltered housing complex, it was disappointing that the majority of the committee didn’t consider the retention of the Green Belt to be important. We learn the Merseyside Fire & Rescue Authority has recently agreed that it will commit yet more public money to fighting an Appeal, which would be heard by the Planning Inspectorate, in the hope of overturning the decision. It also agreed to submit a revised Planning Application – which must surely still have to be located close to the sheltered housing complex. Should this Appeal be heard and the new Application submitted, the Society will play its part in trying to ensure the decision-makers are made well aware of the many reasons why the move to this site is both unnecessary and unsuitable.

The Society is keen to invite people who would like to lend us their support, which would add to our lobbying strength. The subscription is just £10 a year. You can find further details on our website www.wirralsociety.net or contact our membership secretary, Mrs Avril Wilmshurst on 0151 200 3920

28 The Lake

The Wirral Bikeathon 2017 the help, commitment and generosity of all its supporters in the cycling community, the current organisers (including some who have been with it from the start), are hoping to reach the magnificent £1,000,000 mark in the next two years.

This annual event is a ride, not a race, so it’s a great day out for families. Cyclists of all ages (from eight years old upwards) can take part. The route is a figure of eight loop around the Wirral with start, midpoint and finish in Arrowe Country Park. It takes in north Wirral through Caldy and the Wirral Way to West Kirby and Moreton. The second section goes from the Arrowe Park to Thornton Hough, Storeton and Landican. The full route is 28 miles in total, but for those wanting a shorter ride, a section of only 14 miles, starting and ending in the park, is possible.

In 1999 seven people planned the first-ever Wirral Bikeathon to raise funds for research into the treatment of blood cancers. Little did they know that in 2017 they would be planning the 19th such event. And little did they know how great an impact this fun-filled family cycling event would have on the local community, and how much support it would gain in the intervening years.

On 13 April 1999 there were only 13 confirmed riders booked to take part in the ride in June. The seven organisers were not deterred and continued planning! On the day itself – 12 June 1999 – around 700 riders took part. They came from all over the Wirral, Merseyside, North Wales and the North West too. Between them they raised an amazing £23,000 plus in sponsorship for the charity, which was then called ‘Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research’.

The charity recently became ‘Bloodwise’, taking on a wider role of supporting patients with these blood cancers and similar illnesses like myeloma in addition to continuing to fund research. So far the Bikeathon has raised over £880,000 for the charity, and with

Some riders have become regulars because they enjoy it so much, and know they are contributing to a good cause. They come along on all sorts of cycles – reclining bikes, hand bikes, unicycles, a wheelchair and a range of tandems and trailer bikes. There is musical entertainment in the park and hot and cold refreshments are available as well. Light refreshments are also available at checkpoints on the route.

The 2017 Bikeathon will be very similar to previous years and will again feature a ‘selfie station’ in the start/finish area at Arrowe Park.

This was very popular on social media last year, especially because of the help of local Olympic Gold Medallist and cycling legend, Chris Boardman, whom we could describe as “the face that launched a 1,000 riders”. Chris has been the patron and a huge supporter of the Bikeathon over these many years together with members of his family.

Chris said: “Since the Wirral Bikeathon started 19 years ago, we have raised £880,000 towards beating blood cancer. We are making a really big push for the Bikeathon in 2017 and next year, and aiming to get across the £1 million mark for funds raised for Bloodwise, the leading blood cancer charity. It’s a great family event, so do come along and support us.”

This year the Bikeathon will take place on Sunday 11 June 2017 with start times between 09.30am and 11.30am. Online registration opened on 1 March 2017 at www.wirralbikeathon.com and costs £15 for adults (£5 for those aged 15 and under). Online registration closes on 5 June 2017, but it is possible to enter on the day, though that costs £25 for adults (£5 for the 15 and under age group). The registration fee is essential to cover the inevitable administrative costs, but does mean each rider will have a Wirral Bikeathon T-shirt as a memento of the day and can proudly wear the medal they will win for crossing the finishing line.

Bloodwise have set up a JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com /fundraising-page/creation/?cid=2182&eid=4054409 as this is the best way to manage fundraising, but riders can arrange to collect sponsorship money themselves. Sponsorship is the key to getting Wirral Bikeathon past the £1 million fundraising mark, so the more riders who raise money from family, friends, work colleagues and others the better.

The Lake 29 ADVERTISING FEATURE

Is Back Pain Holding You Back?

According to a recent report carried out by The British Pain Society there are ten million chronic pain sufferers in Britain alone which affect not only their social life but interferes with their working life. Back pain costs the UK billions of pounds in health bills, loss of earnings and lost productivity. However, many people in the UK who are unable to work due to back pain are not covered by this or by allowances. Instead these sufferers are reliant on their partner or early retirement.

Following a recent survey, British businesses lose an estimated 4.9 million days from employee absence due to work related back pain. The North East suffers more than most, with two people in every hundred having to cope with the condition. As a result, each affected employee takes 19 days of work, which in turn puts the business at stake.

GPs tend to refer patients to chiropractors, physiotherapists, acupuncturists and in some cases suggest surgery. In recent studies carried out by the NHS there has been a significant increase in teenagers suffering with back pain. This age group costs the NHS nearly £4billion per year alone working out at an average of £8,000 per teenager. Despite this the number of back pain sufferers is still prominent with treatment showing no guarantee of success. Bowen Therapy is an alternative therapy which has slowly but surely been sweeping the nation over the last 20 years.

The Bowen Technique is a natural, drug-free non-invasive complementary therapy which was invented in Australia and introduced to the UK in the 1990s. Bowen Therapy has a particularly strong record of success in the treatment of back pain. A national study, carried out by The Bowen Therapy Professional Association (BTPA), showed that 95 per cent of back pain sufferers experienced either complete relief or a marked improvement, after a series of no more than three Bowen treatments.

It prides itself on being able to trigger the body’s own healing systems. Rather than ‘making’ the body change, Bowen ‘asks’ the body to recognise and make the changes it requires. With primarily fingers and thumbs, the Bowen practitioner makes small, rolling movements over muscles, tendons, ligaments and soft tissue at precise points on the body, using only the amount of pressure appropriate for that individual. No hard-tissue manipulation or force is needed or used. Between each set of moves, the body is allowed to rest for a few minutes, to allow it to absorb the information it has received and initiate the healing process.

Bowen is generally pleasant to receive, each session lasting 30 – 60 minutes, depending on the age of the client and the nature of their condition. Many clients become so relaxed they fall asleep during the treatment.

Short-term (acute) injury may be resolved in one to three Bowen treatments, while long-standing (chronic) conditions may require longer. A gap of five to ten days is recommended between Bowen sessions; so that the body can process the subtle information it has been given.

Once the healing process is underway, the treatment would have taken the relief off your back meaning you can carry out activities in and outside of the workplace which you had on hold. As well as back pain Bowen Therapy also may help with a host of other health issues such as: frozen shoulders, sports injuries, whiplash, migraine, hay fever, asthma, IBS, fertility matters to name but a few.

Adventurer Bear Grylls explains: “Bowen Therapy has helped keep my body together despite the continual bashing it takes. It’s a vital support in putting right a whole range of new aches and pains, making sure that old injuries don’t cause me problems, and helping me fight stress and fatigue.”

As with many other alternative therapies the success of a treatment mainly depends on visiting a legitimate, well trained practitioner, who is a member of BTPA (The Bowen Therapy Professional Association). BTPA is the largest UK professional association for qualified Bowen Therapists. Members of this association are qualified in Anatomy and Physiology and First Aid. They are also fully insured, abide by a strict code of conduct and ethics and are committed to a programme of continuing professional development.

To find out more about how Bowen Therapy can help you, contact Nicholas Tobin on 0749 659 6969 Email: ask@bowentherapy.org.uk www.bowentherapy.org.uk

30 The Lake

Take on Maggie’s to Maggie’s Are you a runner, jogger, cyclist or even a horse rider? Whatever your steed, the cancer charity Maggie’s is calling on the Merseyside community to take on a ‘Maggie’s to Maggie’s’ challenge.

The challenge involves travelling between Maggie’s Centres (with 19 across the country), and raising money to help the thousands of people in Merseyside living with cancer. With Maggie’s Centres at different locations across the UK – like Manchester, Edinburgh and Swansea – the Maggie’s to Maggie’s challenge enables participants to visit some of the UK’s most beautiful landscapes.

For those who want to take part a bit closer to home, a static bike can be used to create a Maggie’s to Maggie’s challenge at a workplace, school or sports club. The team at the Merseyside Centre did this to mark World Cancer Day, as did the team at the National Asbestos Helpline from Chester in February 2016. The two challenges raised nearly £2,000 for the Centre.

Built in the grounds of Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, Maggie’s Merseyside provides practical and emotional support for anyone living with cancer. The Centre is a warm and welcoming place, with qualified professionals on hand to offer an evidence-based core programme of support that has been shown to improve physical and emotional well-being. Maggie’s Merseyside relies on voluntary donations to support the Centre and develop its unique, high-quality programme of support.

Kathy Wright at Maggie’s Merseyside said: “Maggie’s to Maggie’s is an adventure that you can truly make your own. However you choose to complete your challenge, the possibilities are endless because participants can choose when, how, why and where to travel.”

To find out more about Maggie’s and to see how Maggie’s Merseyside supports people with cancer please visit the Centre at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, Bebington, CH63 4JY, or get in touch at: www.maggiescentres.org/our-centres/maggies-merseyside/ or call 0151 334 4301 or email: clatterbridgefundraising@maggiescentres.org For further information about the Maggie’s to Maggie’s challenge please go to www.maggiescentres.org/maggiestomaggies

Dina who is hosting a Kitchen Table Day

Maggie’s Kitchen Table Day Cancer charity Maggie’s Merseyside is encouraging friends, families and colleagues to create events around their kitchen table – be it at work or home - this May 5th. The event will be held in celebration of Maggie’s Kitchen Table Day 2017 with events held nationwide to gather and give for people living with cancer.

Dina Charmley, a volunteer at Maggie’s Merseyside said: “I’ve been a supporter of Maggies for just over two years since my husband lost his battle with a serious brain tumour.

“Unfortunately for us Maggies wasn’t built at that time but I now know first-hand what a great place it is and how much it would have meant to me and my family to have had a place where we could have escaped the hospital environment for a cup of tea, friendly faces and vital emotional support.

“I am proud to be hosting my own kitchen table event at home, a vintage tea party in the garden, something my husband would have loved to have been a part of. The prosecco is already chilling and I’m rallying around my friends to help with the catering and provide prizes for a raffle in a bid to raise as much as I can for such a great cause as Maggies.”

Every Maggie’s Centre follows the ideas about cancer care originally laid out by Maggie Keswick Jencks. Maggie lived with advanced cancer for two years and was determined that she should not “lose the joy of living in the fear of dying”.

New visitors to Maggie’s Merseyside often head first for the kitchen table. Here they can relax with a cup of tea, perhaps join in the conversation and meet a member of Maggie’s professional staff. For Centre visitors, Maggie’s kitchen table is a place where they can talk to people who really understand what it means to be living with cancer.

Kathy Wright, Centre Head at Maggie’s Merseyside, said: “I can’t wait to see the wonderful events that people across Merseyside and Cheshire come up with to help make Maggie’s Kitchen Table Day 2017 a success. Maggie’s Merseyside relies entirely on voluntary donations to allow us to keep on developing our unique programme of free support for all those living with cancer in the area.”

Maggie’s Kitchen Table Day 2017 is kindly sponsored by Tunnock’s Biscuits who will be getting the celebrations off to a great start by offering the first 500 people to sign up a free limited edition tea towel within their Kitchen Table Day packs.

Gather your family, friends and colleagues around the kitchen table on Friday 5 May and give to raise money for Maggie’s. Register now for your free pack at www.maggiescentres.org/kitchentableday

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Fads versus facts: the non-surgical checklist • Remember, ‘no surgery’ doesn’t mean ‘no risk’: I don’t want to scare you, but not all non-surgical treatments are completely non-invasive and there are risks. For example, micro-needling, fillers and Botox™, Platelet Replacement (the vampire facial), and laser treatments are advanced procedures which involve certain risks in terms of the results and your health. For these procedures, skin preparation is essential. You don’t go to the gym once and expect to be an elite athlete the next day.

This is why it’s so important to know you’re in safe hands and to check the expertise of the person carrying out the procedure.

We see numerous clients who come to us to rectify the mistakes of others after undergoing procedures such as fillers and laser treatments.

Having provided non-surgical procedures for over 20 years, I’ve seen an explosion in the number of treatments (and practitioners) in the last five to ten years. As a true exponent, it’s fantastic to see non-surgical procedures finally being acknowledged as a true alternative to going ‘under the knife’. On the other hand, it fills me with fear that people are choosing treatments based on what their favourite celebrity likes, rather than what they need. Furthermore, with so many ‘practitioners’ jumping on this bandwagon, it’s no wonder that some people may not be achieving the optimum outcome as they simply opt for the treatment this week’s hot celebrity is tweeting about. In the right hands, non-surgical procedures produce outstanding results, but to ensure you get the best outcome, here’s my checklist: • Look at the bigger picture: For example, you may want to lose inches and there are amazing fat reduction treatments available, such as cryolipolysis, cavitation and HIFU (high-intensity focused ultrasound). But if you are left with saggy, loose skin or cellulite you’re still not going to feel great. Make sure solving one problem doesn’t highlight or create another.

Choose a clinic that has the equipment and expertise to do everything – for example, reduce circumference, remove stubborn fat, tighten skin, and treat cellulite, to achieve the results you actually envisage. The same is true of facial treatments. You may love the results of your non-surgical facelift, but this won’t improve pigmentation or scarring.

Remember there’s no single miracle treatment – it’s finding the right combination that counts.

• Know what to expect: It’s vital that your aesthetician/therapist tells you what they can and (importantly) can’t achieve. This doesn’t mean they can’t make a real difference, but it’s essential you know what to expect. My team and I produce outstanding results that usually surpass our clients’ expectations, but we are always honest and give realistic expectations. You can look amazing, but we can’t turn you into a carbon copy of Katie Price or Kim Kardashian.

• Ask who’s treating you: Some clinics make great claims about their expertise, but what about the person who will actually carry out the procedure? Are they specialists or just technicians qualified in one or two treatments? If this is the case, they may not have the knowledge to pick up on any potential problems or be able to recommend an alternative treatment that could be more effective. Ask about their qualifications and experience, and also ask to see genuine before and after photos (of their own work, not just marketing shots provided by the manufacturer).

Check out the clinic as well. Make sure it’s registered with all relevant bodies and other important agencies such as the Local Authority and Environmental Health. Hygiene standards and working practices are vital to safeguard you.

• Be aware technology isn’t always better: While exceptional results can be achieved with equipment-based treatments, machines aren’t always better than man (or woman). This is particularly true when it comes to skin analysis. Many clinics boast about using high-tech computerised skin analysis. But, on the whole, this only produces generic pre-programmed results based on the products and treatments offered by the salon/clinic. Our skin is as individual as our DNA. To get a realistic, in-depth picture of your skin (and how to improve it), there is no substitute for a human expert examining you.

• Plan in advance: Don’t just phone or walk into a clinic on a whim.

To ensure you get the best person for the job, book two to three weeks in advance. Any professional expert with a good reputation will not be sitting around waiting for clients.

• Expect bespoke: When it comes to non-surgical procedures, bespoke should be the norm because every person has different needs. When your car isn’t running well, you don’t pick from a list of parts to solve the problem. You ask the advice of an expert mechanic. The same should be true for non-surgical treatments. If they are worth their salt your aesthetician should provide you with a plan to meet your specific requirements and address your unique concerns, not just provide treatment based on the latest fad.

Tracey Locke, Lead Clinician

Serenity Clinic Ltd, 162 Banks Road, West Kirby, Wirral CH48 0RH T: 0151 625 6256 www.serenity-clinic.co.uk

32 The Lake

All Things Auctioneering

by John Bathurst Crane

We are well into 2017 and I sincerely hope that it will be happy and prosperous for everyone.

I received the usual, and the now expected, gift at Christmas; the delivery of influenza, and was confined to my four-poster bed/creative office at Cato Towers, but consoled myself that it must be a blessing as I probably needed the rest – I decided I must take a holiday this year as 30 years without a break from work may be just a little too long! Palm-fringed, sun-drenched lagoons may just be the cure for workaholism!

It took a few days to get up to speed after the New Year, but the phone is now ringing every few minutes with enquiries and the diaries of our valuers in Cheshire, Wirral and Liverpool are really becoming quite busy.

Heswall office

As many of our readers will know, we opened an advisory office and small gallery at 48 The Mount in Heswall at the end of September. I am there every Friday morning and other times by appointment to see Wirral and Cheshire clients.

The premises are on the right-hand side just before you get to the barbers and before you reach the Dee View Inn. Parking is usually available and the telephone number is 0151 342 2321.

I have to report that I am pleasantly surprised how busy I am there so it is always better to make and appointment to avoid a wait when you arrive. I can attend there in the early evenings for people who are working full time.

People often ask me if the internet and the TV has ‘killed off’ our business, whatever that means.

We have grown up with the internet and embrace it, though it may well adversely affect some newer auctioneers who have to compete with the internet sales sites for business at the lower end of the market in, for example, collectibles.

Cato Crane, I have to say, has concentrated for over 30 years in giving a complete service to the middle and upper realms of the auction business – for executors of estates where comprehensive auction knowledge of items from a rubber-rollered-wringer to a Rolls Royce motorcar is required. Good silver, jewellery and fine pictures are probably the area of our expertise we most enjoy, but we can cover most other areas or know people we can recommend with confidence. An example of this is postage stamps when we recommend trustworthy firms of auctioneers in Derby or London. You do not acquire this experience in five minutes or five years! Most of the larger estates we deal with throughout the North West and even further afield can be complex, and often require great tact in satisfying the requirements of families when

sensitivities are heightened. It is sometimes the case that members of families or neighbours have been promised that they would be mentioned in wills or expect to inherit the finest picture or the antique family silver only to discover that this is not the case. We are in the middle of all this; on some occasions an amicable arrangement within the family can be found, though other times maybe not if two or three people will want to acquire the same item – invariably the most valuable item in the property.

Often if an agreement cannot be made then a bidding battle follows in the auction rooms, but we always try to avoid this course of action!

‘Jaw-jaw’ not ‘war-war’ is a lot less costly!

We once had three high-quality copies of a painting made for three siblings and then sold the original, the proceeds of which they shared.

Costly, yes, but everyone was happy and they are still talking to each other! The frames on the copies were better than the original so that was a double bonus!

Pictures, especially oil paintings, over many years will suffer damage; the original varnish can become discoloured and cracked and the canvas can ripple with heat or cold or damp and sometimes pictures fall off the wall to become damaged and are then consigned to the garage or attic for many years where they deteriorate even further.

Many pictures you see for sale in galleries or museums have had a little or some extensive restoration work carried out on them. It is a skilled art and can be quite costly, but in many cases it is well worth the time and effort. I have illustrated a picture by a Liverpool artist who exhibited around the 1880s whose name only came to light following the cleaning and revarnishing process. You will see the difference that restoration makes.

The seamstress after restoration and repair

on the reverse has become detached and the name of the artist was missing so we don’t know the hand by which it came into being but Richard Forshaw was married in 1803 at St Nicholas’ Church in Liverpool to Jane Murphy. They had a daughter, Georgina, in 1812 and lived firstly in Slater Street off Bold Street and then in Colquitt

Richard Forshaw pencil sketch

The seamstress by WW Lang before restoration

William Wardlaw Laing had studios in Dale Street in Liverpool with his sister Georgina Laing who was also an artist and painted in a similar style. His work rarely comes onto the market, but it is of a very precise and more than acceptable quality and all his pictures have that ‘must own’ appeal which is absolutely essential to give you pleasure for years to come.

I made a house call in Liverpool about three weeks ago and discovered what may well be a fairly important pencil sketch. It is a portrait of oval form depicting the consultant surgeon Richard Forshaw and dated 1847. Half the label

Street, which of course was then, as it is becoming again, a fashionable address. Richard Forshaw was Consultant Surgeon to the Liverpool Infirmary, Surgeon to the House of Correction, the city prison, where he was paid £63 a year for his services and also to Liverpool’s unfortunate poor who found themselves obliged to stay in Liverpool’s House of Industry, otherwise known as the Work House. This may well be the only likeness of Richard Forshaw, but only further research will clarify this. Please contact me if you want to do the research, as it is generally quite time-consuming.

I have included an image of many pieces of silver which is being catalogued for our next auction and this is typical of the work in which we become involved. This particular family (not in Wirral) have been clients of Cato Crane for many years and have now reluctantly decided to release their extensive and carefully assembled collection from the 1960s and 70s for sale as they feel the

The Lake 33

Tunbridge ware writing stand Desk – Somani of Paris

Furniture prices are improving slowly, but prices of very fine pieces have never really dropped. I have illustrated a desk which made about £7,000 some ten or more years ago – I would expect that although following a small drop in price maybe over the last few years, to achieve that figure or substantially more if it came onto the market again now. It is of very high quality and was made by the great cabinetmaker Sormani of Paris and still bears the maker’s stamp.

Broseley pipes?

Silver for auction

time is right. There are probably 1,500 objects in the collection and during the year, each piece will be examined, packed and removed to our auction rooms for photographing and cataloguing for sale at the right time. This process will take several months, but must be completed before they move house in the autumn. Meticulous listing and cross-referencing has already started in their large property and we are expecting very keen bidding on the very fine antique pieces of rare jewellery, which are exquisite. Not unnaturally all our dealings and work in matters such as these are highly confidential. Some clients enjoy publicity, but most of our ‘blue chip’ clients as we call them lead very quiet lives and totally shun the limelight so we always guarantee total anonymity.

Finally, a client brought into our Heswall Office on The Mount a box of his late uncle’s smoking pipes. The four clay pipes were probably made in Broseley in Shropshire. Edwin Bathurst was the great pipe manufacture there until the 1840s. Southern was another well-known manufacturer. I understand that there is now a pipe museum there which might be worth a visit.

Question: How many clay pipes were there in the kiln at one firing?

Rare pot lid

I said before that the internet is a partner in our business. All our auctions attract live bidders worldwide and last month a humble but rare pot lid made over £400 as two internet bidders desired it for their collections.

A Wirral home visit in Birkenhead recently unearthed a fine Tunbridge ware desk writing stand which I am expecting to bring just under the £1,000 mark.

So very finally once again I have to stress that it is quality that brings the best results in the long term and careful buying now could well result in a profit in 30 or 40 years time or the next generation.

Come to 48 The Mount in Heswall for a chat about your collections or visit us in Liverpool or listen to our live bidding 800-lot two-day auctions on the internet.

Details are on our website www.catocrane.co.uk or telephone me on 0151 342 2321 or my personal assistant, Anna, in Liverpool on 0151 709 5559 who will be only too pleased to assist and advise.

Very, very finally, if you have collections of ivory now is the time to consider selling as we hear rumours within the auction fraternity of an outright ban of all sales in the not-too-distant future!

34 The Lake

Shorelines

By Stephen G Baker

Wirral Met College apprentice wins award Wirral Met College Level 3 engineering apprentice Stephen Bentley was presented with the Institution of Mechanical Engineering (IMechE) Apprentice of the Year award by Ron Faulkner, IMechE Professional Development Consultant, at a special presentation ceremony, which took place recently at the college’s Birches Restaurant. Stephen was joined by his parents, his tutors, Pat Malone, College Manager for Engineering, and Director for Science & Engineering Heather Aspinwall, to celebrate his success.

Before starting his apprenticeship, Stephen Bentley worked as an assembly operative at Henrob Ltd in Deeside. He decided to become an engineering apprentice to enable him to progress from his role as a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machine operator to a new role as a CNC machinist. Stephen completed his Level 2 intermediate engineering apprentice in record time, taking just one year (this usually takes two years to complete) before progressing onto the Level 3 apprenticeship in mechanical manufacturing engineering.

Stephen completed his Level 3 apprenticeship with Henrob and has since progressed his dream job within an exciting role working with McLaren Automotive in Woking, Surrey. Stephen said: “My career has progressed dramatically since studying at Wirral Metropolitan College. |After completing an advanced apprenticeship, I am now employed at McLaren Automotive. The engineering department at Wirral Met is equipped with superb tutors and facilities, and they have been pivotal in my progression within the engineering sector.”

Ron Faulkner, Professional Development Consultant at IMechE, said: “The Merseyside and North Wales Region of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers has identified ‘Education’ as a key development area of its business plan. The main objective being to foster and encourage young people to give consideration to selecting engineering as a worthwhile and rewarding professional career.

We have included different levels of education and training in this development area, including training organisations, colleges and schools and have targeted selected training/apprenticeship schemes such as those at Wirral Metropolitan College, as potential vehicles that can be utilised, to mutual benefit, to meet the desired objective.

We are extremely pleased to give recognition to Stephen who has demonstrated the most improvement over his apprenticeship/ training period and wish him luck with his future engineering career.”

In 2013 it was reported that the UK has the most surveillance cameras per head in the developed world. The surveillance commissioner, Tony Porter – a former senior counterterrorism officer – said “the public was complacent about encroaching surveillance and urged public bodies, including the police, to be more transparent about how they are increasingly using smart cameras to monitor people”.

The British Security Industry Authority (BSIA) estimated in 2013 there were up to 5.9 million closed-circuit television cameras in the country, including 750,000 in “sensitive locations” such as schools, hospitals and care homes.

President Trump recently accused former president Barack Obama of wiretapping Trump Tower during the US Presidential election campaign.

The ex-president has denied this.

In the UK drones are increasingly being used by the British Military and sales of drones to private individuals are increasing year on year.

The question is whether our privacy is going to be constantly invaded without our permission? These types of headlines should raise questions.

We are being observed; is our privacy under threat?

I was fascinated to notice how much the Bible speaks about us being observed by God. We may not aware of it, but God notes our every move.

Solomon, the wise man of the Bible, states: “For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the Lord, and he ponders all his paths”, Proverbs 5:21. In days long before technology Solomon understood that God has the ability and capacity to monitor all that we say and do. In fact it goes deeper than that – the Bible teaches that God searches our hearts, Romans 8:27. The Bible depicts our hearts as being the seat of our emotions and the centre of our will.

The wonderful thing is that God loves us in spite of what he knows about us. If we were really honest, most of us would not welcome God looking into our lives. I know that I am not who I would like to be, never mind what a holy God would want me to be. In the final analysis God describes our hearts as being “deceitful” and “wicked”, Jeremiah 17:9.

The fact that God loves us is quite an eye-opener when you consider what He sees when He looks into our hearts. We use CCTV to monitor, control and protect society. God observes and identifies our sin so that we will understand our need of His forgiveness. His case against us is quite convincing, but, despite that, God loves us.

Finally, here are a few verses from the Bible that I want to bring to your attention. If you are interested, read them for yourself. “For one will scarcely die for a righteous person though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”, Romans 5:7,8.

Further explanations of what the Bible teaches can be found at

www.findingthemissingpeace.blogspot.co.uk www.seekthetruth.org.uk

The Lake 35

Have you protected yourself with a lasting power of attorney?

The sad fact is that 94% of over 65s have not!

DON’T BE CAUGHT NAPPING!!

Fully certified lasting powers of attorney including all registration documents

£99 single £175 couple (excluding OPG registration fees)

Our fees include 2 home visits and VAT

Call Mike Barnes at Wirral Estate Planning on 0845 052 2757 The over 65s are now rapidly approaching a staggering 25% (that’s 15 million) of the UK population, and it is an age at which we should be thinking of protecting ourselves and our families by putting lasting powers of attorney and wills in place.

Around 65% of over 65s do not have wills; however, a staggering 94% have not put lasting powers of attorney in place! In fact just over one million lasting powers of attorney have been registered, since their inception in 2007, covering all age groups. Generally, despite there having been many press reports of horror stories, many people still seem unaware of the necessity to draw up lasting powers of attorney.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 states that should you have some form of incapacity (permanent or temporary) which prevents you from looking after your day-to-day affairs – then you must have attorneys in place. If you have a registered lasting power of attorney in place, then all is well and those attorneys can act immediately, without further fuss.

If you have such an incapacity with no power of attorney in place then there is an extremely onerous, complex and very expensive procedure for your family or close friends to undertake. This involves making application to the Court of Protection by family or friends. This complex process can take over six months and costs can easily exceed £2,000, with no guarantees of success!

Should you have no family or friends able or willing to undertake the rigours of such an application, then indeed there is a much worse case scenario that can occur. The court has the power to immediately appoint attorneys for you, called deputies. These deputies will take full control of your finances and divert your pensions to themselves.

Your bank account will be closed and cheque books, bank and credit cards cancelled.

Your appointed deputies can be a solicitor, an accountant and even the County Council official and this worst case scenario is when it becomes wickedly expensive. They will charge £800 per year before they do anything and they charge for every single transaction they undertake on your behalf. Costs and charges can easily exceed £3,000 per year. There is even a final ‘winding up’ fee of £290 when you die. You have been warned!

Visit our website: www.wirralestateplanning.co.uk Email: info@wirralestateplanning.co.uk

Having the right will in place is very important these days to ensure that your main assets are protected and that the maximum possible will eventually pass to your children and grandchildren.

We all know that many thousands of homes have to be sold each year to pay for long-term care home fees. Such fees are always burdensome and could easily exceed £700 per week.

You can ensure that your home and other assets like cash and valuables cannot be lost and are protected by writing protective asset trusts into your wills, or by setting up an asset protection trust.

All our wills and trusts are drafted by our nationally acclaimed wills and trusts barristers, Messrs Spicer Finch Ltd, so you have complete peace of mind, knowing that you have the best protective documents in place.

Lasting Powers of Attorney for Health and Welfare and Property and Affairs are the other vitally important documents to have in place during later life. We can prepare these for you at the lowest prices available today: £175 single person for both, and just £299 for couples, for all four. These prices include VAT and home visits.

SPECIAL OFFER We will produce your lasting powers of attorney totally free of charge for clients instructing asset protection trusts within the next two months.

We also offer free consultations, free reviews of existing wills and signing appointments, all within the comfort of your own home (weekend appointments included).

HAVE YOU PROTECTED YOUR ASSETS WITH THE ‘RIGHT’ WILL? We can ensure that your loved ones inherit the maximum possible.

DON’T LET CARE HOME FEES OR THE TAXMAN TAKE YOUR ASSETS. HAVE YOUR WILLS AND TRUSTS DRAFTED BY OUR SPECIALIST WILLS AND TRUSTS BARRISTERS.

We offer FREE home visits and free Will reviews.

Our fees include home visits.

Call Mike Barnes at Wirral Estate Planning for a no obligation chat on 0845 052 2757 (std rate)

36 The Lake point of view of a delightfully unreliable narrator, a wildly imaginative 7-year-old named Tim. With a sly, heart-filled message about the importance of family, this is an authentic and broadly appealing original comedy for all ages.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Kong: Skull Island Welcome to The Lake magazine’s film column.

Each issue will provide a rundown of what’s on over the next few weeks, including blockbusters, independent films and arts screenings that are available for you to check out in your local cinema.

MARCH Viceroy’s House The Light Cinema Film of the Month is Viceroy’s House, the Gurinder Chadha film that tells the true story of the final months of British rule in India. The real Viceroy’s House in Delhi was the home of the British rulers of India until after 300 years that rule was coming to an end. For six months in 1947, Lord Mountbatten (Hugh Bonneville), great-grandson of Queen Victoria, assumed the post of the last Viceroy, charged with handing India back to its people.

The story unfolds within that great house.

Upstairs lived Mountbatten, together with his wife (Gillian Anderson) and daughter (Lily Travers); downstairs lived their 500 Hindu, Muslim and Sikh servants. As the political elite – Nehru, Jinnah and Gandhi – converged on the house to wrangle over the birth of independent India, conflict erupted. A decision was taken to divide the country and create a new Muslim homeland: Pakistan. The consequences of that decision reverberate to this day. The film is deeply personal to director Gurinder Chadha, whose own family was caught up in the tragic events that unfolded as British rule came to an end. Her film examines those events through the prism of a marriage and a romance as the young lovers find themselves caught up in the seismic end of the Empire, in conflict with the Mountbattens and with their own communities, but never ever giving up hope…

Kong: Skull Island reimagines the origins of the mythic Kong in a compelling, original adventure from director Jordan Vogt-Roberts. In this film a diverse team of explorers is brought together to venture deep into an uncharted island in the Pacific – as beautiful as it is treacherous – unaware that they’re crossing into the domain of Kong. Kong: Skull Island stars Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers), Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction, Avengers: Age of Ultron), John Goodman (Transformers: Age of Extinction, Argo) and Oscar winner Brie Larson (Room, Trainwreck).

Beauty and the Beast Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is a live-action retelling of the studio’s animated classic, which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience, staying true to the original music while updating the score with several new songs. Beauty and the Beast is the fantastic journey of Belle (Emma Watson), a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast (Dan Stevens) in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast’s hideous exterior to realise the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within.

Along with Emma Watson as Belle and Dan Stevens as the Beast, are Luke Evans as Gaston, the handsome, but shallow villager who woos Belle; Kevin Kline as Maurice, Belle’s eccentric but lovable father; Josh Gad as Lefou, Gaston’s long-suffering aide-de-camp; Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, the candelabra; Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, the mantel clock; and Emma Thompson as the teapot, Mrs Potts.

Also this March Logan Fist Fight Power Rangers

APRIL The Boss Baby DreamWorks Animation and the director of Madagascar invites you to meet a most unusual baby. He wears a suit, speaks with the voice and wit of Alec Baldwin, and stars in DreamWorks’ animated comedy The Boss Baby. This is a hilariously universal story about how the arrival of a new baby affects a family, told from the

Set to the backdrop of ‘Awesome Mixtape #2,’ Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians must fight to keep their new-found family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favourite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel cinematic universe continues to expand.

Also this April Going in Style Wonder Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience Fast and Furious 8

During March and April The Light Cinema New Brighton is hosting a wealth of live cinema including theatre, opera and ballet.

Exhibition on Screen: The Artists Garden – American Impressionism – March 21st ‘The Artist’s Garden: American Impressionism and the Garden Movement, 1887-1920’ comes from the Florence Griswold Museum in Connecticut, widely considered the home of American Impressionism.

ROH: Madama Butterfly – March 30th Puccini’s Madama Butterfly is one of the most popular of all operas, with ravishing music and a heart-breaking story of a loving geisha deserted by a callous American husband.

NT Live: The Twelfth Night – April 6th Tamsin Greig is Malvolia in a new twist on Shakespeare’s classic comedy of mistaken identity.

Bolshoi: A Hero of Our Time – April 9th The pioneering literary work of Virginia Woolf is the inspiration for multi-award-winning choreographer Wayne McGregor’s brilliant triptych for The Royal Ballet.

ROH: Jewels – April 11th George Balanchine’s evocation of the sparkle of emeralds, rubies and diamonds is a brilliant ballet classic.

NT Live: Rozencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead – April 20th Daniel Radcliffe, Joshua McGuire and David Haig star in Tom Stoppard’s brilliantly funny situation comedy, broadcast live from The Old Vic theatre.

RSC Live: Julius Caesar – April 26th Angus Jackson directs Shakespeare’s epic political tragedy, as the race to claim the empire spirals out of control.

Craig Barton is the co-director of Pilot Light TV Festival and works within film exhibition at Multiplexes and Film Festivals and is a former lecturer of film and creative media.

Release dates are subject to change and are provided by Launching Films and The Light Cinema.

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Andrew Cannell, Jamie Carragher, Sam Quek, Reece Holt, Graeme Sharp and Ian Snodin launch The New Cancer Hospital Appeal at the site of the new Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Liverpool.

Merseyside sports stars launch The Clatterbridge Cancer Charity £15m New Cancer Hospital Appeal Some of Merseyside’s biggest sports stars joined patients and fundraisers to launch the appeal to build a new cancer hospital for Liverpool.

Olympic gold medal hockey player Sam Quek, and former Liverpool and Everton footballers Jamie Carragher, Graeme Sharp and Ian Snodin were at the site of the new Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Liverpool city centre for the landmark event.

They joined ten-year-old Reece Holt, who was treated at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust in Wirral for a brain tumour, to officially start the £15 million appeal.

Katrina Bury, Head of the Clatterbridge Cancer Charity, said: “One in two of us will develop cancer over our lifetime so this new hospital is vitally important for the people of Merseyside and Cheshire.

“We are only going to get one chance in our lifetime to build a brand new facility like this, which will transform cancer care for generations to come.

“I would like to thank Sam, Jamie, Graeme, Ian and of course Reece for helping us launch this incredibly important appeal. We hope everyone will get behind us and help to build a cancer hospital that we can all be proud of.”

Reece, 11, from Morecambe in Lancashire who was treated with radiotherapy after surgery for an aggressive grade three brain tumour, said: “I can’t wait to see the hospital once it is built; it looks like something out of the future and I’m excited about the new technology for treating patients like me.”

Mum Rachel O’Neil said: “Until the morning of the 5th May last year cancer didn’t affect me or anyone I knew. By 7pm that evening my son was on full life support fighting for his life. Why should you get behind and donate if it doesn’t affect you? Because it can happen in the blink of an eye and the work they do at Clatterbridge is invaluable.”

Sam said: “I would urge everyone to get behind this appeal in any way they can. It is really important that the great work of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Wirral extends to Liverpool. This is an innovative city and it is incredible to see Liverpool at the centre of expert treatment and cancer research.”

Graeme said: “The staff at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre do a fantastic job and it is great that this new facility will be opening in Liverpool and working towards eradicating cancer. Cancer has touched my family and I think most families, so it is really important that the city’s football clubs back this appeal.”

Jamie said: “I am very pleased to be involved today. Cancer is something that affects us all at some time in our lives whether individually in our life or through a family member or a friend. I think to have the new centre here can only be great for the city.”

Andrew Cannell, Chief Executive of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our new hospital, due to open in Liverpool city centre in 2019, is part of an exciting programme of capital investment of £157m to expand and improve cancer locally.

“To ensure we really can achieve our vision for patients right across the region, we are launching this extremely important £15m public appeal.

“With the support of the people of Merseyside and Cheshire, this new hospital alongside our existing network of ten operating sites means that patients will benefit from the most advanced cancer treatment, expertise and research as close to home as possible.”

As well as the new hospital due to open in 2019, £8 million will be invested in the current site in Wirral as part of the £157 million investment in transforming cancer care. The radiotherapy centre at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre Aintree, and chemotherapy clinics in the region’s district hospitals will also continue to treat patients.

People are being invited to join in the drive by going green, the corporate colour of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust and its charity.

Schools, colleges and businesses have been holding green days, people have been having green bake sales and a number of landmark buildings have been lighting up in green in support of the appeal.

Social media is awash with the hashtag #letsgogreen and people are being encouraged to post a selfie dressed in green and make a donation to the fund.

People who want to help can also text Lets194 to 70070 to make a donation of £4.

38 The Lake

Our lifestyle blog is brought to you by Personal Trainer and Fitness Queen founder, Hayley Lundy.

We aim to educate, motivate and inspire our readers to live a healthy, active life.

Tips on how to increase energy: • Stay hydrated – this will help many body systems work better and more efficiently

Did you decide to give something up for Lent? How’s it going?

A popular choice is giving up sugar. Did you know sugar is highly addictive?

• Avoid big meals – if you eat really large meals your body will be so busy digesting the food that it will result in tiredness due to energy being diverted to actually digest the food you’ve eaten

For this Lent, I’ve given up sugar – it had crept back into my diet, so I felt it was time to cut it out. I have a sweet tooth, so willpower is definitely needed!

• Get active – as they say ‘use it or loose it’ – being active in any way at all will keep your body systems working well and helps keep up your energy levels

The biggest struggle people have with reducing sugar is resisting it when they hit an energy slump during the day.

Almost everyone I speak to regarding times of low energy tells me they feel they need sugar, alongside reaching for caffeine.

• Eat lots of variety – stay away from beige-looking plates of food! Include lots of colours, or at least three each mealtime.

The more colours and varieties of vegetables and fruit you eat, the more nutrients you will be getting into your body

Sugar actually zaps energy and it’s the last thing you should have to get to through bouts of low energy, although I know it’s easier said than done.

• Get sufficient rest – this may be difficult, but read up on how to improve your sleep, try to relax before bedtime like reading a book, etc.

So I’d like to tell you about a little secret weapon of mine to help you keep on track, and stop yourself feeling the need to eat sugar! It’s what I call my Wonder Drink. If you struggle with that afternoon slump, sleepless nights, or general tiredness, then I recommend you give my healthy energy drinks a whirl.

• Don’t skip meals – skipping meals results in sugar cravings!

If you tend to miss out on getting a proper meal, do at least have healthy snacks to hand.

What’s in them? Natural and organic ingredients include: • Guarana and Yerba Mate – sources of natural non-processed herbal caffeine • Inulin – excellent prebiotic and helps burn white fat • L-Glutamine – amino acid known for its gut healing properties • Vitamins – high in B vitamins • Aloe vera extract – anti-inflammatory • L-arginine – increases blood flow = helps brain function and assists in removing brain ‘fog’ This drink is ideal for anyone struggling with tiredness and fatigue and helps beat sugar cravings when you hit that afternoon energy slump. I swear by these for days I get fatigue, I absolutely love them. They come in a small sachet so they’re handy to take with you on the go, you just add water. You can use them as a pre-workout or whenever you need to energy boost.

You also get my five steps to follow if you want to use as part of a weight loss plan for FREE. Please contact me to order or for samples.

These are also available at Yog Bar in Hoylake, Gravity Gym in Upton, and Escape Beauty in Heswall. Just ask at the desk for the natural energy drink. And I’d also love to hear your feedback.

Contact us for further info.

M: 0773 547 0326 W: www.thefitnessqueen.co.uk F: Fitness Queen E: Hayley@thefitnessqueen.co.uk

Hayley x