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The coach of @westkirbyunited girls’ football team is calling for the government and the FA to “invest heavily” to take advantage of the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 success.
Paul Wood says there has been “phenomenal” growth in the girls’ game in recent years, which has been mirrored locally.
But he believes there needs to be more funding to help set up teams, as well as investment in pitches.
Paul told West Kirby Today: “The Euro’s has well and truly put women’s football on the map. It has been fantastic to see some outstanding football and the nation getting behind the Lionesses. The women’s game will certainly benefit. It really has inspired a lot of young girls.
“We start a new under 7’s team each season. Getting new players is relatively easy; there is a real interest.”
But he added: “In order to properly capitalise on the Euro’s we need increased investment, better pitches and a strategic plan that supports girls progressing into adult football.
“It seems to me that the key issue is facilities. The girls on the Wirral go from playing on good quality astroturf pitches up until they are under 12. They are then moved to poor quality uneven grass pitches. A large amount of games are called off due to water logged pitches. I see a drop off in girls playing in their early teens; there may well be a link between the two.
“We need a national approach, whether from the FA or the government. If they are really serious about growing the female game they need to invest heavily and have a cogent long term plan.”
Wirral Council has secured £1.8 million from the FA, Premier League and government through the Football Foundation for new 3G pitches and facilities at Woodchurch Leisure Centre and Wirral Tennis and Sports Centre.
Anglesey Road Playing Fields – used by West Kirby United – was initially included on a list five of sites to receive investment, but later dropped.
The government says it is spending £230 million on 8,000 grassroots sports facilities across the country between now and 2025.
Girls wanting to to give football a try can contact Paul Wood at West Kirby United by emailing p.jwood@icloud.com
Changes to bus services to and from West Kirby from September will help Arrowe Park Hospital staff with early starts, and see the return of a half hourly connection to Eastham.
The 81 service from West Kirby to Arrowe Park Hospital will be changed so it fits around hospital shift times in the morning peak. It is also being rerouted and will run via Greenbank Road, rather than Black Horse Hill.
The 38 service between West Kirby and Eastham via Moreton and Birkenhead will return to its pre-Covid frequency, with services every half an hour between Monday and Saturday, rather than every hour.
There will be a slight reduction in the number of 437 services between West Kirby and Liverpool after 10pm at night – down to every 30 minutes rather than 20.
The alterations are part of a raft of changes across Liverpool City Region from 4 September.
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, which oversees public transport, said: “These changes are being proposed to ensure that a sustainable network is in place which reflects changes in travel demands and patterns whilst continuing to maintain bus network coverage, encourage passenger growth, and promote bus as a preferred mode of travel.
“While some services have seen a good rate of recovery in passenger numbers since the removal of Covid-19 restrictions, others have not. This means that they may require changes to their route or timetable to allow them to remain sustainable.
“Enhancements to some bus services are included in these proposals, including the creation of some new bus links.”
Detailed timetables are expected to be released in August.
Over the coming months, a lower adult single bus fare will be introduced which will mean passengers will be able to travel across Liverpool City Region for no more than £2.
A remarkable season for @caldyrfc which saw them promoted to the Rugby Union Championship, has been recognised at a Civic reception.
Players and support staff were invited to Wallasey Town Hall after an incredible run of form swept the team to their highest placing in their 98-year history.
The Mayor of Wirral, Councillor Jeff Green, said: Every now and then sport throws-up some unexpected and extraordinary results, and Caldy’s magnificent season is a great example of that.
“A remarkable run of 17 straight wins took Caldy into the Championship, starting with a win at Bishops Stortford in December last year and ending with the title-clincher against second-place Sale at the end of April. That incredible run speaks volumes about the skill, determination and undoubted quality of the team, its coaching staff, and all those supporting them off the field.”
During the reception, the Mayor presented a special Certificate of Achievement on behalf of the Council and people of Wirral, to Graham Armitage, the President of Caldy Rugby Club.
Graham Armitage said: “Caldy Rugby Club celebrates its Centenary in 2024 and from humble beginnings our timing could not have been better, having recently achieved our highest ever ranking in the rugby fraternity. This will be a hard act to follow, and we now need to consolidate and build on this achievement both on and off the field.”
Caldy start the new season in the Championship with a home game against Hartpury on Saturday, 10 September.
More than a thousand Wirral children were taught lifesaving water safety skills ahead of the school summer holidays in a partnership between a local swimming school and @hoylakelifeboat
During a week of sessions in July, Helen Diamond Swimming School taught 1,148 of its young pupils the RNLI’s key ‘float to live’ safety technique in the pools at Calday Grange in West Kirby, Stanley School in Pensby and Birkenhead High School Academy.
Hoylake RNLI lifeboat crew member and water safety advisor Dave Bates was invited to join the team at some of the sessions, where he spoke to both the children and their parents about the importance of floating if they get into difficulty in the water.
Dave was joined at one session by fellow volunteer Kev Latcham, where they passed on some of the RNLI’s other tips for staying safe at the beach such as stopping to think about the dangers, staying together, and only swimming where there are lifeguards while staying between their red and yellow flags.
With many families heading to the coast or the pool while on holiday in the UK and abroad, these vital skills will help keep them safe in and around the water this summer and beyond.
Following the swimming sessions, parents and supporters kindly donated £499.22 to the RNLI in support of the charity’s 24-hour search and rescue service and drowning prevention work. Helen Diamond also made a very generous personal donation of £1,000 and visited Hoylake RNLI lifeboat station to present the lifesaving funds to the grateful lifeboat crew.
Helen said: “Thank you to the team at Hoylake RNLI for an amazing week supporting our swim school in raising awareness around water safety ahead of the summer. We know all too well the dangers. After some recent tragic losses of young people in the water, the message can’t be highlighted enough.”
Dave Bates said: “We’re overwhelmed by the generosity of parents and in particular by Helen, as she put so much effort into organising these lifesaving sessions. Their kind donations will help the RNLI continue saving lives at sea and on the coast this summer.”
Sections of West Kirby’s new flood wall have started to arrive, in preparation for their installation on the promenade.
The wall will double as seating, with the design resembling a wave, with a continuous curve containing seating, memorial or celebratory plaques, including replicas of those previously in place on the promenade.
Work is now well under way on the controversial project, with more than half of South Parade dug up for the £10 million scheme, which will also see new paving, a dedicated cycle lane and an events space on the site of the former baths.
The design has caused controversy, with 198 of the 221 comments submitted to the planning consultation against it and an online petition amassing a large number of signatures.
Objectors raised concerns that the wall will narrow the promenade and create access problems.
The council says that the scheme will protect 70 properties at risk of flooding now from extreme tidal events, and give over 500 properties improved protection over the next century as sea levels rise.
Wirral Council is urging people looking to visit West Kirby in the coming months to use public transport, due to a significant reduction in car parking spaces.
The public car park at Dee Lane is closed for the duration of the project as it is being used by the council’s construction partner, VolkerStevin, as their works compound. In addition, large stretches of South Parade will not be accessible during the day in the week.
Partners have set up a facility for residents and visitors to raise any issues relating to the construction works, or for people to make an enquiry. It is situated on Salisbury Avenue, near to the junction with South Parade and is open from 10am to 4pm, Monday to Friday.
Work on the flood defence barrier is set to continue until November 2022.
Thanks to @davidedwardsphotographer for the photo of the wall.
Almost 1,300 people have signed a petition to stop land on Grange Hill in West Kirby being designated for housing under Wirral Council’s new Local Plan.
The site, adjacent to Hoylake and West Kirby War Memorial, allotments and existing housing, is made up of fields and ex-farm land.
It is the sole remaining large plot proposed for new homes in the town under the Local Plan, which will guide development across the borough until 2035.
It comes after the ‘Green Field Estate’ on Grange Road – known locally as the sheep fields – was removed from the list of proposed sites after being designated as local green space.
It means the number of units earmarked for housing in West Kirby and Hoylake under the plan is now 58, compared to 132 when consultation began in 2020.
Campaigners from Protect Grange Hill say they have set up the petition to highlight to the council “that Wirral residents do not wish housing construction on green space land” and to “confirm support for Local Green Space (LGS) designation of the land at Grange Hill.”
The petition adds: “The WBS Draft plan proposal will carve out a significant section between Grange Hill War Memorial and the Grange Hill Allotments.
“This housing development introduces damage to this environment by human activity such as noise and light pollution forever changing the tranquility of Grange Hill.
“This petition is seeking support from the community to remind Wirral Borough Council that building on fields and green sites is not acceptable.”
You can find the link to the petition in the full story on our website.
Consultation on the Local Plan – which also includes proposals for a masterplan for West Kirby – ends on Monday 25 July.
It will then be submitted to the Secretary of State an examined by an independent planning inspector.
Depending on the outcome of the inquiry, it could be formally adopted next year.
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