IN BRIEF
MULTI MILLION POUND BOOST FOR NEW BIRKENHEAD URBAN VILLAGE
FIVE THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT LANDICAN
Landican Cemetery and Crematorium celebrates its 90th anniversary this year – we take a dive into the history of the site and share some facts that you might not know .
Proposals for a new urban village adjacent to Birkenhead town centre have been given a major multi million pound boost .
The Hind Street Urban Village project will ultimately see the development of around 1,500 new high quality homes plus commercial and green spaces over the next 10 to 15 years .
Also known as the Birkenhead Central Gateway , the Hind Street scheme is a key part of the wider regeneration plans being pursued by the council for Birkenhead and the wider east side of Wirral .
Leader of Wirral Council , Cllr Paul Stuart , said : " On behalf of Wirral , I really welcome the grant funding of over £ 22m from the Strategic Investment Fund for Wirral ’ s Hind Street project from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority ( LCR CA ).
" We are expecting positive news from Homes England any time now which together with this LCR CA investment will allow us to begin the vital infrastructure work that will signal the beginning of this vital housing and regeneration project for Wirral and Birkenhead .
" The Hind Street project is one of our major brownfield regeneration sites and it will be a model of urban living , well connected to public transport being so close to Birkenhead Central and Green Lane train stations , the new dock Branch Park , providing high quality open spaces , improved public realm and the creation of active travel routes .
" This is just one part of our regeneration strategy , which is focussed on delivering social , affordable , people-focused regeneration that reduces inequalities and creating jobs .
" We look forward to continuing to work with the LCR CA to release further funding for this and other vital projects for Wirral to deliver on our brownfield only Local Plan , which will deliver much needed housing in Wirral and play our part in contributing to the Governments housing targets ."
It was on October 22nd 1934 that the first cremations took place at the new crematorium within Landican cemetery , with the first burial following the next day – October 23rd 1934 and since then , more than 200,000 cremations and 56,000 burials have taken place up to September 2024 . Check out some more interesting facts about the site below …
‘ Landican ’ was recorded in the Doomsday Book of 1085 as Landechene ( meaning , ‘ Church made of Oak ’). The name possibly derives from the Welsh ‘ Llan Diacon ’ ( church of the deacon ) although , as Landican had no chapel , the ‘ church made of wood ’ possibly also refers to the neighbouring area , Woodchurch .
The St . Mary ’ s section of the cemetery contains human remains and memorials controversially relocated to Landican in the late 1950s from the grounds of St . Mary ’ s Church on the site of Birkenhead Priory due to the expansion of the adjacent Cammell Laird shipyard .
One of the most celebrated local people laid to rest at Landican Cemetery is the legendary William Ralph ( Dixie ) Dean . Born in Birkenhead in 1907 , Dean began his career at Tranmere Rovers , finding the net 27 times in 30 appearances for his hometown club . It was while at Everton , however , that he cemented his place in football history scoring a record 60 league goals in one season in 1927-28 . WR Dean passed away in March 1980 at Goodison Park aged 73 . His funeral took place at St . James ’ Church in Birkenhead – a bullet-header away from where was born on Laird Street – before a cremation at Landican .
With its open environment , birds of prey have made Landican their home . The cat-like “ kee-yaa ” call of a Buzzard is regularly heard as it soars over the cemetery or rests in one of the trees there . You may even be lucky enough to see the male buzzard perform their ‘ roller coaster ’ mating display during the spring , where it soars up high and then swoops down over and over again to attract a mate .
Landican is celebrating its 90th anniversary in 2024 with its first-ever Open Day where residents can informally meet some of the people involved in the funeral industry locally and get a rare glimpse behind the scenes at Wirral ’ s busiest cemetery .
8 wirrallife . com