Kirkby
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- For other uses, see Kirkby (disambiguation).
Template:GBmap Image:Arms-kirkby-udc.jpg Kirkby (pronounced Template:IPA) is a new town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England.
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History
Evidence for the existence of Kirkby dates back to the Domesday Book, and a reference to Cherchebi, with a population of 80. The town's main church, St. Chad's, was established at the time, and a Norman watchtower still stands on one of the main roads.
Up until 1947, the area was largely farmland, with a few cottages and farm buildings, some of which survive to this day. During the Second World War, the area was the location of a Royal Ordnance Factory. In 1947, the Earls of Sefton, the owners of the land, sold the right to build to the Liverpool Corporation, who were seeking to develop the area around the city in an attempt to alleviate the housing shortage caused by the Blitz, and to provide housing for workers on the burgeoning industrial estate.
Today
The town is divided into 4 districts; namely, Southdene, Westvale, Northwood, and Towerhill. Situated within the Westvale district is the Kirkby Sports Centre, which provides one of the main athletic tracks within the Northwest of England.
The current population of Kirkby stands at 36,400 [1], somewhat down from its peak in the 1960s of 60,000, largely due to falling birth rates and the slow decline of the industrial estate forcing workers to look elsewhere.
Economy
The town's industrial heritage has largely faded away, with service industries moving in to replace the factories. Major employers in the town included QVC and Barclaycard, with several other call centre companies also based in Kirkby.
Transport
The M57 motorway runs adjacent to Kirkby, and the M58 connects just to the north of the town. The town is well served by public transport, with train connections from Kirkby railway station to Liverpool (on the Merseyrail network) and Manchester (via Wigan), and multiple bus routes connecting Kirkby with several nearby towns. The town was planned to be the terminus of the first line of the Merseytram tram service until the scheme's termination by the Government.
Press attention
Following the 1993 murder of local toddler James Bulger, UK tabloid and broadsheet newspapers, most notably The Sun, attacked Kirkby, Bulger's hometown, and Liverpool in general, accusing them of false grief ('self pity city') and blaming the town's decrepit state for his death – much in a similar vein as their attacks following the Hillsborough disaster. (This was despite the fact that the boy's killers were not from Kirkby, but from the Walton district of Liverpool.)
Leisure Centre
In 2004 signs went up on a field outside of All Saints Catholic High School announcing that a leisure centre would be opening on the site sometime in 2006. It appears that that date has been pushed back as construction only started in January 2006 with the building of a perimeter fence. In preparation for the centre's opening Knowsley Council closed Kirkby Swimming Pool in 2005 as a pool would be a feature of the new centre.
Famous people
A preponderence of professional footballers hail from Kirkby. Amongst the more famous ones are:
- Joey Barton - Manchester City footballer
- Terry McDermott - former Liverpool footballer
- Kevin Nolan - Bolton Wanderers footballer
- Alan Stubbs - current Everton and ex Celtic footballer
- Phil Thompson - former Liverpool player and deputy manager.
Other notable Kirkby-born people include:
- Alan Bleasdale - playwright
- Margi Clarke - actress
- John Conteh - boxersv:Kirkby