Wirral road to be named in memory of former councillor Chris Blakeley

The move to name the road Blakeley Way after Chris Blakeley, follows the council’s decision to use the site of the former Foxfield School on Douglas Drive for new homes, following the school’s relocation to Woodchurch in 2015.

The school buildings were demolished in 2018 and the site has been derelict since.

Part of the development will be named Blakeley Way in honour of Chris, who was Moreton West and Saughall Massie Conservative councillor for nearly 20 years before he sadly died in 2020, aged 69. 

The plan for new homes on site of the former Foxfield School on Douglas Drive features a road named Blakeley Way in the centre (Image: Wirral Council)

Cllr Blakeley was born and raised in West Kirby and but for a year spent working in Cornwall, had lived in Wirral for his whole life; the last 40 years as a resident of Moreton.

He spent 30 years working in the food industry before later serving as Head of Office for the MP, Esther McVey.

His responsibilities as a councillor since being first elected in May 2000 included chairing the environment overview and scrutiny committee, serving as a board member of both Wirral Partnership Homes and Merseytravel and as cabinet member for housing during the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition which led Wirral Council between 2010-11.

Chris's widow, Sandra Blakeley, said: "Our family is very grateful that Chris’s work, over more than 20 years, is to be honoured and remembered in this way.

"Chris worked hard, and consistently, for our town and he was a champion for the community. We’d like to thank all those who have helped to ensure he will be remembered in this way.”

The development, by Lovell Partnerships, was approved by the Council on March 8 and includes 66 new homes together with associated open space, roads and pavements, landscaping and additional drainage.

Lovell have been actively working in Wirral for over 20 years and undertook consultation with residents, including a public consultation event held at Moreton Baptist Church just before the pandemic.

The development will be a mix of two, three and four bedroom homes in a mixture of primarily semi-detached and terraced properties. All will be available via shared ownership, affordable rent or rent to buy.

Councillor Vida Wilson told the Globe: "The naming of Blakeley Way is a wonderful tribute to a great man.

"Politics aside, he cared so much for his community and would do whatever he could to help. He also fought for what he believed in".

Cllr Wilson continued: "I first met Chris almost 25 years ago when he offered his help to me, as Chairman of the Friends of Fender Farm, and our fight then against plans to build on Moreton’s Green Belt.

"In all the years that followed, he never once wavered or reduced his commitment, enthusiasm and determination for Moreton and Saughall Massie.

"Thank you to the council and the developer for agreeing to this request to remember Chris in this way.

"Along with my colleagues Colin Baldwin and Gary Bennett, we once again pay tribute to this remarkable man, without doubt the best councillor Moreton has ever had."

Leader of Wirral’s Conservatives, Cllr. Jeff Green, added: "Chris Blakeley was a one-off, one of those rare councillors who was both a champion for his community and an assiduous and effective councillor in the Town Hall.

"He could be fearsome but was always fair. When he contributed to a debate or challenged a proposal you knew he will have done his homework.

“I hope this gesture will ensure Chris’s memory lives on and will serve as a reminder that a good councillor can make a difference. Moreton, Saughall Massie and the wider Borough are a better place because of Chris Blakeley.”