Everything about Spital Merseyside totally explained
Spital is a small
suburb located on the
Wirral Peninsula,
Merseyside,
England. It is mostly incorporated into the town of
Bebington and the most westerly point of Spital forms the most northern edge of
Bromborough.
History
Legend has it that Irish patron saint,
St Patrick, blessed a well in the local
Brotherton Park during a trip to England.
Origins
Spital has a history spanning over 800 years. The first recorded dwelling in the area was a small chapel built sometime before
AD 1183 with the name St. Thomas the Martyr. It isn't known who built this chapel but was probably used by workers and owners of the Poulton Estate, founded in 1133 at nearby Poulton Lancelyn. In 1283, the brethren of Bebington were given licence to use the forested land where Spital stands today to be used as a hospital for lepers. This hospital was probably attached to the chapel already in the area, but there are no remains of this building today.
The word "spital" was a term given to a place or building (or "spital house") that acted as a hospital or colony for lepers. Therefore it seems obvious that the name Spital derives from this; however it could also be argued that Spital's name derived from the term "hospitality" - this was due to the large proportion of people who worked as servants at the Poulton estate in Poulton Lancelyn. However many villages with the name "Spital" in their title can be put down to hospitals being in the area many years previously. Poulton cum Spital and Spital Old Hall were the original names for the village until part of this was formally dropped at the end of the 19th century.
Recent history
The area became more popular during the 20th century after
Spital Station on the Chester to Birkenhead railway was connected to the Mersey Railway line in 1891, and businessmen and workers could easily reach places of work, primarily in
Liverpool. Spital was a particularly popular place to live with sea merchants and ships' captains due its proximity to the
River Mersey and
Irish Sea during the height of maritime activity in the area.
Spital was originally part of
Cheshire when on
1 April 1974 it was absorbed into the new administrative county of Merseyside created through the reforms of the
Local Government Act 1972. Spital has since grown and is now part of the larger town of Bebington which borders
Birkenhead. After the ending of the workhouse system in 1930, Wirral
Workhouse was renamed Clatterbridge (County) General Hospital and under the National Health Service became Clatterbridge Hospital. In 1958, it became a centre specialising in
Oncology. The centre was built in to enlarge cancer care services from a cramped site on Myrtle Street in Liverpool - since then the site has been expanded and the hospital has been awarded 3 out of 3 stars in the NHS scoring system.
Description
Spital is primarily a residential suburb which has seen an increase in the construction of apartments, likely due to its close proximity to good transport links. The area is served by Poulton Lancelyn Primary School which is on Venables Drive and contains a number of local shops, including a convenience store, a bar and a restaurant.
Demographics
Population
- 1801 - 87
- 1851 - 294
- 1901 - 487
- 1951 - 1,257
- 2001 - 4,190
The
2001 Census shows the population of Spital to be 4,190. This was composed of 2,010 (47.97%) males and 2,180 (52.03%) females. There were 1,660 households.
Governance
Spital is situated within the UK Parliamentary Constituency of
Wirral South. Since the
2005 General Election the constituency
Member of Parliament is
Ben Chapman (Labour).
At local government level, Spital and the neighbouring village of
Poulton Lancelyn are part of the
Clatterbridge Ward of the
Metropolitan Borough of Wirral.
Transport
Despite its small size, the area is served by
Spital railway station on the
Wirral Line of the
Merseyrail network, with frequent services to Liverpool,
Chester and
Ellesmere Port. The station is staffed from early in the morning through to 10 minutes before the last train at night and there's a free car park with space for over 40 vehicles.
Regular bus services, operated on behalf of
Merseytravel, leave Spital cross-roads for various destinations around Merseyside.
The
M53 motorway,
A41 road and B5137 road pass through or near the area.
Notable people
Former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson spent his adolescent years living in Spital.Further Information
Get more info on 'Spital Merseyside'.
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