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#everysinglestreet [01/07/21] Belle Vale Road and Childwall Valley Road with strawberries and blackcurrants

Graham Holland     

Belle Vale Shopping Centre was built in the 1970s when the prefab estate was replaced by houses, maisonettes (now gone) and tower blocks (also gone). Belle Vale Estate Gateacre consisted of over a thousand prefabricated homes built between 1945 and 1947 to house people whose homes were destroyed during WWII. One resident, Terry Leahy, went on to become Sir Terry Leahy, Tesco CEO and is still President of the Belle Vale Prefab Project.

I used to visit Belle Vale Shopping Centre as a teenager. There was a record store and a Woolworths. And a chippy. On the upper floor there used to be a Tesco one end and an entrance to the Co-op the other end. Now there’s a JD Gym. The centre has since been extended at the car park side. On the Lee Park side there’s a large office block which used to be occupied by the DHSS. I don’t know who’s in there now (if anyone). 

A trip along Childwall Valley Road wouldn’t be complete without a photo of the 79 bus into town!

Belle Vale Park exists on the site of Belle Vale Hall, demolished in 1929. The sandstone entrance posts on Belle Vale Road are still there, and next to them are two Incredible Edible planters with strawberries and blackcurrants growing in them. 

Next to St Stephen’s Church are Church Cottages (1880), designed by the church’s architect, the brilliantly named Cornelius Sherlock, who was also responsible for the Walker Art Gallery and the Picton Reading Room. No 1 is for sale for £250,000.

Kevin, my best friend at Secondary School, went to Belle Vale Primary which, unlike to rebuilt Craighurst where I went, looks exactly the same. Opposite the school is a Morrisons supermarket and petrol station, built on the site of the Newforge factory where they used to make SPAM. Sadly there’s no SPAM Road, or Spiced Pork and Ham Close to commemorate it. 

There’s a footpath from Besford Road which takes you down to the old railway line and, via a tunnel, to Station Road. This is how we walked to the shopping centre as kids. Back then this was just wasteland where prefabs used to be. 

Our Lady of the Assumption RC Church (known locally as OLA) stands at the end of Hartsbourne Avenue. The road is blocked off to prevent through traffic accessing Hedgefield Road. Back when we were kids, before the bollards were installed in the car park, it used to be possible to circumvent the road block by driving through the OLA car park. This was somewhat frowned upon by the church who didn’t want people using their car park as a shortcut. One day my mum was driving the Morris Minor Traveller to Belle Vale Shopping Centre and decided to take the shortcut. As she was driving through the car park one of the wheels fell off the car and the wheel mount left a long scar in the tarmac which (sadly) has long since been tarmaced over. 

Lineside Close used to have one of those traditional Scout Hut-style buildings at the end.

Opposite the shopping centre on Hedgefield Road is Gateacre School. Opened in 2011, this new building and the move from the old Grange Lane site, cost £30 million. Two of my old teachers still work at the school. Mr Coulthard used to teach IT (BBC Micros, anyone?) and is now on the admin team. Miss Nevin taught me French in the early 1980s. She’s now also on the admin team looking after exams and timetables, but is retiring later this month.

I ran all the way along Childwall Valley Road to where The Coronation pub used to be, before returning to the car via Shrewton Road.

Stats

  • Thursday 1st July 2021
  • 19 streets
    Belfont Road, Belle Vale Road, Belle Vue Road, Besford Road, Childwall Valley Road, Church Cottages, Dauntsey Brow, Gorsewood Grove, Gorsewood Road, Hedgefield Road, Herdman Close, Larchwood Close, Lineside Close, Oakwood Close, Redwood Close, Redwood Road, Sandbrook Road, Shrewton Road, Wambo Lane
  • Total: 4,121 (72.51%)
  • Remaining: 1,562

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Great North Run

I’m running the Great North Run for the first time on Sunday 12th September, raising money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. My mum has Alzheimers so this charity is close to my heart. If you can spare a couple of quid to help me reach my target I would be extremely grateful.

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