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Royal Mail has decided that every address in the Borough of Wirral falls into one of four Post Towns - Prenton, Wallasey, Birkenhead and Wirral. Those definitions do not match any areas known to the residents. For Royal Mail, Claughton and Oxton are in Prenton; Heswall, West Kirby, Greasby, Egremont, New Brighton, etc. no longer exist; and Birkenhead is not in Wirral. Places that are not in Royal Mail's versions of Prenton, Wallasey or Birkenhead are stated to be in Wirral. Their confusing boundary names are based on their sorting and delivery offices, but are now officially part of a building's postal address.

From http://www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/Royal-Mail-PAF-Code-of-Practice.pdf -
"The postal address is a sorting and routing instruction to Royal Mail’s staff and not always a geographically accurate description of where a property is located. As mail is circulated via Post towns it may, for example, include the name of that town which could be several miles away, as that is where your mail is processed."

That brings up a couple of anomalies, Oxton despite locally being called Oxton Village was never a village.

The second anomaly is that "Oxton" has two post offices and hence two shopping areas so it has two centres, Wellington Road and the other being the junction of Palm Hill, Claughton Firs, Christchurch Road, Village Road and Rose Mount.

This might have come about because I think there was another name that has died out for the area around the Palm Hill (which I have forgotten!).

Edit: Claughton-cum-Grange

Sorry diggin' but i think you are incorrect. I believe Oxton derives its name from the vikings and has something to do with being a farmstead. Oxton was a village before being incorporated into Birkenhead. It was a large sprawling area and just happens to be lucky enough to retain two post offices, most places had two or more post offices at one time or another which eventually closed through postmasters or mistresses retiring or being forced to close for what ever reason. As for having another name, I haven't heard that before so you could potentially be correct on that issue.

Many towns had two or more post offices, you will struggle to find Villages with two post offices.

Oxton seemed to originally centre above Shrewsbury Road and certainly wasn't one of the Wirral Hundred's, the nearest ones being Prenton and Noctorum. But saying that, Tranmere wasn't a Hundred either.

The first Oxton Village Hall was earlyish 20th century, long after Birkenhead had subsumed it.

"Oxton" seems to centre on St Saviours on both sides of Bidston/Talbot Roads.

Just because an area has a name it does not make it a town or Village. A classic counter-example being Rock Ferry which is purely a vaguely defined area belonging partly to Bebington and partly to Tranmere.

I could be wrong, my original reference material has disappeared off the internet and my memory is poor, I think I have a sheet of notes I made on the subject which I will try and dig out, I should have placed it on one of my websites instead of "filing" it.

I know the feeling regarding memory. Most villages just spring up organically and many disappeared in the same way. I was not around at the time the area was named but I remember something from my old school days that Oxton was a village around 1200ad. My old school notes are now well gone so I can't tell you the source im afraid. There will no doubt be some better history buffs on this site that will be able to clarify this im sure.

Oxton history is HERE

It was a township, but not all townships were official ones decreed by parliament.

To be a village it would have to be administered by a parish council which it looks like it could have been after 1846 when St Saviour's predecessor was built.

Do you remember the campaign to get Bebington back into Cheshire rather than being in Merseyside. This seems to have died out. I suppose the change from 'L' to 'CH' took the wind out of their sails, but in fact all it meant was that the Post Office had transferred its main sorting office from Liverpool to Chester.

Apologies if the campaign is still in existence. I haven't seen much sign of them for some years now.