approx. 10 years ago the Swan Car Park had a pay and display machine, it was to the right of the entrance to the car park. after a number of years the machine broke and was not repaired then approx. 5 to 6 years ago one morning there was a movable barrier across the entrance with a security attendant manning it. This continued for about a week. Yes the build up of cars been left there all day long has grown and as you say this week a new pay and display machine has been installed to the left of the entrance as you drive in.
Ships that pass in the night, seldom seen and soon forgoten
There's a real danger that the left will drag Britain back to the 1970s, with secure well-paid jobs, ample housing, properly-funded NHS and social care, free tuition, student grants, final salary pensions, affordable rail fares and fabulous films and music. David Osland 2025
We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn
when I used the car park during the time the earlier pay and display machine was working you passed a portion of the ticket from the machine over the bar and got the cost of your meal or drink reduce by the amount on the ticket. Many many years ago the piece of land which is the car park had a building on it which was a brewery. Perhaps that answers your question as to ownership of the car park.
Ships that pass in the night, seldom seen and soon forgoten
I suspect that about a third of the carpark may belong to the pub but roughly the 2/3rds on the Woodchurch Road side may not.
I can't find records of a building being present on any of that that land, unless it was exceedingly short-lived.
I'll try and look into it further but perhaps Pinz or Derek could shed more light?
There's a real danger that the left will drag Britain back to the 1970s, with secure well-paid jobs, ample housing, properly-funded NHS and social care, free tuition, student grants, final salary pensions, affordable rail fares and fabulous films and music. David Osland 2025
We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn
The present car park opposite the Swan Hotel shows on a 1939 abstract of conveyance as having a large building on it. It was a Bents Brewery and the building covered not only the current car park but also stretched along Home Lane as far as the bend in the lane where it starts to climb up to Talbot Road.
Ships that pass in the night, seldom seen and soon forgoten
Interesting, there is absolutely nothing on the OS maps, amongst the many others I checked was the 1938 and 1953 revisions.
There's a real danger that the left will drag Britain back to the 1970s, with secure well-paid jobs, ample housing, properly-funded NHS and social care, free tuition, student grants, final salary pensions, affordable rail fares and fabulous films and music. David Osland 2025
We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn
When kids, we used to play all around that area. It was all open. Not cultivated at all, just rough grassland. After passing Bethany - Holmlands Drive sits on top of the original Bethany now, there were no buildings at all until you came to Holm Lane with the Swan Hotel. That corner was just open land, but later a small area was given a rough surface of gravel or clinker and became a small car park for the Swan. As to whether or not Bents Brewery, owner the Swan just used it or bought it from who ever owned it I don't know. I'm talking of the late 50's early 60's here. The halcyon days of the Flat Lanes, loads of ponds, the brickworks excavations - all great places to play.
The Swan Hotel was were I imbibed in my first legal pint. Bents Bitter. NOT the best beer in the world !!
As an aside, a while ago I emailed the present Bethany Chapel in Holmlands Drive asking if they had any picture of the original building. I never had the courtesy of a reply or acknowledgement !! PEASANTS !!!!
After reading the pages of conveyance documents that I have. The documents reference the whole parcel of land stretching from Holme Lane down as far as the railway line. The section of land from the corner of the junction of Holme Lane and Woodchurch road back to the bend in Holme Lane is actualy outlined as belonging to Bents Brewery but no mention of it been built on. So perhaps that's why none of the os maps show any buildings on the land.
Ships that pass in the night, seldom seen and soon forgoten
A loophole has appeared. Parkingeye/ALDI appear to have never attained planning permission for their ANPR and signage at Aldi Prenton. It is possible to ask for your money to be refunded on the grounds that the equipment used was illegal.
Furthermore, it would be difficult to understand how they are in conformance with the data protection act if as a business they had illegally placed cameras.
Thanks to WirralLeaks.
There's a real danger that the left will drag Britain back to the 1970s, with secure well-paid jobs, ample housing, properly-funded NHS and social care, free tuition, student grants, final salary pensions, affordable rail fares and fabulous films and music. David Osland 2025
We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn
