Guide to Thingwall

There are seven schools within three miles of Thingwall which received an ‘outstanding’ grade at their last Ofsted inspection including at least one school at each level – including Ganneys Meadow Nursery School and Family Centre (2-5), Irby Primary (ages 4-11), and St John Plessington Catholic College (11-18). This increases to 21 ‘outstanding’ schools within a 5 mile radius and a further 74 ‘good’ rated schools in the same area.

It’s only natural to want the best for a child and, as such, the area is popular with young couples and families looking for an area with such opportunity for their children. You can find out about the excellent options available in Thingwall on the Ofsted website here.

Thingwall is served by The Warrens Medical Centre, which was rated as ‘good’ during its most recent assessment by the Care Quality Commission, and has a choice of a few dentists offering both general and cosmetic dentistry. With a selection of pharmacies available and the medical options on offer, Thingwall residents are well cared for in their day-to-day medical needs.

For more serious problems, injuries or procedures, there’s nearby Arrowe Park Hospital – less than a ten minute drive from Thingwall – which also has an accident and emergency department. 

Services in Thingwall are part of the NHS Wirral CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group), and you can find out about them here.

While there isn’t much in the way of dining in Thingwall itself – though there’s the fantastic Kismat Indian restaurant and a wonderful pub lunch on offer at The Basset Hound – it is in its proximity to the fine dining across the Wirral where Thingwall shines. Within a few miles are everything from traditional English tea rooms to Greek, Turkish, Ethiopean, Italian, Thai and more. Within a ten minute drive, a Thingwall resident can try the cuisine of every continent without having to concern themselves with a restaurant rated lower than 4.5 stars on Tripadvisor.

In addition to this, if you’d like to make an evening of it, then Thingwall is around equidistant from both Liverpool and Chester which have their own excellent culture of fine dining.

Located 15 minutes by car from Chester, around 30 from Liverpool and about 80 minutes from Manchester, Thingwall is within a reasonable daily commute from three of the north west’s thriving cities, making it easy enough to have a city job and a village life without having to – in two cases, at least – exceed the average 59 minute commute time for the UK.

Things are a little more tricky for anyone looking to use the train, however, with the nearest station on the Wirral Line between Liverpool and Chester (Birkenhead Central) taking a 20 minute bus journey and lengthening commute times to 85 minutes for Chester, 95 minutes for Manchester and 45 minutes for Liverpool.

Appearing in The Domesday Book of 1086 as Tuigvelle, Thingwall likely dates back further and, with its name originating from the Old Norse þing vollr (assembly field), was probably inhabited in at least the 7th Century. With its bedrock of yellow, Triassic era sandstone, Thingwall was home to several quarries and the traditional walls and houses of the area are made from that distinctive sandstone.

Thingwall was the site of a mill from the middle ages all the way up to 1900. Though the original was replaced in the 18th Century and the latter, having been damaged by a storm, demolished at the turn of the 20th, the remains of the building – including the original millstone – can still be seen on Mill Road.

From birdwatching to a funfair, the Wirral has a fantastic mix of attractions and activities to suit all interests and all ages. The west coast of the Wirral has all you need in the way of nature – including birdwatching at Parkgate, nature walks at Ness, soft sandy beaches at Thurstaston and the North Wirral Coastal Park features woodland and sand dunes. All of which are within a short drive of Thingwall village.

There are also several tourist destinations nearby, offering things like adventure golf (or actual golf at Hoylake’s The Royal Liverpool Golf Club, home of The Open), then there’s New Brighton with the many attractions on offer you’d expect from a traditional seaside resort – from arcades to waltzers. All of this is, again, within a half hour of the village and more than worth a daytrip.

Thingwall is only a short journey from the Wirral’s best entertainment – whether you want to take in a game at Prenton Park, go to see a show at the New Brighton Floral Pavilion, or visit The Lady Lever Art Gallery nearby in Port Sunlight, there’s always something to do – or you can catch the latest Hollywood release at the Vue cinema in Birkenhead.

There are precious few nightclubs on the Wirral, but there are plenty of restaurants and bars for an evening out in nearby New Brighton and Birkenhead – and if you’re looking for a night on the tiles, then Liverpool – regularly rated in the top 10 for nightclubs and bars in the UK – is close enough for an affordable late night taxi ride (with a little help from your friends).

Thingwall has around a half dozen salons and barbers and there are plenty of salons in nearby  Pensby and Irby offering everything from nail art to tanning and hair styling. In fact, there are more than enough nearby beauty salons, stylists and therapists that you shouldn’t struggle to find one that matches your style and taste.

Though not a primary consideration while looking for property to rent or buy, it’s always nice to know that you won’t need to travel far or wait for days for an appointment. As with anything on the Wirral, however, the immediate vicinity is only the beginning – there are plenty of spas and retreats in the surrounding towns and villages for when you need something a little more special.

Keen shoppers may not find the thrill they’re looking for in Thingwall, but a high-street full of big brand stores is unlikely to have been the reason for a move to the village. Instead, a shopaholic should take a daytrip to LiverpoolONE, a half hour away over or under the Mersey, or to the Designer Outlet Cheshire Oaks. 

However, there are smaller shopping parks available closer to home – such as The Rock Retail Park, or Birkenhead’s Pyramids Shopping Centre. It may take some convincing to talk an avid shopper out of a trip to one of the huge complexes in the north west, but there are half a dozen smaller retail parks nearby offering a more sedate shop.

The nearest place to pick up a foodshop is a Sainsbury’s Local on Pensby Road, which carries plenty for the typical weekly shop, but there is also an Asda Superstore in nearby Arrowe Park and a Tesco Superstore in Heswall – both only a few miles away. There are also an Aldi and a Morissons both under five miles away.

You can also pick up free range eggs from Holmwood Farm – an urban smallholding in the village that is also hoping to sell fresh vegetables soon – and if you’re after locally sourced food, there’s also The Vineyard Farm in Bromborough, and Claremont Farm in Bebington which pride themselves on sustainable fresh produce.