THE news that Wirral Council could be forced to sell off Wallasey Town Hall would be a sad end for a building that has served the borough for over a century.

The growth of Wallasey in the early 20th century had prompted the newly established district council to build a town hall and, after considering sites in Liscard and Rake Lane, the site of a former mansion called Northmead House was chosen.

The foundation stone for the new building was laid by King George V, who was accompanied by Queen Mary, on March 25, 1914, but worldwide events quickly determined the new building was put into service as a military hospital for soldiers who had been wounded during the First World War.

Following the end of the conflict, the building was converted and finally opened as Wallasey Town Hall on November 3, 1920.

The building, including its lantern, was 180ft high and even included an organ that had originally been installed in Dublin’s City Hall.

On August 3, 1940, the building was badly damaged by German bombs during an air raid, with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth visiting the town hall to inspect the damage on November 6, 1940.

Another royal occasion took place in July 1957 when Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, visited the town hall and waved to the crowd from the balcony.

As the work of the borough council increased, a modern annex was built to the north west of the main building and completed in 1964.

The town hall’s importance grew in 1974 when it became the local seat of government for the enlarged Wirral Council after the former county boroughs of Birkenhead and Wallasey; the borough of Bebington and urban districts of Hoylake and Wirral all merged to become the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral.

The building was Grade II listed in May 1990 and today the councillors continue to meet in the impressive council chamber.