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Coordinates: 53°31′03″N 2°56′42″W / 53.5174°N 2.9449°W / 53.5174; -2.9449

Maghull
Central Square, Maghull
Maghull  Maghull shown within Merseyside
Population	22,225 (2001)
OS grid reference	SD373027
Civil parish	Maghull
Metropolitan borough	Sefton
Metropolitan county	Merseyside
Region	North West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LIVERPOOL
Postcode district	L31
Dialling code	0151
Police	Merseyside
Fire	Merseyside
Ambulance	North West
EU Parliament	North West England
UK Parliament	Sefton Central
List of places: UK • England • Merseyside

Maghull is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, in Merseyside, England. The town is located north of the City of Liverpool and south of Ormskirk in West Lancashire. The area of Moss Side also contains HM Prison Kennet and Ashworth Hospital. Maghull had a population of 22,225 at the 2001 census.^[1] Housing in the town is almost entirely a 20th century settlement of semi-detached and detached housing although remains of the original town do exist. Historically in Lancashire, the town has had an elected council since the Local Government Act 1894 when the government set up a network of local governance across England. Following the Local Government Act 1974, the council changed its name from a parish to a town council.

History[link]

The original settlement, consisting of fifty people and six square miles of agricultural settlement, was established prior to the Domesday Survey of 1086 where the town is recorded as Magele on a ridge of high ground, that can be most clearly seen at Red Lion Bridge towards the centre of the town and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal follows it on the plain and the A5147 on the brow. This ridge marks the edge of the flood plain of the River Alt, providing protection from flooding and access to this fertile pasture of the plain. The name Maghull may have been derived from the Celtic word 'magos', the Old Irish 'Magh' and the Old English 'halh', meaning 'flat land in a bend of the river'. Another theorised origin is Anglo-Saxon mægðehalh = "nook of land where mayweed grows". A church is known to have existed in the area in 1100 although it has been rebuilt at least once and the chapel still stands, in the churchyard of the Victorian St Andrew's and is the oldest ecclesiastical building in Merseyside still in regular use for worship but in 1756 the mediaeval nave of Maghull Chapel was pulled down with a Roman Catholic dual-purpose school-chapel opening in 1890 near Massey's Barn.

It is noted that in 1568 Maghull Moss was divided between Sir Richard Molyneux of Melling and Edward Hulme of Maghull. The boundary of Maghull was, in the north, Maghull Brook and to the south, Melling Brook; the west was marked by the River Alt. At the eastern edge, however, the boundary was ill-defined on the moorland and due to the value of turf from the moss as a vital fuel this caused regular disputes between both Maghull and Melling Manors. Maghull Manor House was built in 1638 and local tradition has it that Charles II slept there during a visit to the area but by 1780 a new manor house had been built near the site of the original and it still stands in the grounds of Maghull Homes with part of the original moat. It is also recorded that by 1667 the population of Maghull had increased to 599 with 136 houses and 127 families and by 1770 initial work had begun on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal with the first sod being cut by the Honourable Charles Lewis Morduant. The actual spot lies in a rock cutting 400 metres to the east of Halsall Hill Bridge. Soon after, the Red Lion public house was built in Maghull to serve the canal trade. It became a café and general store in the 20th century and was demolished after the Second World War. Several other canalside pubs were built over the years; for example, near Hall Lane Bridge there was the Traveller's Rest (demolished 1936) and the Horse & Jockey in Melling and in 1774 the canal had reached Maghull and provided it with its second connection to Liverpool. The arrival of the canal created new industry in the area, notably quarrying of sandstone and clay extraction. It also bolstered the local hostelry trade.

Maghull's first school was founded in 1668 in a small cottage in School Lane with the headmaster being Humphries Webster, showing the town's emergence although County Rates from 1716 said of the town "Maghull doth always bear and pay a third less than either Down Holland or Lidyeat". This shows that Maghull was a developing community, but still not as rich as its neighbours (Downholland and Lydiate. Economic development continued with the Molyneux family (Earls of Sefton) being significantly active in bringing about the Alt Drainage Act in 1779 which resulted in many acres of marsh land along the river eventually becoming good agricultural land. This had led to the growth of the population to 534, with about half the employment being in trade rather than agriculture and a rise in 1815 to a population of 720 people with 71 families engaged in agriculture and 29 in trade, manufactures and handicrafts. There were 108 inhabited houses.

By the 1820s, horse racing was well established on land in Maghull.^[2] Old Racecourse Farm later became the site for the Meadows Hotel; and Old Racecourse Road, off Sefton Lane, commemorates the sport. Baines' Directory of Lancashire in 1825 provided the first list of specialist male occupations in Maghull - 1 blacksmith, 1 cooper, 1 tailor, 1 land surveyor and 1 wheelwright. By 1840 the agriculture of the area had changed from animal to arable farming and the 1861 National Census the population stood at 1,222. Due to this increase in population the railway came to Maghull in 1849, with a station on the Liverpool, Ormskirk and Preston Railway as well as the construction of the town's first police station which was set up by Lancashire County Council in 1870 and the town got a second station in 1884, Sefton and Maghull, on the newly built Cheshire Lines Committee Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway to Southport, the line was an extension of the North Liverpool Extension Line. A large section of embankment has been destroyed to make space for Switch Island. In 1933 the large Northway (A59 road) was built with fairly obviously autobahn inspired two lane dual-carriageway, which bisects Maghull, taking travellers from Liverpool to Ormskirk off 'Liverpool Road'. The arrival of Northway triggered an increased rate of expansion in Maghull.

In 1939 the IRA blew up the swing bridge at Green Lane on the canal but the strategic significance of this has never been fully explained due to Maghull's relative insignificance. During the Second World War Maghull did not completely escape bombing - two bombs landed, one adjacent to King George V Playing Fields (on the site of the former residential home), and one in Ormonde Drive. A house that was then 16 Park Lane (now 321, the houses were re-numbered in the late 1960s or early 1970s), Moss Side was also destroyed, it was rebuilt in the 1950s. It served as a refuge for up to 6,000 people a night from the pounding Bootle received. American and Polish army units were stationed in Maghull and it also held several camps for displaced persons. Park Lane TB sanatorium and a hospital, built to treat shell shock victims, were combined to form Ashworth Hospital and one hundred patients transferred from Rampton Secure Hospital with it remaining a secure hospital to this day, holding the likes of Ian Brady and others. In 2010 plans were announced by the Labour government that new housing was needed and Sefton East - where Maghull is located - was chosen as one of the locations for the new homes. Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council showcase the plans at various locations around south Sefton, which is greeted by local opposition to the plans.

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Maghull looking towards Leeds from Westway Bridge

Geography[link]

Maghull is located 10 miles north-north-east of Liverpool city centre. To the north west of Maghull is Lydiate, to the east Melling; Aintree and Netherton to the south and west of Maghull is the Mersey Forest and Sefton village. Maghull is separated from the rest of the Greater Liverpool sprawl from a green belt which runs across the Switch Island motorway junction. The small brook, known as 'Whinney Brook' runs through Maghull passing the Maghull Baptist Church and under the A59 and across to the Meadows close to the town hall. This is due to the area around the Meadows pub, formerly being part of the flood plain of the River Alt, the brook moves closer to the river but due to the urbanisation of the area, it no longer reaches it.^{[clarification needed]}

Governance[link]

In 1912 the Maghull & District Conservative Club was founded on Station Road which still stands today and the Maghull Labour Party being formed in 1928. Maghull has been governed by the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton since the Local Government Act 1974, when the boundaries were redrawn Maghull moved from Lancashire into Merseyside. Maghull has had an elected council since the Local Government Act 1894 when the government set up a network of local councils across England. Following the Local Government Act 1974, the council changed its name from a parish to a town council and remains the second largest town council in England. Maghull has working with the neighbouring parishes and villages, as well as Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council under the banner of the 'Altside Business Village', to give businesses in the areas a united voice and to promote tourism in the area. For this scheme Maghull works with Aintree, Lydiate, Melling and Sefton Village; all of which are connected geographically as being near the River Alt - hence the name Altside, and politically as they are all in the eastern parishes of Sefton borough. By 1971 the population of the town stood at 22,794 and gave Maghull the largest population of any civil parish in the country.

Education[link]

Education in the town had also developed with William Harper founding the Maghull School in Damfield Lane, the location of Maricourt Catholic High School, in 1815 under the terms of his will. In 1839 the National School, later St Andrew's Church of England School, was built with the earlier school in a small cottage, which still stands, became the headmaster's house. Money for the school, which cost £450 7s 0d (£450.35p), was raised by local subscription and the school mistress was paid £5 a year, and each scholar had to pay one penny (1d) a month towards the cost of a fire, and tuppence (2d) a month for pens and ink, if they were being taught to write but by 1873 a second storey was added to the school to accommodate the growing population. In 1957 the Sisters of Mercy created the Maricourt Catholic High School with all students initially taught in Quarry Brook House with an initial intake of only twelve girls. In 1982 Old Hall High School, formerly Maghull Grammar School, was merged with Ormonde Drive High School to form Maghull High School, concentrating on Ormonde Drive site. Today Maghull contains several primary schools including State, Roman Catholic and Church of England schools. There are also three high schools which all contain independent Sixth Form facilities and working together as part of the Maghull Collaborative. These secondary schools being Deyes High School, Maghull High School and Maricourt Catholic High School. As well as serving Maghull, the secondary schools serve pupils from the neighbouring towns in south Sefton, and the neighbouring local authorities of the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley and Liverpool.

Transport[link]

Maghull is bisected by the A59 road and is served by Maghull railway station, Merseyrail has also proposed opening a second station Maghull North, along with bus routes to the nearby areas of Kirkby, Southport, Ormskirk and Liverpool city centre with most running past or near Maghull Square. The M57 and M58 motorways start at Switch Island, between Aintree and Maghull. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal runs through the centre of old Maghull. The Trans Pennine Trail, a long distance footpath from Southport to Hornsea, near Hull skirts Maghull, following the line of the old 'Cheshire Lines' railway.

Shopping and community[link]

In 1929 the Maghull Townswomen's Guild was formed for the community. Maghull is served by the Central Square Shopping Centre, which is based in the north west of Maghull, which is the original town centre of Maghull. Known locally as 'the square', it contains several shops, a police station, numerous banks and nearby is a Morrisons supermarket. In Kennessee Green there is a shopping area called Tree View Court. There are also the Meadows shops near to Maghull Town Hall and Deyes Lane shops that are situated near the end of Deyes Lane, about five or ten minutes walking distance from Deyes High School. In 2009 Maghull Town Hall given large extension costing £8.2million, which includes library and sports facilities.

Media[link]

The main local newspapers are the Liverpool Echo (evening) and the Liverpool Daily Post (morning). Both are tabloids published by the Trinity Mirror group. There are also two local newspapers, which are the Aintree & Maghull Champion and the Maghull Star, both Maghull newspapers are free of charge and are delivered every week either on a Wednesday or a Thursday. The local BBC radio station is Radio Merseyside. Maghull is also served by the Liverpool radio stations, and multiple pan-North West radio stations. The ITV franchise holder for the town is Granada Television, and the BBC regional news programme is North West Tonight.

Sport[link]

Maghull has reasonable facilities for sport with bowls and tennis next to the town hall and Maghull football and cricket clubs playing at Old Hall Field. Maghull Cricket Club^[3] was founded in 1926 and after playing friendly cricket for the 50 years of their existence started playing league cricket in the 1970s. After moving through various junior leagues, they joined the Liverpool and District Competition in 1999. The 1st XI gained promotion to the ECB Premier League in 2001 before being relegated in 2004. In 2005, they won the First Division title for the 2nd time and rejoined the Premier league in 2006. Despite brave resistance, they were relegated in 2008. The 1st XI captain from the beginning of the 2011 season is batsman John Ring, who led the team to their 3rd First Division Championship in ten years in 2011, returning Maghull to the Premier League for the 2012 campaign. The 2nd XI plays in the 2nd XI First Division and is captained by Liam Gibbons. Gibbons led the side to promotion, and the 1st Division championship, to the 2nd XI Premier Division in 2010, but despite brave resistance the side was relegated in 2011. The club has a 3rd and 4th XI, with Andy Symes in charge of the 3rds and Kevin Costigan responsible for the 4th team. In 2007 the 3rd XI won the 3rd XI First Division championship, and plays in the 3rd XI Premier Division. 2011 saw the 3rd XI win the Embee Trophy and narrowly miss out on the Premier Division championship. It also saw the 4th XI win promotion to the Premier Division for the first time in the sides history. In 2005, the club entered a team in the Sunday 3rd XI First Division Competition, called the 5th XI. Due to regional boundaries in this league, the team have moved between the East and West divisions. The 5th team has been captained by the irrepressible Neil Dutton since its debut in 2005. Maghull F.C. joined the Lancashire Combination in 1972. In the 1978-79 season they joined Cheshire County League as founder members of Division Two, while they were founder members of North West Counties League in 1982-83. In 1992-93 they were North West Counties League Division Two Champions but were not promoted due to ground gradings. They left to join the West Cheshire League in 1999-00.^[4]

Notable people[link]

• The Beatles, performed live on several occasions at the Albany Cinema. The site is now supermarket owned by Lidl.
• John Lennon lived at Cedar Grove, Maghull for a short period of time with relatives as a result of family issues*
• Frank Hornby, of Hornby Railways, Dinky Toy and Meccano fame lived in Maghull, first at The Hollies, Station Road, and later at the much larger "Quarry Brook". This house is on Station Road, close to Maghull railway station and is now the Sixth Form for Maricourt Catholic High School. It was the first building outside London to be awarded a Blue plaque. He is buried in St. Andrew's churchyard along with his wife and daughter.
• William Vestey of Blue Star Line, who also lived at Quarry Brook prior to the Hornby family.

Several Liverpool and Everton footballers have lived in the area, notably Ian Callaghan, Duncan Ferguson, Brian Labone, Gordon West, Mick Lyons, Joe Parkinson, Roger Hunt, Tommy Wright, Roger Kenyon, John Hurst, Peter Thompson, Terry Darracott, Steve Heighway, Tony Hateley and Ian St John.

• Nathan Eccleston - English footballer who plays as a striker for Liverpool, and lives in Maghull Merseyside
• Mark Hateley - footballer and England international lived in Maghull on Shop Lane, spent two spells at Lambshear Lane Primary School (now Lydiate Primary School).
• Alex Curran-Gerrard - wife of Liverpool and England Footballer Steven Gerrard, lived most of her life in Maghull and attended Maghull High School.
• Heidi Range - member of the Sugababes, attended Maricourt High School.
• Echo & the Bunnymen - guitarist Will Sergeant who grew up in nearby Melling attended Maghull's Deyes High School, as did Les Pattinson bassist in Echo & the Bunnymen and Teardrop Explodes drummer Gary Dwyer and keyboard player Paul Simpson who was later singer in the Wild Swans, as well as the original drummer in the Farm, Andy McVan.
• David Turner who attended Woodend Primary School and Maghull High School went on to join SKA super group Bad Manners and enjoy an international music and recording career
• All the original members of the band Apollo 440, either lived or went to school in Maghull - Noko and James Gardner - lived in Maghull and attended Old Hall High School (later Maghull High) and brothers Howard Gray and Trevor Gray from Aintree both attended Old Hall High School.
• James Graham - St Helens and GB rugby league player, attended Deyes High School.
• David Price - Rugby Union player at Orrell R.U.F.C. attended Maricourt High School.
• Stephen Darby - Liverpool F.C. youth player, brought up in Maghull.

Other connections include:

• Charlotte Jackson - family of British journalist and television presenter, currently a presenter on Sky Sports News originate from Maghull.
• Bill Dean - actor who appeared as Harry Cross in the soap Brookside.
• Eddie Hemmings Sky TV Rugby League commentator.
• Isaac Roberts - astronomer.
• Rafael Sabatini - novelist, lived in Station Road, Maghull.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Town Council
• Maghull Champion
• Leeds Liverpool Canal in Maghull

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Maghull

Mary Portas aka Mary Queen of Shops (born 28 May 1960),^[1] is an English businesswoman, retail expert, and broadcaster, best-known for her retail and business related television shows, and most recently for her appointment by the British prime minister to lead a review into the future of Britain's high streets.

Early life and education[link]

Portas was born and brought up in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, in a family of five children. She was educated at St Joan of Arc Catholic School, Rickmansworth.^[2] Her mother died of meningits when Portas was aged 16, and her father, a sales director of Brooke Bond, the tea manufacturer,^[3] died of a heart attack two years later forcing Portas, aged 18, to turn down a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in order to look after her younger brother.

Career[link]

Portas started her career in retail with a Saturday job in John Lewis. She then had a part-time, and later a full-time, job with Harrods where she was responsible for window displays for about three years,^[2] before joining TopShop as display manager. While in this job, she was spotted by Burton Group chairman Sir Ralph Halpern.^[4]

Her next role brought Portas her first taste of fame and public acclaim, as creative director of Harvey Nichols. Portas is credited with turning Harvey Nichols into a leading modern fashion brand.^[5] She created the groundbreaking Harvey Nichols window displays that became part of the guided tours of London — one of her most famous displays was "Autumn Intrusion" - a commission by artist Thomas Heatherwick that won a D&AD Gold award in 1997.^[6][7] She then persuaded the store's owners to use younger designers, and gained publicity in the BBC’s Absolutely Fabulous series in the 1990s, after promising writer and star of the show Jennifer Saunders the run of the store for research in return for Saunders namechecking the business.^[8] By the age of 30, Portas was a member of the company's board.

Portas left Harvey Nichols in 1997 to launch Yellowdoor, a Retail & Brand agency that she now runs with Peter Cross. Yellowdoor advises retail, fashion, luxury, and consumer brands on Strategy, Communications, and Marketing.^[9] Yellowdoor's current clients include, Westfield London, Westfield Stratford City, Clarks, Swarovski, Havaianas and Australian retail brands Sportsgirl and Sussan.^[9]

Yellowdoor has worked with many retail and luxury brands, including Patek Phillipe, Boden, John Smedley^{[disambiguation needed ]}, Holland & Holland, Clinique, Louis Vuitton, Oasis, Radley, House of Fraser Acne and Matalan.

Portas is claimed to be one of the UK's foremost authorities on retail and brand communication.^[10][11] She regularly travels around the world advising on retail strategy and frequently lectures on the theme of brands and retail. Notably, Portas spoke alongside Neil Armstrong at the Cannes Palais Festivals in October 2007, ^[12][13] and is due to speak at the Yorkshire International Business Convention with the Dalai Lama in June 2012 ^[14].

Notable career milestones[link]

Before the age of 30, Portas became a member of the board at Harvey Nichols.

In 1997 Portas left Harvey Nichols to launch her consultancy business, Yellowdoor. When asked in Radio Times interview why she left Harvey Nichols, Portas is quoted to have said "I wanted to create my own world. I wanted freedom."

Mary's first television appearance was a a guest on Richard & Judy in 2005, where she was spotted by television producer Patricia Llewellyn who would go on to sign Portas to production company Optomen Television.

Portas began writing her weekly 'Shop!' column for the Telegraph Magazine in 2005, in which she reviews a different retailer every week.

The column is said to have inspired Mary's first television series, Mary Queen of Shops, which aired on BBC2 on 31st May 2007.

On 19 June 2009, in a ceremony at Galashiels, Heriot-Watt University awarded Portas a Doctorate of Letters in recognition of her career and her contribution to the advancement of marketing and brand communications within the retail sector.

In December 2009, Portas opened her first permanent 'Living & Giving Shop' in support of charity Save the Children. She was also named as the charity's Glabal Retail Ambassador.

In 2011, Portas moved from BBC to Channel 4. Her first series for the channel was 'Mary Portas: Secret Shopper' which aired in January 2011.

In August 2011, Portas opened her own shop, called "Mary & House of Fraser" within UK department store House of Fraser's Oxford Street flagship. The store stocks her first fashion collection, called 'Mary Portas', as well as other product collaborations including a footwear collection with Clarks - "Mary & Clarks", and a hoisery collection with Charnos - "Mary & Charnos". Portas also launched a new product innovation, 'Armery', which is a hoisery-type garment for the arms. The product is designed to "banish bingo wings".

In the December 2011 issue of fashion industry journal Drapers, Mary was named as the 6th most influential person in fashion.

On the 13th December 2011, Mary published The Portas Review, an independant report into the future of Britain's high streets. She was appointed in May 2011 by British Prime Minister, David Cameron. The report sets out 28 key recommendations to rescue Britains high streets.

Books[link]

Portas' first book, Windows - the Art of Retail Display, ISBN 978-0500019443 was published in five languages by Thames & Hudson.

Her second book, How to Shop with Mary, Queen of Shops, ISBN 978-1846072147 was published by BBC Books in 2007 to accompany the television series. The book was co-authored by Peter Cross, Josh Sims and Melanie Rickey.

Journalism[link]

Since 2005 Mary has written a weekly column Shop!, for the Daily Telegraph magazine, reviewing shops across the country. She started writing the column in 2005 and it was her critiquing of shops that was the inspiration for the BBC documentary and accompanying book.^[15] Each week, Portas reviews shop based on their shopability, service and website - awarding retailers marks out of 10.

Portas' top-rated shops include Louis Vuitton, Reiss, John Lewis, Liberty and APC.

Between 2008 and 2010 Portas wrote a weekly column for consumer fashion magazine Grazia, offering career advice and mentoring to the magazine's readers.

Television career[link]

Portas' programmes are shown in over 20 international territories, including on Australia's Lifestyle Channel.

Mary Queen of Shops (2007 - 2010) was Portas' first series. The format follows Mary helping struggling independent shops by offering retail and business advice. As part of the process, retailers also received a full shop-fit redesign overseen by Portas.

Series Guide:

• Series 1 (4 episodes): 31st May - 21st June 2007 - this series saw Portas visit 4 failing independent fashion boutiques aiming to revitalize their businesses. The BBC published a tie-in book entitled How to Shop with Mary Queen of Shops.
• Series 2 (6 episodes): 9th June - 14th July 2008
• Series 3 (6 episodes): 7th June - 12th July 2009 - this series saw Mary broaden her focus from fashion boutiques to saving key shops on the high street. Retailers inluded a local shop, a greengrocer, a baker, an interiors shop, a hairdressers, and a hardware shop. Notably, the first episode in the series featured a Wimbledon based bakery whose owner refused to accept any of Mary's recommendations. The series earned Portas a nomination for the British Academy Television Awards's Best Feature award, which was eventually won by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's series Hugh's Fish Fight.

Mary Queen of Charity Shops (5th November - 19th November 2009) saw Portas apply the business makeover format to the Orpington branch of Save the Children's network of Charity shops. By the end of the series Mary had successfully turned this worst-performing store into the best.

Mary Portas: Secret Shopper (19th January - 9th February 2011; 6 episodes)was Portas' first series following her move to Channel 4, and saw her using different disguises and secret filming to reveal bad customer service in UK shops.

Mary Queen of Frocks (4th October - 18th October 2011; 3 episodes) was a departure from the produced shows that Mary had presented previously, and instead was an observational documentary that followed Mary as she tried to launch her own shop aimed at 40+ women with UK retailer House of Fraser.

Mary's Bottom Line (March 2012; 3 episodes) shows Portas try to revitalize the UK's manufacturing industry by reopening an underwear factory in Manchester ^[16].

Other television appearances[link]

Mary hosted an episode of The Money Programme called Mary Portas: Save Our Shops in June 2009.

She appeared in the Panorama documentary On The Rack which exposed unethical production practices by fast fashion retailer Primark; and has appeared on The Apprentice: You're Fired four times.

In March 2011, Portas regularly appeared in the Channel 4 series Lily Allen: From Riches to Rags, in which she advised the pop star on her venture into fashion retail.

Mary's Living and Giving Shops for Save the Children[link]

Following the BBC2 series Mary Queen of Charity Shops in June 2009, Mary was appointed as Global Retail Ambassador for Save the Children.^[17] She developed the "Living & Giving" concept as a new type of charity shop that puts the local community at its heart - "not just a shop, but a place to inspire, share, create, meet and discover".^[18] The first Living & Giving shop Portas opened was a three-week-long pop up at Westfield London, earning the charity over £190,000.^[19] Portas has gone on to open five permanent Living & Giving shops, in Edinburgh, Westbourne Grove, Primrose Hill and Parson's Green and Barnes.^[18][19][20]

Retail venture[link]

In August 2011 she opened her first retail shop as a concession in House of Fraser's Oxford Street branch.^[21] The shop, named Mary & House of Fraser, sells clothing and lifestyle products aimed at the 40+ female market,^[22] and was filmed for a Channel 4 documentary Mary Queen of Frocks that aired in October 2011.

Government appointment[link]

The embedded lists in this article may contain items that are not encyclopedic. Please help out by removing such elements and incorporating appropriate items into the main body of the article. (December 2011)

In May 2011 she was appointed by the Prime Minister David Cameron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg to lead an independent review into the future of the high street. She published her report "The Portas Review" on 13 December 2011.^[23] Portas states the aim of her review to "put the heart back into the centre of our High Streets, re-imagined as destinations for socialising, culture, health, wellbeing, creativity and learning".^[24] The review goes on to detail 28 specific recommendations^[25] -

1. Put in place a “Town Team”: a visionary, strategic and strong operational management team for high streets

2. Empower successful Business Improvement Districts to take on more responsibilities and powers and become “Super-BIDs”

3. Legislate to allow landlords to become high street investors by contributing to their Business Improvement District

4. Establish a new “National Market Day” where budding shopkeepers can try their hand at operating a low-cost retail business

5. Make it easier for people to become market traders by removing unnecessary regulations so that anyone can trade on the high street unless there is a valid reason why not

6. Government should consider whether business rates can better support small businesses and independent retailers

7. Local authorities should use their new discretionary powers to give business rate concessions to new local businesses

8. Make business rates work for business by reviewing the use of the RPI with a view to changing the calculation to CPI

9. Local areas should implement free controlled parking schemes that work for their town centres and we should have a new parking league table

10. Town Teams should focus on making high streets accessible, attractive and safe

11. Government should include high street deregulation as part of their ongoing work on freeing up red tape

12. Address the restrictive aspects of the ‘Use Class’ system to make it easier to change the uses of key properties on the high street

13. Put betting shops into a separate ‘Use Class’ of their own

14. Make explicit a presumption in favour of town centre development in the wording of the National Planning Policy Framework

15. Introduce Secretary of State “exceptional sign off ” for all new out-of-town developments and require all large new developments to have an “affordable shops” quota

16. Large retailers should support and mentor local businesses and independent retailers

17. Retailers should report on their support of local high streets in their annual report

18. Encourage a contract of care between landlords and their commercial tenants by promoting the leasing code and supporting the use of lease structures other than upward only rent reviews, especially for small businesses

19. Explore further disincentives to prevent landlords from leaving units vacant

20. Banks who own empty property on the high street should either administer these assets well or be required to sell them

21. Local authorities should make more proactive use of Compulsory Purchase Order powers to encourage the redevelopment of key high street retail space

22. Empower local authorities to step in when landlords are negligent with new “Empty Shop Management Orders”

23. Introduce a public register of high street landlords

24. Run a high profile campaign to get people involved in Neighbourhood Plans

25. Promote the inclusion of the High Street in Neighbourhood Plans

26. Developers should make a financial contribution to ensure that the local community has a strong voice in the planning system

27. Support imaginative community use of empty properties through Community Right to Buy, Meanwhile Use and a new “Community Right to Try”

28. Run a number of High Street Pilots to test proof of concept

On 13 December the Prime Minister David Cameron issued a statement thanking Portas for her review and explaining that the Government would respond to her recommendations in Spring 2012.^[26] Cameron said "I am delighted that Mary Portas has produced such a clear vision of how we can create vibrant and diverse town centres and breathe life back into our high streets."^[26]

Portas Pilot towns[link]

On 4 February 2012 the minister for local government, Grant Shapps, announced that towns across England could bid to become Portas pilot areas. A total of 12 towns were to receive a share of £1m, as well as the support of the Minister, Whitehall, and Mary Portas.^[27][28] In May 2012 the twelve towns to be helped were announced as: Bedford, Croydon, Dartford, Greater Bedminster, Liskeard, Margate, Market Rasen, Nelson, Lancashire, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees and Wolverhampton.^[29]

Twitter[link]

She was named as one of the top 100 Tweeters in the UK by The Independent in 2011.

Personal life[link]

Portas was married to chemical engineer and Unilever executive Graham Portas for 14 years and together they had son Mylo (born 19 January 1994)^[30] and daughter Verity.^[2][31] Portas now lives with her civil partner,^[32] Grazia magazine fashion features editor Melanie Rickey, in Maida Vale with her children, after an amicable divorce from her husband.^[3] In 2012 it was announced in The Times that Rickey was pregnant with her first child.^[31]

She spends her money on art, wine, theatre and chocolate, and enjoys gardening.^[2]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Portas' website
• Shop!, The Telegraph's Saturday magazine
• Channel 4 website
• Portas' Twitter
• Yellowdoor - Portas' retail consultancy
• Mary Portas at the Internet Movie Database