| Aintree | |
|---|---|
| Village | |
 Sign marking boundary of Aintree and the Liverpool district of Walton | |
  Aintree Location withinMerseyside | |
| Population | 6,689 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SJ375985 |
| Civil parish |
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| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LIVERPOOL |
| Postcode district | L9, L10 |
| Dialling code | 0151 |
| Police | Merseyside |
| Fire | Merseyside |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
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Aintree is a village andcivil parish in theMetropolitan Borough of Sefton,Merseyside, England.Historically inLancashire, it lies betweenWalton andMaghull on theA59 road, it is considered asuburb ofLiverpool and is located 6 miles (10 kilometres) northeast ofLiverpool city centre.[3] In 2011 the parish had a population of 6,689.
It is best known as the site ofAintree Racecourse, which since the 19th century has staged theGrand National horserace. In the 1950s and 1960s, there was also a three-mile-long international Grand Prixmotor racing circuit on the site, which used the same grandstands as the horserace. A shorter form of the racing circuit is still used for various motorsport events.
The northern terminus of the Aintree district is commonly referred to by the local populace as "Old Roan." This nomenclature is a colloquial moniker employed by residents and lacks formal legal recognition as a distinct geographical location.
The name Aintree, thought to be ofSaxon origin, means "one tree" or "tree standing alone." It is first recorded in 1226, also as Ayntre (the usual mediaeval spelling) in 1292. Eyntre occurs; Ayntree and Ayntrie, 16th century.[4] Local legend held that an oak tree on Bull Bridge Lane (removed in 2004) was "the Ain tree"[5] though the antiquity of the name excludes the possibility.
The historic core of the village was a small linear settlement near the junction of School Lane, Bull Bridge Lane and Wango Lane.[6] Much of the nearby flat, wet and boggy land was reclaimed for agriculture following theAlt Drainage Act 1779 (19 Geo. 3. c. 33).
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The village itself has twoprimary schools, Aintree Davenhill and Holy Rosary ; five churches,St. Giles (Anglican), Holy Rosary (Roman Catholic), Old RoanMethodist Church, Old Roan Baptist Church (which met in Davenhill Primary School until recently and now meets at the former site of Holy Rosary Infants School) and Aintree Village Family Church (a Baptist church, meeting at Old Roan Methodist Church Hall, Altway); two small local shopping areas (on Altway and at the Old Roan); and three public houses, the Blue Anchor (which backs onto theLeeds and Liverpool Canal), The Valentine, named after a fence on the racecourse, and the Old Roan (now closed), which gives its name to a railway station in the village. The village also had a public library (now closed). Aretail park along Ormskirk Road on former industrial land has brought a significant number of major out-of-town shops to the area.
Aintree Davenhill Primary School has a large field with a metal building that was built in the 1950s (since been rebuilt). The building was going to be a hospital building, but was turned into a school. The classrooms were along corridors that were originally going to be hospital wards.
Holy Rosary Primary School was a split-site school until 2008 with an approximate1⁄2 mile (800 metres) between the schools. The reception and infant classes were based at a site at the Old Roan end of the village between Altway and Aintree Lane, and the junior classes based at the Valentine end of the village in the Oriel Drive site. After substantial building work to extend the Oriel Drive school, the Aintree Lane/Altway site was closed as a school at the beginning of the 2008–09 academic year, was taken over by Old Roan Baptist Church and is now called the Hope Centre, providing various services for the local community. The school has a large field used for events such as their sports day and an all-weather sports pitch. The original building was built in the 1970s and 1980s.
The main road fromLiverpool to Aintree is theA59 (known asOrmskirk Road as it passes through Aintree) - with the road passing through Aintree's retail parks. TheM57,M58, A59, andA5036 meet at a complex junction calledSwitch Island, between Aintree andMaghull.
AlthoughAintree railway station is convenient for the racecourse, the village itself is closer toOld Roan railway station. Both are on theMerseyrailNorthern Line's Ormskirk branch, with regular service betweenLiverpool Central andOrmskirk. In the past, it was also served byAintree Central railway station on theNorth Liverpool Extension Line, located behind Aintree railway station. TheNorth Mersey Branch also ran through, close to the station, and hadAintree Racecourse railway station.
Bus services are regular: a bus every 20 minutes toLiverpool runs through the village, while various other routes to Liverpool and destinations to the north and south—includingMaghull, Ormskirk, Aintree Hospital, andSouthport—stop near the Old Roan.
TheLeeds and Liverpool Canal runs through the village.
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