Mike's previous talk, in January, covered the early history of the Garden Suburb. He explained how its foundation in 1910 was part of a national movement to improve urban living conditions. The company responsible for its development - Liverpool Garden Suburb Tenants Ltd - was a 'co-partnership' organisation which aimed to give the tenants of the houses a stake in the place where they lived, by inviting them to buy shares in the company and to participate in its management. It also provided recreational facilities, including tennis courts, bowling greens, and an 'Institute' where clubs and societies could meet and where concerts, dramatic productions and other social events could take place.

This talk continues the story from the early days, before the First World War, through the 1920s when - largely as a result of government rent controls and the promotion of mass Council housing in cities like Liverpool - the co-partnership garden suburb movement failed to develop further, and the 1930s when the houses passed into the hands of owner occupiers and private property companies. Mike is calling it 'Life in Wavertree Garden Suburb' because he will be concentrating on how the residents continued to enjoy themselves, as illustrated by articles in the tenants' magazine The Thingwallian, the memories of former residents, and photographs of the Floral Queen Festivals which were a highlight of the Garden Suburb's social calendar in the interwar years. Reminiscences from the audience will be particularly welcome, and we are hoping for a good turnout by Garden Suburb residents old and new.