The Laird School of Art was a school of art situated on Park Road North,

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wi ...

, England, overlooking

Birkenhead Park Birkenhead Park is a major public park located in the centre of Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. It was designed by Joseph Paxton and opened on 5 April 1847. It is generally acknowledged as the first publicly funded civic park in the world. Th ...

. It was the first public school of art outside

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and was given to the town by John Laird. The school opened on 27 September 1871 and was closed in 1980 when it merged with the Birkenhead College of Technology, formerly situated on Borough Road. The building on Park Road North is used as the John Laird Centre.

Notable alumni

Trena Cox Trena is a given name. Notable people with the name include: * Trena Cox (1895–1980), English artist * Trena King (born 1958), American archer * Trena Trice-Hill (born 1965), American basketball player See also * Trina (name) Trina is a com ...

, stained glass artist. * Martin Cooper of the band

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) are an English electronic band formed in Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboards, vocals), along with Martin Co ...

References

Sources

* Educational institutions established in 1871 Education in Birkenhead Art schools in England 1871 establishments in England {{Merseyside-struct-stub