The cordon stretched to the nearby St Julie’s Catholic High during the fireDan Haygarth Liverpool Daily Post Editor and Regeneration Reporter
20:41, 21 Aug 2025
Emergency services near St Julie’s after the fire at Woolton Hall(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
This week’s devastating fire at Woolton Hall meant there was a concern in relation to the risk to the nearby St Julie’s Catholic High School, the ECHO understands. Tuesday night’s (August 19) fire tore through the Grade I-listed manor house on Speke Road, Woolton, which is located near to the school.
Emergency services were called to the scene shortly after 8pm on Tuesday. Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) worked through the night to battle the flames which led to the roof of the building falling down and a cordon being set up around the grounds.
By 11.30pm nine fire engines were at the scene attempting to tackle the blaze and people were warned to avoid the area. Police said a joint investigation with MFRS is ongoing to establish the cause of the fire, but from initial inquiries it is believed to have been started deliberately.
A 14-year-old girl from Liverpool has been arrested on suspicion of arson. She was taken into custody to be questioned and has been conditionally bailed.
Drone pictures taken yesterday showed the building has been severely damaged by the blaze, with the roof largely destroyed. The ECHO understands the hall, which was constructed in 1704, is destroyed throughout with the roof and every floor collapsed.
Work will be undertaken to determine what needs to happen to ensure the safety of the hall and what can be salvaged of the building.
Additionally, the ECHO understands the fire caused concern in respect to risk of St Julie’s. The cordon stretched to the school and a number of fire engines were scattered across the grounds while an aerial appliance worked on the blaze on Tuesday night.
Fire fighters at the scene of a fire at Woolton Hall(Image: Liverpool Echo)
However, the school appeared to be open today for students to collect GCSE results. A message on its website read: “GCSE results will be available for collection between 9am and 11am.
“Staff will be on hand to answer any questions and support students with their next steps, including enrolment into St. Julie’s Sixth Form.
“Please be aware that students must attend in person and that results can only be issued to a person other than the student with prior agreement.”
Merseyside Police’s Detective Inspector Daniel McWhinnie said: “This appears to have been an extremely reckless act at a historic building that has stood at the site for hundreds of years. We know the community will be rightly shocked by what happened and we are determined to find all those responsible.
“We received reports of youths congregating near the hall shortly before the fire was reported, and we would appeal to anyone who was there or knows who was there to contact police.
“If you are a parent or guardian in the area and your child was out that night, we ask that you enquire about their movements and what they might know.
“If you were driving in the area of Speke Road on Tuesday evening and captured anything on dashcam that you think in hindsight may be useful to our enquiries, please get in touch.
“We are carrying out a number of lines of enquiry, including speaking to potential witnesses and assessing CCTV in the area, but I would ask for anyone who knows anything to contact us as soon as possible.”
The grand manor house on Speke Road was built in 1704 and sold to wealthy politician Richard Molyneux, the 1st Viscount Molyneux.
The classical building underwent an extensive renovation 68 years later, undertaken by influential architect Robert Adam. During its first two centuries of use, it was a home for the rich and powerful, including the Earl of Sefton and ship owner Frederick Richards Leyland.
However, it then had a number of uses in the 20th century, including as a private school and an army hospital. It became Grade I-listed in 1982 having been saved from demolition.
The building is in private ownership but has been vacant for around 20 years. The site was previously hit by a fire in 2019 and it was declared as being at “immediate risk of further rapid deterioration or loss of fabric” by Historic England in 2021.
A planning application to convert Woolton Hall into a nursing home was submitted in the 2000s but the required funding for the project was not raised.
The ECHO understands Woolton Hall has been owned by a company called Woolton Hall Limited since 2005. We have attempted to contact the company’s directors.