Wendover
The Wendover, formerly known as the Pear Tree, was a pub and hotel on the junction of Wendover Road and Ferndown Road in Brooklands, Manchester.
Pear Tree
Early history
The Pear Tree Hotel opened in about 1961. On 3rd August 1962, Manchester Licensing Planning Committee submitted a proposal for the Pear Tree's alcohol license.
In October 1964, the Pear Tree advertised that a new suite was available for private functions, film shows, etc. For the advert it gave the address as Ferndown Road, with a phone number of "WYT 4358" (Wythenshawe Telephone Exchange, line number 4358).
Police raids
Around 25 police officers raided the Pear Tree in 1993, following claims from residents that the car park was being used to sell drugs (such as cannabis) to school children. In total, nine men and one woman were arrested at the scene, with their ages ranging from 18 to 42 years old. Police officers managed to seize various knives and many thousands of pounds worth of drugs.
This was one of two police raids which happened in quick succession, prompting the landlord to decide they "had had enough" and surrender their lease. By this point the Pear Tree already had a long-standing reputation for having a "string of landlords come and go", and being "one of the worst pubs" in the area, rife with crime and drugs. The owner of the pub, Chef and Brewer, closed the establishment down in about October 1993.
Wendover
Reopening
The new owners of the Pear Tree, Scottish & Newcastle, applied to re-open the establishment (i.e. obtain an alcohol licence). The application was opposed by Greater Manchester Police, as well as at least 276 local residents. As part of the application, Scottish & Newcastle had promised to invest at least £200,000 into refurbishments, and to do everything possible to prevent the crimes from re-occurring. The application was ultimately approved by the Manchester Magistrates' Court in the first month or so of 1994.[1]
By October 1994, it was rebranded as the Wendover and had reopened, after being extensively refurbished. The interior was designed to be open plan and lots of care was given to crime prevention, such as CCTV cameras both inside and outside, and floodlights in the car park.
The refurbishment also featured a new darts area and function room. The lease for the Wendover was taken on by John Beasley and Aileen Beasley, who had previously run the Winston Conservative Club.
The Wendover was featured at the Design for Tomorrow conference in Liverpool on 7th May 1997, due to how successfully it had implemented 'environmental design' to deter crime on the premises.[2]
Permanent closure
In 2016 the Wendover permanently shut down after being purchased for land development. It was subsequently demolished, and the land (including the car park) was used to build a mixture of semi-detached houses, detached houses and apartments. The construction took place at some point in 2016-2017, and in 2018 the new properties were inhabited.