We visit the Welsh town where one in three say they are 'English only'

More than a third of people in two North Wales towns identify as "English only" - higher than some areas of England. Official Government Census figures show 38.9 per cent of people in Broughton and Saltney claim that as their ethnic group rather than Welsh, British or other nationalities.

North Wales Live went along to Saltney to test how English - or otherwise - people there really feel. Would they be inclined to put out the St George's Cross flag on April 23 or the Welsh dragon flag on St David's Day?

To be fair, the towns are very close to the border so the results may be understandable but data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show a similar pattern throughout parts of Flintshire and Wrexham. About one in four people describe themselves as “English only” in for example Shotton & Garden City where it's 26.1 per cent, Queensferry & Sandycroft 25.9 per cent and in Kinmel Bay and Towyn in Conwy it's as high as 31.8 per cent.

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Englishman Tristan Conoley, 59, standing at a bus stop on Saltney High Street, said: "There were two camps at school in the Seventies - an English one and a Welsh one. It was kind of sad."

He adopts a live and let live approach where people rub along harmoniously. Years ago he moved to live in Brisbane in Australia for 24 years and displayed a Union flag on his living room wall.

He would watch sport and swap banter with Australians but then go for a beer with them after the match. "Just because you're carrying an English flag or a Welsh flag does not make you a racist. It makes you a nationalist and we have to get on," said Mr Conoley, who runs a bedding shop in Saltney.

"You get a lot of younger people (in Saltney) that see themselves as English. But people should celebrate St George's Day or St David's Day - whichever they want - although no-one will celebrate them with as much gusto as people do on St Patrick's Day!"

Another worker has a foot in both communities. Sam Mac, 36, lives in England but works at Sterling Barbers in Saltney. He said: "I feel more English. My Mum and Dad were born in Liverpool."

For the UEFA Euro 2024 - the European football championships in Germany being held from June 14 to July 14 - he will be a die hard England fan. Wales lost out to Poland in a heartbreaking penalty shoot out in March.

Another Saltney businessman Mike Foden backed up the Census results, suggesting that possibly even more than 38.9 per cent of Saltney and Broughton inhabitants are "English only". He said: "Most of the people in this area and in Broughton are English.

"They're living there because they can't afford to live in Chester," said Hoole-born Mr Foden, who runs a joinery firm. Indeed, a sign saying "Welcome to Chester" was just a few hundred yards away along the High Street.

The prevalence of "English-only" inhabitants was shown once again at The Anchor pub across Saltney High Street. Landlord Alan Banks, 71, said: "I've only got one customer who speaks Welsh."

But then again he is close to the Wales-England border. He has what he believes is a waymarker stone, showing the border, alongside one outer wall. Part of his car park is on land owned by Cheshire West and Chester Council yet he pays his Business Rates to Flintshire County Council.

The location of his pub so close to the border has caused him a degree of bitterness. His pub had had to temporarily close during the Covid-19 lockdown due to former First Minister Mark Drakeford's Welsh Government rules, whereas The Brewery Arms, in nearby Chester Street, could remain open.

Mr Banks' parents even came from either side of the Wales-England border. "My Mum was from Cwmcarn in South Wales and my Dad was from Handbridge in Chester. I still feel English," he said.