Naming streets after famous people could be over in parts of Devon

'Public perception of a deceased person may change over time'

The days of naming streets after famous people could be over in parts of Devon.

Teignbridge Council’s executive will meet next week to discuss new policies on street numbering and naming.

And as part of a new strategy, they will be advised to avoid allowing streets to be named after well-known characters because their reputations can change over time.

The move follows a number of well-publicised cases around the country where councils have acknowledged streets named after people involved in the slave trade centuries ago.

Dozens of streets in Liverpool named after people with links to the slave trade will keep their names, but will have plaques explaining their origins.

In Bristol, where a number of streets were named after slave trader Edward Colston, the local authority said people who lived in those streets should decide if they wanted to keep the names.

Issues have also been raised in places including Glasgow, Wimbledon and Sussex.

In Plymouth, a wrangle over Sir John Hawkins Square has rumbled on for years. The area is named after the sixteenth century sea captain and contemporary of Francis Drake, who had links with the slave trade. However the city council’s plans to change its name have been challenged in the courts.

Now Teignbridge Council is expected to sign up to a document which will also be endorsed by Exeter City Council and East Devon Council.

They will vote on a policy which says: “The use of a name which relates to any person either living or deceased should be avoided as public perception of a deceased person may change over time.”

The new wording replaces one which said: “Should a name be proposed, we recommend the person should have been deceased for at least 50 years and is deserving of public recognition.”