Muir Homes development in Dalgety Bay to be named Parr Place

Petty Officer Frederick Parr was one of seven men killed in March 1943 when his plane crashed shortly after take-off from RAF Donibristle, the site of the new housing in the town.

Muir Homes received - at the fourth attempt - planning permission for 35 new homes off Fulmar Way and local councillors have agreed a street name, to the "delight" of a family on the other side of the world.

"The suggestion of Parr Place came from Dalgety Bay Air Cadet leader Flight Lieutenant Mike Brown and has been agreed as the name of the new street," the newsletter of local SNP councillors David Barratt and Sarah Neal explained.

"The name is in reference to Petty Officer Frederick Parr who was the pilot of a De Havilland DH86B which crashed in 1943, shortly after take-off from HMS Donibristle, the site of the new housing.

"While a total of seven servicemen lost their lives, Petty Officer Parr was based out of 782 Squadron at the airfield and had the strongest local connection."

The site off Fulmar Way in Dalgety Bay where Muir Homes will build 35 houses. (Image: Muir Homes) The plane took off on what was described as 'gusty conditions' and appeared to lose speed and spin down into the ground. One man, DW Newman from New Zealand, survived. 

Parr was buried at Portsmouth Cemetery, the other six - Peter Murphy; Brian Pudney, Alfred DeGaris and William Henderson, all from Australia; and New Zealanders Owen Shroff and Maurice Smith - were laid to rest in Douglas Bank Cemetery at Pattiesmuir, west of Rosyth. 

Parr was 25 when he died and in order to name the street after him, consent was needed from a living relative.

"After a bit of investigation, Cllr Barratt was able to identify that Parr had a son, born just weeks before his father's death.

"Parr's son, now 81, lives in Australia and confirmed by phone he is delighted to have his father remembered in this way.

"We are exploring options to mark the naming of the street and to ensure the history of the site reflects the fact Parr was not the only casualty of the crash."

A number of names for the street were also considered including Swordfish Drive - continuing the theme of naming streets after war planes - and Colin's Way, in memory of the former Dalgety Bay community council chairman Colin McPhail.

The airfield at Donibristle is also remembered for other reasons in the town as planes were burned and broken up there after the Second World War, with the resulting ash and clinker dumped along the foreshore and leading to the radioactive pollution in 1990.

Unfortunately dials that were coated with a luminous paint - to help airmen see the instruments while flying at night - contained radium, long before the dangers were known.

The £15 million remediation works to remove the radioactive contamination from the beach area were finally completed in September 2023.

Muir Homes finally got the green light to develop the "derelict eyesore" site off Fulmar Way in February of this year.

Three previous attempts were refused and Fife Council also rejected the latest application but an appeal to the Scottish Government was successful.

Work on the site is due to begin in the Spring.

Muir Homes is part of the Muir Group, one of the largest family owned firms in Scotland that was established in 1973 and is based in Inverkeithing.

John Muir, founder and executive chairman, said the recent drop in interest rates "has encouraged Muir Homes to strategically invest in bringing more homes to the market in the very near future”.

He had added: "We will begin work on new developments in the central belt and Fife, including Dalgety Bay, over the coming months."

The group also has significant interest within the 100-acre Forth Green Freeport at Rosyth, which Mr Muir described as "very exciting for our business".

He went on: "This project has the potential to create thousands of high quality, green jobs and would solidify Scotland’s place at the forefront of green technology, as well as delivering for the local economy."