Merseyside: Liverpool, Sefton and the Wirral

Pathfinder: NewHeartlands (Merseyside)

Introduction

Map outlining the Merseyside Housing Market Renewal Area Liverpool has lost around 400,000 residents since 1931, and the number of households in the city was lower in 2001 than it was in 1971, despite a sharp decline in average household size.

The combination of new build in surrounding areas and population loss in the market renewal area (130,000 properties) has meant that the number of households has continued to fall, whilst vacancies have increased from 7 to 7.3 per cent between 1991 and 2001.

The NewHeartlands Programme is designed to support the overall regeneration of the conurbation by removing the crude surplus of low value properties; preserving the affordable housing supply in sustainable neighbourhoods to support the new economy; improving the mix of property to retain aspirational households and capture inward migration; and to manage an environment which in places is sparsely populated. These housing interventions are linked to a wide range of public sector investments in skills and training, health, education, community safety and neighbourhood management.

Case Study

Queens/Bedford (Sefton)

The Queens/Bedford housing market renewal neighbourhood of South Sefton used to be a bustling community,which over the years had become rundown. Businesses moved out of some areas of the neighbourhood, properties were left vacant, with some left derelict for a number of years. However, other areas within the neighbourhood still had the potential to be regenerated by a simple makeover.

Queens Road

Fifty-three new homes ranging from 2 bedroom apartments through to a five bedroom house are being built by developers Keepmoat on the Queens Road site as part of the first phase of market renewal in the Queens/Bedford Neighbourhood.

The new homes costing £6.2m in total offer a diverse range of high quality new-build properties with a mix of tenures - such as shared ownership and rented accommodation and will be managed by the Evolve neighbourhood management company.

The 'homezoning' project which involves reducing traffic speed and pedestrianising some areas will turn the residents' environment back into a neighbourhood and community, something that had previously been lost. The newly converted Bedford Hotel, which is at the heart of the neighbourhood, provides local residents with access to a range of specialist officers, five days a week, to answer any questions they have regarding what is happening in the area.

Kathleen McArdle is one of the residents who has traded her old home for a new one. She's lived in the Bootle area all her life and says:

"It's not as if I'm a youngster starting out, so I'm hoping the new house will suit me. I'm going to have two bedrooms and I'm hoping for a walk-in shower which would make life much easier."