Birkenhead has been promised billions of pounds of investment in the past as part of a grand masterplan for the town.
Years later, people are starting to move into their first homes along the waterfront. Wirral Council believes Birkenhead is on the cusp of great change though some in the town still have reservations about whether that will become reality.
The plans include transforming Woodside Ferry terminal, Hamilton Square, the town centre and its famous market. A new park will also be created along a disused train line and promises of more than 23,000 new homes.
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One of the key parts of this “grand masterplan” is the Wirral Waters development on Birkenhead docks, with developer Peel L&P looking to invest £4.5bn into the area. The first phase of the development involves development along East Float with several residential and commercial developments being built or in the process. This will see 1,100 homes built including 100 affordable homes 20% cheaper than the current rates in Birkenhead.
Changes to the A554 have included new walkways, trees and cycle paths. Despite concerns over a “confusing” junction, there have been no accidents along the route. New Grade A office space has opened up for the first time in ten years with two thirds already occupied or under offer. While the developments haven’t been verified as net zero, Peel L&P who are behind the development said sustainability is a core part of the project and has been rated excellent.
Over 30 years, the developments hope to provide 13,000 homes in the next 30 years as well as investment in business and research alongside improved public transport.
What changes will be seen next year?
People have already started to move into 30 homes, including 15 “town houses,” in Redbridge Quay off Dock Road. The houses sit right on the dock edge with views over the water. Behind them are flats with apple orchards and a small park next door.
Peel hopes to host a series of community events over the spring and the summer in the park to encourage people to visit the docks, where large parts were previously not open to the public. The Edgerton Village area will also see cafes, retail and more public space open up.
Richard Mawdsley, Peel’s director of development for Wirral Waters, said people could expect to see the MEA Park project in the West Float area delivered which will include new education facilities and a new government-funded Manufacturing Technology Centre.
70,000ft of floor space will come as part of this project. He said: “That would be good news, that would mean jobs for local people in this area well into the hundreds.”
People can also expect to see work begin soon in a proposed Maritime Knowledge Hub, if approval is granted by Wirral Council. The hub will be based in the refurbished hydraulic tower that dominates the skyline.
Mr Mawdsley said: “That would be a massive signifier of progress on this side of the water if we can refurbish that building. A symbol of the renaissance of the east bank on the Wirral.”
It will be focused on decarbonising the maritime sector with academia based there as well as startup and industry organisations.
Developers are preparing to begin work on a new dementia care facility with accommodation for more than 100 people, which Peel said could bring in 150 new jobs. The development will be next to Redbridge Quay with Peel aiming to create mixed neighbourhood in the area.
Cranes are also putting up the Millars Quay apartment blocks which will have 500 new apartments as part of a £130m investment with dockside walkways, cycle routes and greenspace.
20% of these will be affordable and people are expected to be moving in by 2025.
What is happening after this?
Planning applications have been put in for 1,800 homes as part of the Vittoria Studios developments as well as 56,000 square feet of commercial space. These will be near Corporation Road on the south side of the docks.
Given there are plans for a large number of homes with few transport links next to some of the developments, Peel said it was in discussions with the Liverpool City Region to develop transport links beyond walking and cycle routes.
Mr Mawdsley said: “They’re not too close. We have the ferry terminals and it is flat but if you live in Redbridge Quay, you’ve got a 25 minute walk to the train station so on a wet and windy November night, it’s not particularly pleasant.
“We need something like a feeder service and we are working with the council and the city region to solve that problem. We need to give people the choice of what to do and wean people out of the car.”
He added current discussions included an improved bus system and a light rail connection using existing infrastructure but that the focus for now is on delivering the projects on the north side.
Mr Mawdsley said: “Rome wasn’t built in a day so we need to be looking at individual projects and getting those off the ground and clustering those into neighbourhood areas and all the infrastructure.”
What does this mean for Birkenhead?
Some have reacted to the developments with an element of scepticism given previous regeneration promises for Birkenhead have stalled. Mr Mawdsley said: “All the hard work behind the scenes is starting to pay off. Seeing is believing and you come down here and you can see projects either built or being built.
“For me now, it’s keeping that momentum going during the course of next year and the following years after. We’ve got our projects mapped out.
Once the developments are complete, large areas of the dock side will be walkable with paths along the edge.
Mr Mawdsley said: “We need to make sure the project is permeable. At the moment the dock edge has been closed off to the people of Birkenhead, Liscard, and Seacombe.
“People haven’t been able to get to the dock edge. What we want to do is open it up a bit more so people realise what an asset there is on the doorstep.”
People have raised concerns about gentrification and whether the investment could push people out of Birkenhead. Mr Mawdsley said: “At the moment within the dock estate, you don’t have many people living and working here.
“You have a lot of brownfield land which can be repurposed. For us it’s about repopulating Birkenhead and giving permanence to all parts of the community and all industries. Start up industry and the entrepreneur sector is very big here. It’s giving permanence and understanding what a successful community is about.
“At the moment we have got a lot of space and it’s about repopulating this area with people, jobs and more animation really.”
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