Major Liverpool regeneration moves step closer with £10m funding boost

Up to 1,500 family homes will be built at the Festival Gardens site in Liverpool following £9.9m of funding from Homes England.

The funding will now be spent preparing the site for construction, with the first homes expected to be available from 2022.

The council say they have ‘long-held ambitious plans’  for the site but due to lack of funding, they’ve been unable to carry out remediation works.

In addition to owner-occupied houses, the site will also include privately rented apartments.

Liverpool City Council says that of the proposed 1500 homes, 270 will be for sale, 975 will be Built to Rent, 300 will be affordable homes and 300 will be for supported living.

The money comes from the government’s £450m Local Authority Accelerated Construction (LAAC) programme.

In related news, Homes England officially opened new offices in the same building as Liverpool City Region Combined Authority at Mann Island, Pier Head, which they hope will encourage the two organisations to collaborate more effectively.

Sir Edward Lister, Chairman of Homes England, said: ‘We are determined to use all the resources available to us to make homes happen across England – so I’m thrilled our funding means work can move forward rapidly at this historic site, providing homes for hundreds of families.

‘And with Homes England and combined authority experts now working side by side, we expect to further accelerate the construction of new houses across the region.’

Joe Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool, added: ‘We welcome this essential financial injection from Homes England. Festival Gardens is a much-loved waterfront location and people have very fond memories of spending time there. We are fully aware of the potential the Festival Gardens has and its transformation will be a game-changer for this city’s economy in terms of new homes, construction jobs and growth.

‘Thanks to this funding, the council can start essential remediation works on site and move forward with the vision of creating a significant number of new family homes in South Liverpool at an iconic destination.

‘Alongside this, we are testing feasibility for a leisure element on-site – Festival Gardens will not only deliver a much sought-after housing development, but also a first-class visitor and cultural destination.’