We recently held the Knowsley Future Development Plans Event to delve into the ambitious vision that Knowsley Council are bringing forward. We’ve been speaking to them exclusively to give you a bit of insight into these exciting times…

Q. Knowsley Council has previously won accolades for your success in growing the region’s economy. How do you seek to deepen your success and recover from the economic consequences of coronavirus?

Knowsley Council has ambitious plans for the Borough but these are plans that we know can be delivered as we have a successful track record of delivery.

Our regeneration schemes are vital to the borough’s economic recovery from this pandemic and they have continued to progress despite very challenging times. These schemes will be crucial in helping our town centres and give local people something to believe in from an economic perspective.

The Shakespeare North Playhouse is now very much taking shape in Prescot, whilst the new Morrisons supermarket and supporting retail development in Kirkby are on target to open later this Summer. We’ve also had our delivery plan endorsed for Huyton Village Centre which builds on the centre’s great transport links and will create a new commercial district, leisure and mixed use developments, development of a health and wellbeing hub along with public realm improvements.

All of these schemes aim to attract more people to live, work, visit or invest in the borough and will also create vital job opportunities too for our residents.

Q. Halsnead Garden Village is the largest planned combined housing and employment site in the Liverpool City Region, how will this scheme be transformational to the area and create sustainable growth?

Again this scheme is pivotal to our economic recovery injecting multi-million pounds of investment into the local area. Halsnead Garden Village is the largest combined housing and employment site in the Liverpool City Region and was one of the first sites in England to be awarded Garden Village status by the Government.

As well as providing 1,589 high quality homes in Knowsley and 22.5 hectares of employment land, the employment element will attract multi-million pounds of investment in the logistics and advanced manufacturing sectors, securing in the region of 1,000 jobs and £40.5m of net Gross Value Added (GVA) per annum.

Q. How are you approaching the £43m regeneration of Kirkby town centre and how will it strengthen employment in the region? 

Our development plans in Kirkby are progressing at pace and we are now preparing to open the new retail development in the Summer – just 18 months after we took over ownership of the town centre. The retail development consists of a 45,000 sq ft Morrisons superstore, six pump petrol filling station, a Home Bargain, KFC restaurant and Taco Bell drive-thru restaurant. Throughout the construction phase, the scheme has created 278 employment opportunities and once open, it will create 500 jobs. This will create a £15.3m boost to the local economy each year.

Once phase one has completed, our focus will be on delivering phase two of the scheme – a multi-screen cinema with three food and drink outlets.

We will also be going to the market over the coming months with around 57 acres of land in the town centre which has been identified through our local planning process as residential use for up to 700 new homes.

Q. You’re also working on regeneration in Huyton, what are your long term plans for the town?

Our plans to accelerate the transformation of Huyton Village Centre have been approved and we will shortly be advertising for a development partner to help us progress our commercial district plans.

Since the Council agreed its Huyton Village Centre Masterplan in 2017, the shopping district in Huyton is already looking very different – with investment in fast track projects including new CCTV and attractive new shop fronts helping to bring new businesses and investment to the centre. It has already kickstarted a flourishing night time economy in the Village Centre, with a number of independent bars and restaurants opening recently.

Now, a more detailed ten-year plan has been developed, which will see Huyton’s transformation move up a gear and contribute to the COVID-19 economic recovery.

The plan provides outline proposals and designs for four key priority schemes in the village centre as follows:

  •  Commercial District – With opportunities for a hotel, office, residential and co-working centre. By rethinking the council’s own accommodation needs, new development space can be unlocked in the heart of the village centre. These investment opportunities will be supported by fantastic transport access by road, bus and rail, that can be a catalyst for further development in the Village Centre. The new mixed-use commercial district will be located on the Council’s current seven acre site in Huyton, including a civic office, set around an attractive new ‘Village Green’ which will incorporate the Cenotaph.
  •  Derby Road “high street” Anchor – The ambitious plans propose the demolition of the multi-storey car park to create a leisure-led mixed-use development on Derby Road. This could potentially incorporate the relocation of Huyton Library with an expanded community and cultural offer, a leisure / residential offer, short-stay visitor car parking and a cycle hub.
  •  Station Gateway – Creating an improved sense of arrival into Huyton, incorporating a new public space and station presence on the northern side of the railway line. This would be further enhanced by improvements to Nutgrove Villa to create a new health & wellbeing hub to face the station.
  •  Derby Road Signature Street – A high quality and distinctive streetscape scheme is planned as an exciting new focal point in the village centre. It will incorporate new spaces for community events and for people and families to socialise and play. This scheme will be key to improving connectivity to the rail and bus stations and providing a setting to help secure wider investment.

Running alongside this, a wider package of improvements to public realm, creation of green and environmentally friendly spaces and promoting access and connectivity into and out of the village centre are also planned.

Q. How are your plans progressing on the construction of the Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot?

Construction of the Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot is progressing well and has continued throughout the COVID pandemic, with rigorous social distancing measures in please. The building is now establishing itself as a prominent landmark in the town centre.

Once complete, the Playhouse will be a major visitor attraction, providing a distinctive asset for the Liverpool City Region, and a significant regenerative and place shaping opportunity, rebranding Prescot as a destination performance and market town.

It will provide a flexible theatre with capacity for up to 472 seats, based on the iconic 17th century ‘cockpit-in-court’ design. It will also boast an inclusive education programme, digital gallery, visitor experience and additional performance spaces including an outdoor performance garden.

The playhouse is expected to generate over 100,000 new visitors to the area each year from across the UK and internationally. It is estimated that the project will increase the value of goods and services produced in the city region by £13 million during construction and by £5.3 million each year following opening.

Other significant benefits include: new high quality jobs; strong growth in spending within the local economy; much increased footfall in Prescot town centre; new business investment in places to stay and eat and drink; a broad educational offer; attractive volunteering opportunities and improved access to world class cultural activity for young people and local communities.

Alongside high-profile Shakespearean drama, the Playhouse will host a variety of comedy, music and theatre from a wide variety of performers and will be one of the North of England’s most high profile cultural and educational assets when it opens to the public in 2022.

Q. Could you give us any insights into any of your upcoming projects that are still yet to be procured?

There are lots of further development opportunities in the pipeline. Our ambitious house building programme is continuing to be delivered, offering choice in terms of budget, style and location and we are looking forward to working with housing developers to bring identified sites forward.

We are also in the process of preparing a commercial development opportunity site at Knowsley Park in the region of 20 to 30 acres.

We have a range of highways and infrastructure programmes planned to support our developments, along with a number of commercial sites that we hope to bring to the market soon. Knowsley is fantastically positioned and offers a prime position for residential, leisure, commercial and retail development.  These are all detailed within our Local Plan and Masterplans for the Borough.

We will always promote any opportunities throughout our communications channels including the Council’s website, Knowsley News and Invest Knowsley websites.

Procurement opportunities are tendered via The Chest North West procurement portal, so make sure you are registered to receive updates and notifications.

We are always open to general enquiries from investors and developers who may want to find out more or are looking for specific opportunities, so get in touch via the Invest Knowsley website – www.investknowsley.co.uk

Q. You’re soon to assess the plans for over 1,000 new homes in Halewood which have been recommended for approval, what are your main considerations when it comes to these plans?

At Planning Committee on 11 February, approval was granted for 1,305 homes at the East of Halewood – the second largest residential development in Knowsley at just over 8 hectares in total. The three planning applications were brought forward by Miller Homes, Redrow Homes and Bellway Homes and are for a total of up to 1,305 new two, three, four, and five bedroom properties – almost a quarter of which will be affordable homes.

When considering the application, the committee reviewed the mix of homes to be delivered on the site and ensured it was aligned to our housing needs assessment, providing homes which we know are needed in the local area. Infrastructure improvements and benefits to the local community were also considered. Developer contributions will improve local infrastructure in the area, including:-

  • Up to £4.6 million on creating new primary school places.
  • Up to £4.4 million on improvements to local roads.
  • Up to £1.1 million on outdoor sports provision.
  • Up to £1.1 million on early years childcare facilities.
  • Up to £1 million on the enhancement, management, and maintenance of Finch Woods.
  • Up to £1 million on subsidising a bus service through the site.

The scheme will also be supported by a package of improvements to local roads and transport links, also paid for by the developers.

There will also be significant benefits for the wider community in terms of access to Finch Woods, which will be opened up for the use of the public, with improved green and open space including a new play area and walking and cycling routes. Meanwhile the Grade 2 listed grave of hero warhorse Blackie will be enhanced and made accessible for visitors.

It is expected that construction work may begin in the Summer / Autumn of this year.