Our Regeneration Project

Several buildings in our district centre have been empty for many years, even before the 2017 explosion wrecked so many of them.  

In February 2020, £500,000 was awarded to New Ferry by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram’s Combined Authority, through the City Region Town Centre Fund.  How the money could be spent was decided between the Council and the Combined Authority.  The principal aim of the money was to purchase an empty building in the district centre and to refurbish it with ground level commercial premises and residential accommodation on the upper floors.  When the project was complete, the rental income was to be reinvested back into the community, to pay for local environmental projects, summer festivals, street markets, christmas lights, etc - all of which cost money to take place and for which the Council itself has no money to run or organise.

The building selected for the project was the former Shillings Building at 78-80 New Chester Road.  It was purchased at auction (former Shillings). Construction work commenced on the building in late 2021, having been delayed by the Covid pandemic which also saw building costs skyrocket when the tenders were returned.

The ground floor commercial units were completed by summer 2022, with the CLT moving their office into one of them, whilst Becky's Unique Sewing Boutique rents the second, larger unit. The move for Becky has been a positive one, as she now employs more staff than she had been able to in her previous premises.

Work on the four flats has been delayed by several unforseen issues which have included inadequate services installed by the previous owner (which have all had to be replaced and not accounted for in the original plans/cost estimates), problems with the roof and other structural elements of the building, and issues with the first team of builders which could not be resolved.  Nevertheless, the work has continued and it is hoped that two of the four flats will be ready to let by the end of 2024, with the remaining two completing in early 2025.

The grant money was kept by and administered by Wirral Borough Council, who paid out for work and items based on invoices received as works were carried out and completed. The grant also allowed for other expenditure including employing a temporary project officer and administrative assistant for a 2 year period; and also for events such as the summer festivals in New Ferry Park and street markets in Bebington Road. All the money has been accounted for and audited in our annual financial statements that are available on the FCA website at  Mutuals Public Register: New Ferry Community Land Trust Limited (fca.org.uk)