Event Summary
Liverpool City Region Development Update | Photos, slides, and summary
A new government, revised city council structure… could these trigger a new dawn for Liverpool and its neighbours? The public and private sector – including Everton FC, Liverpool City Council, and Muse – shared their reasons to be optimistic for the city region’s future, as well as details about the challenges the area faces.
Held at the Innside Liverpool on 14 November, Liverpool City Region Development Update was sponsored by Fairhurst Architects, Freeths, Muse, Curtins, and Pegasus.
Scroll to the bottom of the story for the event photo gallery.
Football focus
Richard Kenyon, chief commercial and communications officer for Everton Football Club, kicked off the update with one of the city’s transformative developments – the new stadium.
He said: “This has been a long process. It’s taken many decades to find the right site. To move to the waterfront is incredible, and to see what has been created for the fan base and the city. It’s not just a home for Everton Football Club. It’s a cultural asset for the city, all year round.
“It’s been a three-year build and it’s nearly finished, on time, and on budget. We’re ready to start playing football there from August of next year.”
Describing the stadium’s location as “unrivalled”, Kenyon said it had been designed around its location, and the best of other stadiums around the world – with an atmosphere that was intimidating for the opposition team on the pitch, and a “premium” commercial hospitality offer which rethinks traditional trends.
“We want to bring the best of the high street into the new stadium,” Kenyon said. “Our bars, restaurants, and experiences will be some of the best in the city.”
The first panel of the day featured Beetham’s Hugh Frost, Liverpool Waters’ Chris Capes, Liverpool City Council’s Sam Campbell, Pegasus Group’s Ian Ford, and Everton FC’s Richard Kenyon. Credit: PNW
Not finished yet
“Retirement wasn’t suiting me,” said Hugh Frost, founder and chairman of Beetham, when asked by Paul Unger, publisher of Place North, why he’d come back into Liverpool’s property game.
He is concentrating on the King Edward Triangle, an area which, he says, is “creating a linkage” to the new stadium, which is “as important as the central docks”.
He discussed the city’s strategy on tall buildings and added: “The policy is quite well defined but there have been suggestions that expectations should be challenged.
“Today, you couldn’t build a 50-storey building in Liverpool because it’s just not viable. We’ve got to create a market,” Frost said.
“The biggest challenge for Liverpool is actually getting proper employment,” he continued. “We’re becoming a city of students and tourists. We need to keep those students and provide proper jobs.”
Samantha Campbell, director of planning and building control at Liverpool City Council, agreed with Frost’s assessment as the King Edward Triangle is in the cluster where taller buildings can be created.
She added: “The policy is a guidance, right across the city, not just focused on the centre. Part of the policy says ‘comply or justify’ so it’s not absolutely written in stone, as with all planning policy.”
With regard to King Edward Triangle, she added: “This is a really important site for us to reconnect the northern docks back into the city centre, and to have a truly mixed offer of quality development at scale.”
Pegasus’s Ian Ford: ‘You’ve got a lot of water there and there are so many things we can do with the docks; biodiversity net gain, district heating networks, using the water to our advantage.’ Credit: PNW
Creating new places
Talking about a new masterplan and planning application submission, Chris Capes, director of development for Peel’s Liverpool Waters, said: “We’re 10, 11, years on from the original determination and we’ve been talking for a long time about west links – how do you get from the business district into Prince’s Dock?
“It’s really clear from everything that is happening on the dock road it’s got to be an area to see a substantial amount of growth – residential or business”
In relation to the riverside generally, he added: “Liverpool Waters has got residential, large amounts of commercial, retail and potentially education, and the stadium is going to be a fantastic cultural building, but moving people along the Waterfront is going to be key.”
Ian Ford, director of planning at Pegasus Group, said: “There are a lot of harsh spaces and it’s how to soften those and take advantage.
“You’ve got a lot of water there and there are so many things we can do with the docks; biodiversity net gain, district heating networks, using the water to our advantage,” he continued.
“Many residents don’t go to the waterfront – it’s somewhere for tourism or culture, but it could be so much more.”
Liverpool City Council’s Sophie Bevan walked the audience through the local authority’s plans for the city. Credit: PNW
Looking city-wide
Sophie Bevan, director of regeneration at Liverpool City Council, was clear that, though the authority lists North and South Waterfront in its “key clusters”, there are other areas in focus too. City Central, the Knowledge Quarter, Wavertree and Speke all featured in a presentation she delivered to the sold-out crowd.
She said “the ambition for 2035” was to ensure the city was “innovative, liveable, connected and accessible, investable, healthy and sustainable, celebrated, productive and resilient, and dynamic”.
Specific locations cited included the Goodison legacy project and the area around Anfield, the Littlewoods film and television studio, Paddington Central, Pall Mall, and Moorfields. She said: “We are working on financing to transform the central business district. Our commitment is crucial.”
Looking to North Liverpool, she added: “Businesses of all shapes and sizes need a home in the city. There is an opportunity to create greater diversity of neighbourhoods.”
St Helens Council’s Lisa Harris outlined her borough’s potential. Credit: PNW
Scoping St Helens
Lisa Harris, executive director of place at St Helens Council, said her authority’s motto is “industry to ingenuity”. She described a place which has “grit and determination in bucketloads” and added: “We are not just part of the Liverpool City Region, but part of the North West – the bridge between Liverpool and Manchester.”
She outlined how they’re home to the LCR’s life science investment zone and freeport tax and customs sites, as well the opportunities the likes of Parkside present. However, she was clear: “We are not going to compete with the Knowledge Quarter in Liverpool. Our strategy is to turn that knowledge into production.”
Melding the area’s history with its future, the council’s strategy features the St Helens Manufacturing and Innovation Campus, which includes the Glass Futures research and tech partnership, the Inovus headquarters and skills academy, the Project Halo development, Sina Medical Glass, the former Pilkington’s works at Watson Street, the HyNet hydrogen project and a district heat network.
“HyNet is the only part of the City Region with piped hydrogen,” she said, adding: “There are lots of big furnaces. How do we use that heat?”
Wirral Council’s Rebeccah Lowry discussed the local authority’s plans in Birkenhead – and why they make the area full of investment potential. Credit: PNW
Across the water
Rebeccah Lowry, assistant director and chief regeneration officer at Wirral Council, said her borough is “maximising the Mersey as an asset – the opportunities are vast”.
She also detailed a strong focus on town centres, making the most of £87m of government funding, and, of course, pinpointed the proximity to the city – Birkenhead is only four minutes away on the train.
Birkenhead made up a large part of her presentation, and she said: “It has the heritage, infrastructure, environment, and potential of a place much bigger than it is.”
Looking wider, she referenced major projects including Hind Street, which will have 1,600 sustainable new homes over the next 10 years, the Dock Branch Neighbourhood active travel route, which is contributing to housing delivery, and the Woodside Waterfront, “the focal point to the unique views of Liverpool’s skyline”.
The final panel of the day included Liverpool City Council’s Sophie Bevan, Muse’s Steven Knowles, Liverpool John Moores University’s Aileen Jones, Knowledge Quarter Liverpool’s Emily Robson, and Halton Council’s Wesley Rourke. Credit: PNW
Chasing growth
Wesley Rourke, executive director for environment and regeneration at Halton Council, said his borough was celebrating the success of the Mersey Gateway bridge, using it “as our growth plan”.
He added: “It’s the catalyst for regeneration, whether that’s the innovation zone at Sci-Tech Daresbury, developing the industrial estates in relation to the connectivity that the new bridge brings, or the freeport.”
Bevan talked about the work taking place to shrink the skills gaps in the city, ensuring it can grow and develop, with Rourke discussing how the authorities are working together on a skills strategy, something also backed up by Dr Aileen Jones, pro vice chancellor for external engagement and partnerships at Liverpool John Moores University.
LJMU’s Aileen Jones: ‘Having the flex, not bidding competitively nationally, having the ability to make decisions locally to respond to challenges in the economy, is a huge step forwards.’ Credit: PNW
Funding optimism
Elaborating on how the city region partners were working together, panellists were united in how streamlined funding and decision-making can only be beneficial.
Jones said: “Having a single settlement is hugely important. Being able to respond to need is vital. Having the flex, not bidding competitively nationally, having the ability to make decisions locally to respond to challenges in the economy, is a huge step forwards.”
She also said the university was working hard to stimulate economic growth, through skills, but also capital investment, and supporting businesses through community engagement.
Emily Robson, assistant chief executive for Knowledge Quarter Liverpool, said the city does have viability challenges. She outlined how initiatives such as the investment zone, or innovation zone as some know it, has been crucial in bringing developments such as her organisation’s Hemisphere One in Paddington Village forwards.
Robson added: “Where we can invest in transport, infrastructure and, from a Knowledge Quarter perspective, skills, for the occupiers going into buildings, that’s something we really want to ensure.”
In relation to their flagship Sciontec partnership between academia and business, she added: “We were founded to make the impossible possible and operate in whatever environment we may face, whatever politics are in play.”
Steven Knowles, director of development management at Muse, said his company was actively looking at the city again and said that Liverpool wasn’t alone in experiencing viability challenges in sectors like the office market. He added: “Can we find the public funding to bridge the gap between the likely levels of rent set against build costs?”
He ended the event with a call for more government backing to stimulate growth. “I am optimistic,” he said, “though if we are going to reach the affordable housing targets, they are going to have to release significant funding into that market to deliver on those promises.”
Place’s Liverpool City Region Development Update will return to the city on 11 November 2025.
Place North publisher Paul Unger was the chair for the Liverpool City Region Development Update. Credit: PNW
What’s next?
Join Place North at our upcoming events
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Place North West Christmas Social | 5 December
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Place Party Yorkshire | 30 January
Lancashire Development Update 2025 | 6 February
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Much a do about nothing!
By Will Shakespeare
Maybe they should take a walk around the the older part of Runcorn and the shopping city to see what a complete mess this council have done to the town
By Anonymous
To Wesley O’Rourke I would say, do you know that there is ZERO signage on the M56 that tells you the Mersey Gateway Bridge exists, or that at the far side of it you arrive at Widnes , plus Liverpool South and Liverpool Airport.
How about lobbying the Highways Agency or whoever manages the motorways to sort it out.
By Anonymous
They’re all talk and no action in this city.
By Anonymous
Disappointing. won’t bother with next years.
By Anonymous
Sorry that you did not enjoy the event, Anonymous. You should have been sent an event feedback form, if you have not received it, please do send your feedback to events@placenorthwest.co.uk (and feel free to cc: me – julia@placenorthwest.co.uk). We would love to know how to make this event better.
By Julia Hatmaker
I am constantly exasperated by how far Liverpool trails Manchester in terms of new developments, construction, jobs etc. Every time I look at Place Northwest it must be a ratio of 30:1 in terms of what’s planned/proposed or in progress in Manchester and the wider area compared to Liverpool. It feels like terrible indictment on all those tasked to bring in investment and development. When will we see a reverse of this trend and some equal parity ai wonder
By Steven Owen
FAO Suzanne Elsworth, I think a lot of readers will be very interested in this event.
From this article, it reads as though Hugh Frost was saying the city needs to effectively engineer a local economy that is hospitable to tall buildings and that Samantha Campbell was forced to defend Liverpool’s tall building policy. It sounds like there is a bone of contention here. The tall buildings policy potentially creates a difficult environment for developers needing to build that much taller. Any building proposed in Liverpool that is over 1.5 x the context height is now subject to an extra load of red tape. Sam Campbell said it herself: “comply or justify”. Could PNW possibly chase up Hugh Frost and Sam Campbell for a follow up story on this? Liverpool is now severely falling behind its neighbour where development is welcomed with open arms. In some areas, they are making it difficult for mid rise developments to come out of the ground. People are running out of patience now and are demanding answers from Liverpool.
By Above us only sky
I’m curious about the council’s approach to investment and development opportunities. Why does it often appear that the council seeks to find reasons to reject or delay accommodating investment rather than proactively working to facilitate it? Given the pressing need for economic growth and job creation, shouldn’t the focus be on fostering a collaborative environment with developers to unlock the region’s full potential? I think we deserve to hear more about how these decisions align with the broader strategy for the region’s regeneration and whether they think their current approach has slowed down investment over the last few years, as is public perception.
By Ed
Samantha Campbell’s approach says to me “we don’t like talls but if you can justify one for me I might consider it”.
Given that we’ve had no proper talls since she became Head of Planning that means no one has been able to convince her , or no applications are coming forward.
By Anonymous
Can Place ask Samantha Campbell why the two towers on Old Hall Street seem to have gone nowhere, despite the developer’s initial fanfare and optimism?
By Anonymous
Nothing ever happens – all talk no action at all
By Anonymous
Samantha Campbell mentioned regular Planning Agents Forums where the team meet with planning agents in the city to help foster a more collaborative approach to development. The last forum was in January 2024. Take from that what you will about how committed the LPA is to collaboration…
By Anonymous
Steven Owen. I totally agree with your comments and I feel exasperated by the disparity between Liverpool & Manchester. Not Manchesters fault they are doing what is best for Manchester. Nothing changes if nothing changes. Unfortunately whilst the City of Liverpool is run and continues to be run by the current incumbents then nothing will change and we will slip further behind in terms of investment, jobs and prosperity.
By Stephen Hart
A lot of talk. Yes there’ll be some flex with a single settlement but it will also bring responsibility to deliver, something that the Combined Authority and some of its LA partners are really poor at.
By Anonymous
Festival Gardens, Littlewoods Studios, Liverpool Waters, Paddington Village, Pall Mall Offices, Former Police Headquarters, Kings Dock, Ten Streets, Chinatown, et al, all the time its waiting, waiting,waiting, for things to happen.
By Anonymous
As far as I’m concerned what Liverpool needs more than anything is well paid jobs. Surely there’s someone out there who can drag this fabulous city onto its feet and attract companies here! Manchester can keep its tower blocks which I find dull and depressing, what Liverpool needs is jobs!!!
By Liverpolitan
@Anon 10,56am, if working collaboratively with the planning department means bending to their demands all the time, eg on height and appearance, then maybe planning agents feel they are talking to a brick wall. I don`t think many non run of the mill applications get through Liverpool Planning without a mauling.
By Anonymous