Myerscough Croxteth plan set for approval
The redevelopment of Myerscough College’s facilities at Croxteth Park, Liverpool is set to be given the go-ahed, following a report for Liverpool City Council’s cabinet ahead of its meeting this Friday.
Myerscough College provides specialist vocational and land-use based education services, with its other sites being in Preston, Blackburn and Old Trafford. The report recommends that the former Glendale grounds management depot on the site is transferred to the college on a lease basis and redeveloped as expanded teaching facilities.
The city council will contribute £500,000 to the scheme by way of a discounted rent on the site over the next ten years. The college will contribute £1m to the project and £2m will come from the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership.
Cllr Malcolm Kennedy, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “The college does fantastic work but is working out of accommodation that is no longer suitable for modern teaching methods.
“As well as delivering good quality education and training, it will also boost the local economy as local workers and apprentices will be employed during the construction phase.”
When complete, the new-look Myerscough College Croxteth Centre, which received planning permission in October 2016, will be made up of single-storey buildings sited behind a wall opposite the Home Farm area of the site.
The new training facilities will include three animal studies blocks along with stabling, aviaries and pens adjacent to the Grade II-listed former Laundry House. Two other buildings will be converted for animal housing and dog grooming, and a third will be for reptiles, amphibians and tropical species as well as accommodation for staff and students.
Helen Eaton, Myerscough’s assistant principal for Liverpool said: “Myerscough Liverpool was first established in 1999 in partnership with the city council and over time we have developed to provide a range of courses.
“We’ve worked closely with Glendale and have been their sole training provider for almost a decade, so taking control of their depot is the next logical step of what will hopefully further enhance our education offer.”
The plan sits within a larger scheme for Croxteth Hall & Country Park. The running of Croxteth Park Farm has been transferred to social enterprise NSC, which Cllr Steve Munby, Liverpool’s cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said has saved the council £250,000 a year. He added: “We will shortly be seeking a partner to run the hall and park so that they become self-sustaining.”
