Torus’ Melwood housing plan scrapped

Liverpool FC has bought back its former training ground to use as a base for its women’s team. 

Torus acquired the 12-acre Melwood site in 2019 ahead of the club’s move to the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby in 2020 and had planned to build 162 homes there. 

However, despite winning planning approval from Liverpool City Council late last year, the £48m West Derby scheme has now been scrapped. 

Torus Developments’ managing director said that Liverpool FC is “best placed to use this location to support the growth of women’s football and to maximise the benefit of the site to the wider community”. 

He added: “Although we will not be delivering this development, Torus will continue to seek other opportunities to develop affordable homes in Liverpool and to help local communities thrive.” 

As well as homes, Torus’s plans, which met with resistance from some local residents, featured plans for the retention of some of the old training complex facilities. 

Plans for a sports academy run by ex-Liverpool players Jamie Carragher and Robbie Fowler remain part of the club’s plans going forward. 

“This is a truly historic moment for Liverpool Football Club,” said Liverpool FC’s managing director Andy Hughes. 

“Now is the right time to make this move and we’re absolutely delighted that we’ve managed to take this opportunity to return to Melwood and to see it start a new chapter of Liverpool’s commitment to our women’s first team and academy.”