Weeks after Wirral Council gave outline consent for a new urban village in Birkenhead comprising 1,600 homes, remediation work has now started. Tony McDonough reports
Remediation work has started on the site of the Hind Street urban village project in Birkenhead that will see the construction of 1,600 new homes.
In January councillors in Wirral gave outline planning consent for the project that aims to create an entire new neighbourhood with a new park along the old Dock Branch railway line, facilities for pedestrians, cyclists as well as commercial and community space.
Before any building work on new homes can start the site will need extensive remediation to address the contamination caused by its former use as the town’s gasworks, along with some works to improve transport links and create the new Dock Branch park.
Wirral has secured £52 million from Homes England and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority to undertake these remediation and infrastructure works which is scheduled to start in autumn 2025.
Prior to the start of this main contract, John Sisk & Son has been appointed to undertake further surveys and design work on the site under a Pre-Contract Service Agreement (PCSA).
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Part of this preparatory work by Sisk includes some vegetation clearance, so from February there will be diggers and other activity on the site as they clear the way for the remediation and infrastructure works to start later in the year.
These initial preparatory works and the main contract to address the remediation and provide the new infrastructure will be undertaken by John Sisk & Son and are expected to take up to two years. Construction of the first new homes is expected to start in 2027.
Cllr Paul Stuart, leader of Wirral Council, said: “Hind Street has been a project on the horizon for a long time, and it’s a street name that has become synonymous with the huge amount of ambition we’ve always had for this development.
“Now that the clearance work has started, the sheer size and scale of this opportunity is obvious to see – it’s a catalyst site that will completely transform the area. It also shows our ability to work with partners to deliver a large and complex development.”
This project is being delivered by Wirral Council in partnership with developers ION Property Developments, with Ion initially responsible for managing the delivery of the remediation and infrastructure works on the Council’s behalf.
ION will then take the lead on delivering the housing, with 633 new homes being delivered on the remediated site over the next few years.
