Brownfield Land
In July 2020, the Liverpool City Region was allocated £60m from the Government’s Brownfield Land Fund to deliver previously-developed, or brownfield, land suitable for at least 4,000 and preferably 5,000 homes. The money is being used to make the sites ready for development.
There are many brownfield sites across the Liverpool City Region used for various purposes (e.g. former industry), often making them unsuitable for residential development. The Brownfield Land Fund is used to invest in these unviable projects, with the Combined Authority working with partners such as Local Authorities, Housing Associations and Private Developers to build much needed new homes on these brownfield sites.The Combined Authority was first provided funding from Central Government back in July 2020. Over the course of the five–year programme, £60m of investment is unlocking at least 4,000 and preferably up to 5,000 new homes.
Investing to build on brownfield sites provide many benefits to the city region and the people who will live in these new homes. Often these new housing schemes bring long-term brownfield land back into use, with Combined Authority investment bridging funding gaps so that homes can be built which are warm and fit for the future. Due to the complex nature of the sites, and with significant preparation work needed to bring it back into use, these schemes are often not possible without this investment. The schemes can lead to the regeneration of the surrounding areas.
Funding from the Combined Authority has invested in varying housing projects, from affordable tenures to private housing, meeting the complex needs of city region residents.
Applicants for Brownfield funding range from national housebuilders to Housing Associations to smaller regional developers and community groups.
The Combined Authority has funded schemes sponsored by Housing Associations that are providing vital affordable housing across the six boroughs of LCR, which has made sure that an affordable choice of properties have been unlocked by this public money. Brownfield funding, for a variety of forms of housing is key to building a sense of place, and we work closely with Local Authorities to ensure that schemes are built in the right places and supported with public transport, Highways and Education provision.
The Greenleas development in Wallasey, Wirral, was built by a partnership between Onward housing association and Starship, a local Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) contractor.
This scheme provides 13 new all-affordable houses within Wallasey, all being 3-bedroom homes and a mix of terraced and detached housing. The scheme will be built to the highest measure of energy efficiency – EPC A – through the use of Air Source Heat Pumps, solar panels and Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery.
This form of construction produces 30% less embodied carbon, in comparison with traditional build, and all homes are net zero carbon in operation. This is a flagship project for the BLF, the scheme will support the Combined Authority’s target to be Net Zero by 2035, utilising MMC to build low carbon homes, which currently make up less than 1% of the housing stock within the city region.
Nearly £4m of BLF funding is being used across two phases of Harworth Estates Property Group’s wider 900-home Moss Nook development. This is one of the larger schemes that the BLF programme is supporting. Two phases have been funded through BLF, combining a range of open market housing and affordable housing. Phase 1 of the wider site has 240 homes and Phase 3 development will see 295 homes built.
This scheme is using a piece of long-term derelict land which will help rebalance housing within the wider St Helens borough. In the St Helens Local Plan the site was reserved for housing, highlighting how the CA continues to work with Local Authority partners across the city region to deliver on key priorities.
The Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF) is a cross-government initiative between the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and One Public Estate (OPE) which is delivered in partnership by the Local Government Association and the Cabinet Office. £180m funding was made available nationally to support sites such as derelict car parks, industrial sites and town centre buildings which have fallen into disrepair and will support communities to build homes, bring land back into use and help local areas reach their full potential.
The LCR One Public Estate Partnership has received £5.2m to support site remediation, demolition of buildings and preparation of Local Authority owned sites for housing.
Funding will unlock at least 400 homes on smaller brownfield land sites between 2023 – 2028 in city region.
The sites that have benefitted from this funding include:
Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF) has supported ambitions in the Liverpool City Region to unlock housing developments on underutilised and derelict sites.
The programme has helped regeneration in those areas where it is needed, by supporting site remediation, demolition, and bringing forward local authority owned land for housing development.
Sites in St Helens, Halton, Wirral and Liverpool have benefitted from the various BLRF funding rounds, and so the positive impacts of the fund will be felt across the Liverpool City Region.
The LCRCA’s funding comes from Central Government, from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). MHCLG and HM Treasury set the eligibility criteria for Brownfield Land funds. In the case of BLF and BLRF, the schemes must be on brownfield land and the schemes must be unviable.
Therefore, the awarding of funding ‘unlocks’ the new homes on that scheme. Current funding streams will be refreshed and reviewed by the Government in 2024/25. If you have an unviable brownfield housing project and would like to discuss it with the team, please contact brownfield@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk
Essentially, yes. There is no minimum size of developer – but if you are a very new company, you may have problems satisfying our credit referencing checks.
No – this is only currently available for Local Authorities, as they are the Accountable Body for this fund. However, Local Authorities can enter bids for private/third sector schemes, as well as their own – so speak to the Local Authority relating to your site. The bids from Liverpool City Region Local Authorities are collated and submitted via the Combined Authority.
Each Local Authority holds a Brownfield Land Register – this can be a useful initial resource to understand the route you would take through the Planning process.
Halton – data.gov.uk/halton-brownfield-land-register
Knowsley – Knowsley.gov.uk/brownfield-register
Liverpool – liverpool.gov.uk/brownfield-land-register/
Sefton – sefton.gov.uk/brownfield-land-register/
St Helens – sthelens.gov.uk/Evidence-and-monitoring
Wirral – wirral.gov.uk/brownfield-land-register
The Combined Authority makes the final decision on awards to our recipients. Previous meeting minutes and decisions can be found here (see Search function, if you are looking for a particular scheme).
For BLF, the Combined Authority considers a maximum possible grant award, which is then subject to change through the due diligence process – finalised in a Delegated Authority decision.
