'Slap in the face' as council gives own firm contract

The roadworks started in January and are due to finish in November

Business owners who said they were refused financial help by a council said they were furious to learn it had awarded a £140,000 contract to itself.

Traders around Market Street and King Street in Southport have reported losing trade and income since roadworks started in January.

But after being turned down for financial help, they found Sefton Council had awarded a contract to Sefton Hospitality Operations Ltd (SHOL), a company wholly-owned by the authority.

The council said the SHOL deal offered value for money for "industry-specific expertise", and that it was committed to "bringing more people into our town centres".

SHOL is described as "focussed on the operation of assets in the hospitality sector from hotels through to bars and restaurants as well as outside catering, food delivery and events".

Sefton Council confirmed that SHOL had done any consultancy work such as that it had won the contract for, but said its staff had "strong experience".

It was set up in 2021 and last year posted a loss of close to £1.5m, up from £813,000 the year before.

Market Quarter ward councillor John Pugh told the Local Democracy Reporting Service there were questions over the contract.

The Liberal Democrat group leader added: "It will come as a horrible irony to traders around the market that £41,000 of the new contract has been spent on further subsidy for the council-owned market."

Crystals and Crowns owner Rosie Coates says she is 87% down on her usual takings

Rosie Coates, 43, who owns the Crystals & Crowns shop, said the news of SHOL's contract felt like a "massive slap in the face".

"I am currently 87% down on taking from this time last year and its getting worse," she said.

She said many traders including herself were already struggling to keep the doors open.

"So if there's no money in the pot for compensation for any of the businesses from 10 months of road works – that's been planned for years – how have they magically found £138,000 to give to their own agency?" she said.

"It feels wrong," she added.

Julie Goodwin said she had to temporarily shut her pub Connolly's because of a plummet in her takings

Julie Goodwin has previously said she had to temporarily close her pub, Connolly's, due to the collapse in revenue while Tracy Jones who owns The Plant Room shop said she had to take a second job to pay the store rent.

Councillor Marion Atkinson, leader of the council, said if the council had gone to external consultants it would have cost about three times more than it paid to SHOL.

Not investing in bringing more people into town centres would be "a dereliction of duty", she said, adding: "With this contract the money stays within the borough and comes back to the council ultimately."