Plans for £56m waterfront redevelopment approved

The plans include a network of new public green spaces

Plans to regenerate parts of Liverpool's northern waterfront with space for thousands of new homes have been approved by the government.

A £56m grant will help develop Central Docks, a large industrial brownfield site spanning 1.4 miles (2.3km) of dockland north of the city centre.

It is the latest area to be focused on under the government's plans to build 1.5 million new homes across the UK in the next five years.

The plans, submitted in July, include building a public park and vital infrastructure to accommodate about 2,350 new homes.

The Central Docks scheme also forms part of Liverpool’s wider 20-year plan for the whole of its waterfront.

The government said funding for Central Docks, one of five neighbourhoods in the Liverpool Waters district, is projected to attract more than £550m in private investment into the city.

'A phenomenal boost'

Liverpool City Council will oversee the development of the site on behalf of its owner, Peel Waters.

Council leader Liam Robinson said: "This scheme has the potential to transform historic disused dockland into an amazing new neighbourhood.

"The creation of thousands of new homes, with supporting community facilities, a new park, cycle lanes, green streets and rain gardens, as well as the new businesses it would attract, will be a phenomenal boost to the city’s economy and environment.

"It would act as a beacon for what housing developments in this country in the 21st century can and should be."

Metropolitan mayor Steve Rotheram said: "The development of Central Docks, alongside the ongoing work to regenerate Bramley Moore and Bootle, has the potential to be a catalyst for growth."

The plans are the latest in a raft of new developments in and around the city's docks over the last ten years, including Everton's new 52,000 seater stadium and more than 600 new homes.