Design process
The two refurbishment pilot schemes at Skerries Road and Tancred Road are the first step in a wider strategy for area regeneration.
Selecting the developer
The lead clients for the regeneration of Anfield-Breckfield are Liverpool City Council, Liverpool Football Club and Arena Housing (the council’s Registered Social Landlord partner).
They selected the Affordable Homes Development Company as a developer partner to lead on the refurbishment projects. The Affordable Homes Development Company provides private finance for redevelopments in areas of deprivation, employs local labour and creates the greatest possible benefit for the local economy.
Developing designs for refurbishment
K E Martin Architects were appointed as designers in 2004. Their approach was to retain the character of the original houses and streets.
The priority was to save as much original building fabric as possible, but the poor condition of some properties at Tancred Road required a different design approach. Collapsed rear extensions were completely removed and more substantial private open space was created for each house.
Dealing with mixed ownership
The project required the whole street to be refurbished at once, and although the 25 properties on Tancred Road were empty there were various owners:
- Liverpool Council owned two properties
- five properties were privately owned
- 18 properties passed from Arena Housing to AHDC ownership.
AHDC managed the refurbishment of the 20 publicly-owned properties and helped the five private owners with external improvements to a similar standard.
Refurbishing the properties
Local professionals and labour were used to ensure a high standard of workmanship and timely completion. Tender documents had to be flexible enough to deal with changes in the scope of work and number of houses involved.
Refurbishment met Building Regulations current at the time, including insulation of solid walls, ceilings and floors to current Part L. Materials have been matched as closely as possible, with the exception of tapered bricks to window arches where special bricks may have been more difficult to source. Bay windows have been restored with modern materials rather than stone.
Paying for the refurbishment
The Skerries Road pilot by Affordable Homes Development Company cost around £55,000 per house.
The Tancred Road pilot cost around £100,000 per unit due to the exceptionally poor condition of the houses and the need to manage and secure the houses before starting. Preventing further vandalism and decay cost around £30,000 per house and involved putting up shutters and keeping the roof weather-tight to protect the building fabric.
The next phase is on nearby Lockyer Road and is expected to cost around £75,000 per house.
