A spokesperson for Unilever apologised ‘for any inconvenience these truck deliveries cause Port Sunlight residents’
Paul Sibbald from the Port Sunlight Village Residents Association(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
People living in one of Merseyside’s most famous neighbourhoods are calling for action as drivers “think they can rule the streets” and lorries thunder down quiet roads.
Port Sunlight was a model village built in Wirral in 1888 by William Lever for workers in his soap factory. Despite being known for its beautiful houses, 900 listed buildings, museum, art gallery, and wide open green spaces, recent complaints by a local resident association suggests life might not be as quiet as it initially appears.
Complaints of speeding cars, lorries going the wrong way, and a lack of safe road crossings are just some of the many issues being brought up. According to a recent newsletter sent out by the Port Sunlight Village Residents Association, “the list is endless.”
One of the biggest issues being raised is lorries for the nearby Unilever site accidentally taking the wrong turning and driving through the village. In the latest newsletter put out by the residents’ association, they described “the seemingly never-ending stream” of lorries going through the village.
Local residents in Port Sunlight who want signs directing lorries going to Unilever and away from Port Sunlight(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Paul Sibbald from the association said: “The trucks come through and they don’t know where they are and they come down quiet roads. You have trucks backing up at night time on small roads. Crazy.”
He added: “It’s just annoying for the residents that are here most of the day. This is a special area and we are trying to preserve that in a way and it’s a problem that could be very easily resolved with the help of Unilever and the council. They have taken a lot of them away but it’s still a problem.”
The campaign is being supported by Bromborough’s councillors who told the ECHO people were fed up with lorries coming into the village. A spokesperson for Unilever said: “We are very sorry for any inconvenience these truck deliveries cause Port Sunlight residents.
“It is always our intention to try to minimise the impact of our site’s operations on our neighbours, and we work with our suppliers and contractors on an ongoing basis to ensure that their drivers arrive at our site at the correct entrance, on the A41. If HGVs do come via the village where destined for Unilever, we speak to the drivers individually as well as contacting the company they work for to make sure they are aware of the correct route.
“We welcome the councillor’s comments to the council and will continue to work to resolve this. We would ask residents to log details of any HGVs that go through the village if they are able to and report them to us so we can check if they are related to Unilever and take any necessary action.”
Port Sunlight is known for being quiet but people living in the area said speeding was an issue(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
It’s not just lorries either. Due to the village’s low housing density and large green spaces, Mr Sibbald said: “When people are driving through, they see open wide roads. People seem to think they are in the country and think they can rule the streets.”
He added: “Some really roar down the roads. We don’t even have anything to slow the traffic down. We have got no real means of slowing them.”
However he said because the village was considered a low risk area for traffic accidents, it wasn’t high on the priority list for the council. Bromborough councillor Ruth Molyneux argues further action needed to be taken on speeding issues, highlighting how Port Sunlight was one of the first to get 20mph speed limits following demand from people living there.
She told the ECHO: “It’s vital that we continue to invest to make travel safer for everyone and reduce the number of lives ruined by dangerous traffic.”
Blooming Easter Monday in Port Sunlight(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
Another one of the issues raised in a recent newsletter put out by the association was continued issues of damp and mould as well as accusations of a lack of property maintenance by the Port Sunlight Village Trust, the charity that manages the village. In 2023, the ECHO reported on the issues some people living in the village were having leading to action being taken.
Cllr Jo Bird said many of the listed homes were very cold in winter and hard to heat and called for immediate investment to make tenants’ homes more energy efficient. She added: “The Trust continues to raise rents higher and higher. Effectively forcing some people to move out of their homes. Lord Leverhulme built these houses for his factory workers a hundred years ago.
“They were high quality homes at the time but have barely changed since. He must be turning in his grave.”
The Port Sunlight Village Trust has been investing £1.5m in its homes since January 2024 with all homes set to get second glazing by 2027. This will save people money as well as make homes warmer.
After announcing a recent three year plan for the village Paul Harris, the charity’s CEO said: “At the heart of our new plan is a deep respect for Port Sunlight’s past, but an even greater commitment to its future,” adding: “We’re excited to be leading Port Sunlight into a sustainable and inclusive future.”
Wirral Council was approached for comment.