The explosion, which happened more than eight years ago, could be heard from miles away
New Ferry’s first residents in the flats built following the explosion in 2017 (Image: Copyright Unknown)
The first people have moved into new homes built following an explosion on New Ferry’s high street more than eight years ago. Wirral Council said it was “the first of many milestones to come”.
On March 25, 2017 at 9.15pm, the Homes in Style store in the middle of the town exploded. A dance studio in the same building had finished a class just a few hours earlier. The explosion could be heard from miles away and destroyed dozens of buildings in the surrounding area injuring 81 people, two of them seriously. Luckily no one was killed.
After years of the explosion site remaining barren, new flats have gone up in the area. The area where a former Co-Op and a row of falling down and derelict buildings on New Chester Road used to stand will also be turned into a new residential development while money is also being invested into the high street.
The 14 new homes that have been built on Bebington Road have all been allocated and will be available for affordable rent. Twelve people have now moved in.
Twenty rent to buy apartments will become available later this year with a mix of one and two bedrooms. Work will then begin on the Co-Op site after that.
Earlier this year, councillors voted to increase the funding for the town’s high street to nearly £5.5m. The council said this would improve the high street, address road safety concerns and other anti-social behaviour issues and “will include high quality spaces with greenery, new paved areas, new seating and traffic calming measures”.
Representatives from Wirral Council, Regenda, MP Alison McGovern with one of the new residents of the flats(Image: Wirral Council)
The new homes have been delivered by the council in partnership with social housing provider The Regenda Group. While there has previously been scepticism and criticisms over the regeneration of New Ferry, the ECHO found people were feeling more positive about the direction of the town centre on the eighth anniversary of the explosion earlier this year.
The council’s regeneration committee chair, Cllr Mark Skillicorn, said: “Delivering high-quality, affordable homes in New Ferry is a critical part of revitalising the town and building a sense of place and community.
“It’s fantastic to see the new residents now moving in and getting to know each other, as well as the progress being made on the wider scheme – it’s the first of many milestones to come.”
The new flats being built earlier this year(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
Regenda’s project manager for New Ferry Lauren Huggon said: “It’s a real joy to welcome our first residents into their beautiful new homes in New Ferry.
“This is an exciting milestone not just for them, but for the wider community and all of us at Regenda, as we see the area come back to life.”