Some people have said one part of the scheme looks like “giant Wotsits”
Road markings on Grange Road West in Birkenhead as part of a trial one way street(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Action is being taken to further investigate how a scheme of works across a Merseyside town centre went so catastrophically wrong. This comes after repeated calls for Wirral Council to say sorry about what has happened.
Regeneration works taking place across much of Birkenhead town centre have been slammed in recent months after the ECHO first revealed it was projected to cost around £24m, double its initial budget. This has only intensified after businesses continued to report drops in footfall and one section on Grange Road West has been described as looking like “giant Wotsits”.
The massive overspends and problems being faced by the scheme led to an internal investigation being launched earlier this year. Wirral Council’s Labour leader Cllr Paula Basnett, who was elected in May, has previously said the situation was completely unacceptable and called for a further independent inquiry into what happened.
Following an investigation by the council’s internal audit team published earlier this year, Wirral Council has now published its action plan for how it plans to learn lessons from the scheme’s problems. As well as being over budget, the scheme is months behind schedule.
In September, the initial inquiry showed how the scheme had faced problem after problem. Issues around grant funding deadlines, staffing capacity, disputes between council departments, and a lack of transparency were all highlighted in a scathing report.
A report before councillors on November 4 said further work is being carried out by the council’s external auditors, Grant Thornton, with findings currently expected to be published towards the end of the year. This will review the council’s arrangements to deliver regeneration projects.
The structure of the council’s top team will also be revised with a dedicated team established to manage major projects. A board overseeing regeneration projects that stopped meeting will also be reinstated while a new oversight group will be established.
Staff training will be carried out and new policies brought in to improve things, including new guidance for awarding contracts. An investigation is also being carried out to look at the council’s culture and whether this and other issues had led to delivery challenges for regeneration projects.
At a Wirral Council audit and risk management committee meeting on November 4, councillors unanimously said they regretted the situation and would continue to hold officers to account. Cllr Jo Bird said the time was right for the council to do this, adding: “We want to rebuild trust and confidence and part of that is just saying sorry and we regret this situation.”
This was echoed by other parties though Labour councillor Mike Sullivan questioned whether it was appropriate to do this at this stage when the local authority was still trying to get to the bottom of what happened.
After suggestions a private meeting should be held to discuss issues in more detail, Cllr Helen Cameron, who chairs the committee, said: “The more we can do in an open and transparent forum, the better.”
At the meeting, interim chief executive Matthew Bennett said the council would be investigating potential cultural issues within the regeneration department where people might not have felt they could raise concerns before. He also said the council restructure would also provide assurance around delivery.
Cllr Jenny Johnson said the council had to address cultural issues in the organisation arguing a lack of accountability in the council was absolutely key. She suggested staff may be scared and raised concerns about the ability of people to whistleblow.
Later on in the same meeting, a debate was held over whether the council should list active travel projects aimed at encouraging walking and cycling as a risk to the local authority going forward.
Labour councillors asked for this to be removed though Cllr Cameron said she was worried about potential political pressure given this would reverse a previous committee decision.