The government has announced a raft of funding for community initiatives in 250 locations across the UK
06:00, 10 Jan 2026Updated 07:55, 10 Jan 2026
Frank Traynor, 71, lives in Page Moss area(Image: LDRS)
“I’ve lived here my whole life, but I feel like a lot of the people you see walking around now, are just people on their way to the bus stop to go somewhere else.” These are the words of Jack, and they reference a problem expressed by many of the people we spoke to in Page Moss this week.
Page Moss continues to face significant challenges when it comes to deprivation, with particular issues around child poverty, and higher levels of income inequality and unemployment rates. According to several residents, there is a sense that Page Moss has been forgotten about.
However, on Monday (January 5), Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne, announced the approval of £20m in funding for Page Moss, all part of the ‘Pride in Place’ programme. This scheme was announced by the UK Government in 2025, with nearly 250 areas promised £20m over 10 years to invest in their local communities.
To find out what people think about the £20m investment, and how the money should be spent, we visited Page Moss and asked local residents what they would like to see created in the area.
We meet Frank Traynor, 71, just in front of the old taxi training centre and bus terminus on Stockbridge Lane, he said: “In the last 20 years, Page Moss has lost its character. Page Moss was quite a busy little hub, but unfortunately, there’s nothing here any more that makes you stay, like a good pub, for instance, or a good restaurant.
“It’s lost its personality. Page Moss has become a place that people just drive through on their way in or out of Liverpool. So if there’s this money and investment coming in, I’d like to see it spent on improving that.”
“What we could really use is a leisure centre, a sport facility like a swimming pool, where people can get together and do activities.”
Liverpool Road in Page Moss(Image: LDRS)
These sentiments were shared by Eddie Robb, 63, who grew up in Page Moss, but has spent time abroad, including a spell living in Florida, before moving back to care for his elderly parents. As we stand on a freezing cold and grey winter morning on Dinas Lane, the ‘sunshine state’ seems a million miles away, but Eddie is still happy to be home.
However, he has seen significant change, and believes Page Moss has been neglected over the last two decades, adding: “Whatever has happened or hasn’t happened here, there is a great community in Page Moss. Lots of families grew up here, went to school at St Aloysius, I’m calling in on my neighbour right now to check up on them, and lots of people who do that.
“But over the years, the community has lost places to go and meet, pubs have closed down, there’s not many cafes, no social clubs and things like that, so if there’s a pot of money, I hope they’ll think about that and create more places for people to get together.”
According to a 2025 report by the New Local Government Network, community spaces represent a ‘core and enduring part of the UK’s social infrastructure’, adding “They are hubs of social connection, stewards of health and wellbeing, vital partners in their local ecosystems and important physical assets that communities can depend on.”
With the recent closure of The Old Bank pub, joining several other local pubs and hubs closing down over the years, there is a sense that Page Moss is losing the spaces which bind its social fabric.
There are also other issues which people would like to see addressed. Jack Greenland, 21, grew up in Page Moss, but said there’s not a lot for young people to do in the area, he added: “When I’m going out to see my mates, it’s never gonna be like, ‘come down to Page Moss’ because where would we go? It’s always either get to Prescot or get to town.
“I’ve lived here my whole life, but I feel like a lot of the people you see walking around now, are just people on their way to the bus stop to go somewhere else.”
In terms of the money and the potential investment in community projects, Jack said: “There’s not much like of a community thing going on, but that’s because we don’t have anywhere.”
Ian, 54, works in Page Moss every week(Image: LDRS)
Jack is currently looking for work and hopes some of the £20m will be used to help the local economy, or at least provide support for people looking to find employment and training, he said: “I think if you speak to a lot of people from around here, you’re gonna find either a lot of health problems, including mental health problems, like myself, there’s a lot of stuff holding people back here.”
Ahead of the first consultation meeting at The Gate Community Centre on Princess Drive (January 9), Ian Byrne told the Liverpool ECHO: “This investment is hugely important for areas like Page Moss, which has bore the brunt of 14 years of austerity and managed decline, from a Tory government.
“What you’ve got to hope is that a Labour government reflects on that and sees that we do need to invest in areas like Page Moss, which has got some of the highest statistics in the country for poverty.
“It desperately needs a helping hand, as many areas do in West Derby and throughout Liverpool. I think what’s really interesting about this project is that it’s not top down, so it’s not telling people what they need.
“It’s actually going out to the community and asking them what they feel they need within their communities and then the MPs, council, government, working together to hopefully implement the vision of the community.”
Mr Byrne added: “Page Moss mirrors exactly what’s happened throughout Liverpool, Knowsley, the Liverpool City region, with the destruction of what used to underpin society, with all the places that we meet, as a community, slowly but surely being chipped away and eroded, from the pubs to other local gathering places, and that needs to be desperately reversed.”
As we get ready to head back, we come across a meat van, parked opposite the North Huyton Dental Practice, which has been pitching up in Page Moss for the last six years, and is one of the few independent grocery shops in the area. It is very popular amongst local residents, and during our visit, streams of people were braving the wind and rain to come out to buy their produce.
In between serving customers, Ian, 54 told the ECHO: “The people here are fantastic, very friendly with a really strong community, and people who look out for each other.”
We ask Ian what he thinks could be done for the area and where investment should be targeted, and he highlights the benefits of places such as the local community church site which hosts a weekly car boot sale.
Ian said: “Because of the closure of The Old Bank, there’s not many places for people to meet now, so if I had £20m to spend on the area, I think I might use it to create a community centre for people to go and you can use that space for all kinds of things and projects.”