National Museums Liverpool (NML) has partnered with University of Liverpool’s Heritage Institute and Octopus Associates to develop research into the waterfront’s economic impact. The research project is titled the £1 Billion* Initiative.
The Waterfront Transformation Project aims to reimagine the space between the Royal Albert Dock and Mann Island, reconnecting local communities and breathing new life into one of the waterfront’s most historic and culturally rich areas.
The university’s Heritage Institute, working alongside a consortium of leading cultural partners including Historic England and World Monuments Fund, together with scholars from the US, Oman, and Africa, will conduct a landmark study into the social and cultural value of the project.
The research will use new methods to assess the site’s potential to deliver cumulative social value exceeding £1bn. It aims to highlight the transformative national and international significance of the development, positioning Liverpool and the UK at the forefront of heritage-led regeneration.
The £1 Billion* Initiative will evaluate the impact of cultural heritage to engender community pride, attract international visitors, stimulate creative industries, and deepen global connections.
The redevelopment of International Slavery Museum and the Maritime Museum serve as the cornerstone of the transformation.
Led by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios (FCBStudios), the redevelopment of two museums is intended to sensitively respond to the existing Grade I-listed buildings, Hartley Pavilion and Dr Martin Luther King Jr Building (previously the Dock Traffic Office).
A monumental new entrance for the International Slavery Museum will be created to reflect its position as the only national museum in the world dedicated to transatlantic slavery and its legacies.
The intervention responds directly to community stakeholder feedback for designs to feature not only an accessible front door but one that also claims its rightful place on Liverpool’s waterfront.
Both museums are due to reopen in 2029.
Vicky Smith, executive director of NML, said: “In many ways we already have a good understanding and appreciation for the profound value of this project, thanks to our continuous dialogue with the people and communities we are working with to build it.
“However, the rigour and scope of University of Liverpool’s work provides deeper insight, further metrics and significant validation.
“We enter Riba [Royal Institute of British Architects] 4, an important milestone as the concept drawings for International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum are developed into detailed, technical designs, with renewed belief in these museums and their rightful place not only in Liverpool’s cultural landscape but their national and international significance too.”
Slavery research
NML has also announced a new partnership with Lloyd’s Register Foundation, which has given a £1m grant to help establish and develop the Connector project, a new initiative to create an international network of partners that will work collaboratively with local communities across the world to advance the collective understanding of the complex history and legacies of transatlantic slavery.
As one of the country’s most important ports at the time, Liverpool played a central role in transatlantic slavery and was also one of 16 British ports at which Lloyd’s Register historically surveyed and classified ships.
The Connector project will lay the foundation for further long-term plans to help connect the international museum and heritage sector, higher education institutions, creative practitioners, businesses and grass roots community groups around the world.
Financial support for individuals working with organisations aligned with the project will be offered, providing accessible opportunities to ensure key research, engagement and learning are not lost where a lack of resources may otherwise have prevented involvement.
By resourcing global collaboration in the form of bursaries, the initiative will enable new relationships for shared understanding, championing new dialogue to help uncover and contextualise international links to the history of transatlantic slavery and its worldwide legacies.
The project is expected to start in autumn 2025, with application for bursaries anticipated to open in 2026.
NML director Laura Pye said: “This project has the power to not only lay the foundation for both an innovative model for research, education and collaboration, but also respond to some of the most pressing and complex issues facing the world today.”
Alex Stitt, director of heritage at Lloyd’s Register Foundation, said: “We are on our own journey of researching and confronting the historical connections of Lloyd’s Register to transatlantic slavery.
“As an organisation that played a role in the maritime system that enabled transatlantic slavery, it is vital that we acknowledge this past, and support work that fosters a greater understanding of the history and legacies of slavery.
“Our partnership with National Museums Liverpool is an important part of this work, especially in terms of facilitating the international collaboration needed to ensure transatlantic slavery research is inclusive, accessible and impactful for those who live with its legacies.”
New chair
Meanwhile Andrea Nixon has been appointed as chair of National Museums Liverpool for a term of four years.
Nixon is an experienced director and cultural consultant with a significant track record in change management, place development, partnership programming, business development and fundraising in the culture and heritage sector.
She has co-developed cultural strategies for places ranging from Middlesbrough to Neath Port Talbot and worked with a wide range of museums, galleries and collections round the country to develop their vision and sustainable operations, including the National Trust and the Arts Council Collection.
Prior to establishing her own consultancy in 2018, Nixon was executive director of Tate Liverpool, where she led the management and development of the gallery.
She worked as director of development for the Tate in London from 1998 to 2006, playing a key role in the creation of both Tate Modern and Tate Britain.
As a volunteer trustee, she has experience at Arts Council North, the Crafts Council and the Audience Agency and chaired the V&A Dundee Advisory Board from 2015 to 2020.
She is currently chair of the Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse Theatres (retiring November 2025), a Trustee of Harewood House Trust and a director of the Reader CIC.
Nixon was awarded an MBE for services to the arts in 2019. She lives in Liverpool with her family.
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