National Museums Liverpool (NML) has partnered with University of Liverpool\u2019s Heritage Institute and Octopus Associates to develop research into the waterfront\u2019s economic impact. The research project is titled the \u00a31 Billion* Initiative.\u202f \u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u00a0one\u00a0of the waterfront\u2019s most historic and culturally rich areas.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The university\u2019s 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The research will use new methods to assess the site\u2019s potential to deliver cumulative social value exceeding \u00a31bn. 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The \u00a31\u00a0Billion* Initiative will evaluate the impact of cultural heritage to engender community pride, attract international visitors, stimulate creative industries, and deepen global connections.<\/p>\n
The redevelopment of International Slavery Museum and the Maritime Museum serve as the cornerstone of the transformation.<\/p>\n
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).\u00a0<\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
The intervention responds directly to community stakeholder feedback for designs to feature not only an accessible front door but\u00a0one\u00a0that also claims its rightful place on Liverpool\u2019s waterfront. <\/p>\n
Both museums are due to reopen in 2029.<\/p>\n
Vicky Smith, executive director of NML, said:\u00a0\u201cIn 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. <\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, the rigour and scope of University of Liverpool\u2019s work provides deeper insight, further metrics and significant validation. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe 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\u2019s cultural landscape but their national and international significance too.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n
Slavery research<\/p>\n
NML has also announced a new partnership with Lloyd\u2019s Register Foundation, which has given a \u00a31m 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As one of the country\u2019s 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\u2019s Register historically surveyed and classified ships.<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The project is expected to start in autumn 2025, with application for bursaries anticipated to open in 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n
NML director Laura Pye said: \u201cThis 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.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alex Stitt, director of heritage at Lloyd\u2019s Register Foundation, said:\u00a0\u201cWe are on our own journey of researching and confronting the historical connections of Lloyd\u2019s Register to transatlantic slavery. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOur 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.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
New chair<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Andrea\u00a0Nixon\u00a0has been appointed as chair of National Museums Liverpool for a term of four years.<\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Nixon was awarded an MBE for services to the arts in 2019. She lives in Liverpool with her family.<\/p>\n
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