Joan Ford has lived on Leicester Road in Bootle for the last 40 years, but it was only during lockdown that she got to know some of her nearest neighbours.
It was around then that people started to pitch in with tidying the alleys that run behind the terraced houses. Now the street is filled with planters blooming with flowers, fruit and vegetables with small trees leaning up against front windows and doors.
“You can do it, you just have to keep your neighbours engaged,” says Joan, 64, a civil servant, when speaking about the transformation that has taken place. “It just takes somebody to lead. I now know the people back to back and have met new [neighbours]," adds Joan, explaining how there’s now a strong feeling of people “taking pride in their neighbourhood.”
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Greenery aside, the cranes of Liverpool’s container port, seen from the end of the street, are a reminder of the density of the urban area. Bootle has a good range of green spaces, but where there are houses they are often tightly packed and in terraces - sometimes at the cost of garden space.
This has informed the thinking of Regenerus, a social enterprise based not far from Bootle Strand. In 2021 it set out to create ‘mini farms’ across the Sefton town by forming a growing circle which was arranged by the organisation's Taking Root in Bootle community Gardening network.
Each circle, or collection of streets, is anchored to a park where members can collect and return compost - one of which is situated in North Park. So far three growing circles have started, in the Leicester Road, Boswell Street and the so-called Poets Streets areas of Bootle, with another set to be launched in the Woodlands Road area.
When the circle is first established families can ask for free planters and a kit to enable them to start growing produce. The planters that lined the streets are locally made by the Bootle Tool Shed, situated on the bottom floor of The Strand.
Ruth Livesey, coordinator of the project at Regenerus, says 150 people are now a part of the project across four inner city gardens. She says the project is as much about helping to change the narrative of an area as it is about positively influencing people’s health, mental health, education and feeling of isolation.
“Seeing is believing,” says Ruth, talking through the project at North Park. “When one gets going, everyone takes it up. [Parts of Bootle] are written off, but it’s about bringing pride to a forgotten community."
“Residents are keen to do anything to improve their area,” adds Ali Houghton, another coordinator of the project, “they want to show the best of it.
“You need to work towards a culture change. That doesn’t happen overnight - it takes perseverance.”
A short drive from North Park and the impact of Taking Root is there to be seen along Leicester Road. It’s a similar story on the other side of Bootle at Boswell Street.
Even closer to the industrial docklands, the terrace has become lined with the distinctive planters and small trees branching out against doorways. Katy Spicer, 43 is one of those who’ve taken up the offer of the project.
She and her neighbour are both in the midst of growing flowers and produce for the spring. “A lot of people will come past and look at [the planters]," says Katy, noting the importance of the work that is being carried out in the community. ”It really helps improve the image of the area.”
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