After decades of decline, New Brighton is being transformed from a ghost town that was plagued by fly tipping, drug abuse and anti-social behaviour into a community filled with artwork and burgeoning new businesses.
New Brighton, a seaside resort at the north-eastern tip of the Wirral, was at one point one of the most popular in the UK. However after the Second World War, the town suffered from years of neglect.
Now those who live there say changes along Victoria Road, where a lot of regeneration funded by £7.5m from Rockpoint Leisure CEO Dan Davies has taken place, have helped bring back a sense of community and vibrancy to the town.
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Walking down Victoria Road, you can see new businesses, murals and artwork on the walls in a town where many people used to grow up, go to university or work elsewhere and never return.
Rudy Parengal never thought he would ever move to New Brighton to live or set up a business but after listening to Dan Davies speak at a University of Liverpool event, he said he bought in to the exciting plans.
Rudy is now in the process of growing what he says is Liverpool’s first food tech company, with the support of Dan and other businesses in the area.
Rudy, who is originally from southern India, said: “I’d visited New Brighton once before with friends and we went to the beach but I didn’t realise there was a gem of a place right by that and there’s so much more in New Brighton now after what Dan’s done.
“There’s two things I love about New Brighton, one is how close knit the community is. Most people I’ve met have bought into Dan’s vision and everybody wants this place to be known to the outside world. This is like a tiny village where everyone knows everybody else and everyone wants you to succeed.
“The second bit and more important is even as a foreigner in many aspects, I felt a part of the community from day one.
“That tells you the story of New Brighton and how good the people are around here. Everyone wants to have a better future for New Brighton and Vicky (Victoria) Road specifically.”
Wirral Council is currently developing its master plan for the town “which will set out a clear and shared vision to revitalise New Brighton over the next 15 years.”
In October, events were held using VR experiences to illustrate how the town could look in the future as part of a wider consultation. These include proposals for outdoor sports facilities, beach huts and dining spaces.
Pauline Barratt moved to New Brighton in 2017 from Upton, she said: “I do love living here, I’d rather live here than anywhere else on the Wirral.”
Pauline said she’s seen the changes with new businesses and cafes, adding: “I’m definitely spending more time here. When I first moved here, I had no friends or family because they’d either moved away or died so I didn’t know anyone. I was finding I was becoming a recluse.”
Will Robinson is a member of local band Headfeeder who have just signed with a record label. He said: “I was brought up about half a mile away and noticed there wasn’t much to do around here, It was a ghost town. Everything was boarded up and it was quite dismal.”
The regeneration of new Brighton began with community projects to repaint and repair the town's benches, clear away the fly tipping and improve how the area looked.
At 18, Will met Dan and became involved in the project. Will said: “Dan was quite eager to get the local community, the local kids, involved because there was a lot of bad behaviour. I was one of the ones that he said 'put a high Vis on and we’re going to take ownership of the area and make it something we’re proud of'.”
Dan supported Will’s band, formerly known as Razzmatazz, with equipment and performing spaces, playing gigs up to 500 people. He said people are now travelling to the town and spending more time in New Brighton, helping to build up a sense of community.
Will said: “It’s great to see people come out and say I didn’t ever come out and have any friends but now I’ve got an amazing community. All of my friends I’ve met from this project and it’s had a really positive social effect. I’ve watched communities and friendships made based on this project.”
Dan said “I’m nearly 50 and I’ve lived here all my life and my generation grew up with massive heroin problems, the heyday had been and gone. It was a managed decline.
“If you went to university you never came back and we didn’t retain talent or attract talent for places like this. It was very much wipe your feet on the way out.”
Dan thinks having independent businesses including retail as well as hospitality is vital in getting people back into New Brighton, pointing to a new gallery showcasing art from people who have suffered from homelessness and addiction that's just opened up.
The developer thinks New Brighton can tie into the council’s plans to regenerate the east side of the Wirral in Birkenhead, Liscard, and Bromborough but doesn’t want it to be forgotten in the process.
He said: “I think we’re going to attract the investment we need to, but the council needs to show some results and they need to show that they’re open for business and there’s thought and sustainability behind it.
“We’ve done a very detailed plans of what we’d do in New Brighton and it involves a whole host of things that would make a big impact. We do need visitors and we need increased footfall.
“There’s got to be a compelling reason to visit. You won’t go 'let’s go spend a weekend in New Brighton so we can go to Morrisons and Home Bargains or Starbucks.' That isn’t a compelling reason to visit anywhere.”
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