There’s relief among Walton residents that County Road’s roadworks have finally ended, but many worry bigger issues lie deep below its fresh surface.
With the drawn out ordeal over, there’s ease in one local’s face as he looks out onto the road from one of the street’s shop fronts. Billy, 70, who only wanted to give his first name, grew up in Harlech Street and believes the County area has been going through some of its toughest moments in recent years.
He told the ECHO how things have been “getting better” since the works were completed in April, but the near £6m project hasn’t paved over the array of challenges the area still faces. He added: “Everybody remembers County Road fondly for the way that it used to be. People used to want to move here. Now they want to leave.”
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Perched in the doorway of Animal Aid, a charity shop towards the top end of the road, he’s joined by its manager, Paula Towner, 54. Ms Towner also bears fond memories of her younger days living in the area, but fears its once high street and community driven charm is continuing to slip away as the area falls deeper into the cost of living crisis.
While the state of the road itself will have dominated recent discussion in the cafes and salons along the thoroughfare, a more stark reality hit home in February. Then it was announced that the road’s only fully fledged supermarket - Jack’s - would be leaving the area.
Changing from a Kwik-Save, to Tesco and then Jack’s, the opening of the store was initially met with some hostility, with locals telling the ECHO how they felt they were being downgraded through the years - only to be abandoned altogether. But the thinning of resources in an area at the heart of the most deprived constituency in England came as another blow after a cruel decade of austerity - topped off by the pandemic.
'I think people have given up on the area'
Speaking to the ECHO last October, at the height of disruption, many residents and businesses told the ECHO how the cracked road surface was emblematic of the strains the local community had been put under. The departure of its only supermarket was further evidence of its continued neglect.
Residents also told the ECHO how a growth in outside investors and absent landlords had "hollowed out" once tight knit communities. Many said the turnover in residents was so high that new bonds were not able to form.
In a bid to turn the tide, regeneration plans were put in motion, one of which centred on the refurbishment of Spellow Library - set to reopen at the end of September. But with the former Jack’s store closed and up for sale, there’s a feeling more needs to be done to help the area and its residents and change the fortunes of the once celebrated high street.
It’s the small things that seem to be having the biggest impact. Local resident Billy told the ECHO how the price of everyday essentials in the road’s corner shops have increased in the months since Jack’s closed. He said that the area is crying out for a supermarket - especially for those who do not have access to a car or can walk long distances.
Paula Towner added: “That supermarket was for the elderly, people on benefits, people who haven't got a car - and it was taken from us. Where's a pensioner meant to go now if she can't walk far and she needs the food for a week?
“We need something in the middle of County Road. But I think people have given up on the area.”
Ms Towner explains that in her shop a range of items on sale for 50p have been the most popular in recent months. These include books, CDs, DVDs and items of clothing.
She said free items are also placed in a box outside of the front of the shop each day - all of which will be eventually picked up. Ms Towner added that it’s important to keep prices cheap to "give something back" to the area.
However there is a sense of frustration in “the pattern” of businesses along the road. She points towards the high volume of betting shops, fast food and beauty salons.
'We need to show what's going on'
Facing across from Animal Aid is a new business looking to break this pattern, and bring a more night time offer to County Road. Iulius cafe and bar, an Italian restaurant, opened a few weeks ago.
Its owner, Marco Giulianelli, told the ECHO how this part of the road has been quiet since he moved in, but he remains hopeful that it can change and eventually move in the right direction.
He points to how a number of the shops nearby don’t open everyday - remaining shuttered at peak times. But he thinks with more marketing and more people taking a chance on the road’s vacant units then a new side of County Road could emerge. Mr Giulianelli notes how “we need to show what’s going on in the area” rather than allow it to be defined by unflattering characterisations.
County ward Cllr Roy Gladden, now the Lord Mayor told the ECHO that more businesses need to be given “confidence to open on the road". He said this has remained the aim of the wider, council-led regeneration project which has delivered the resurfacing and refurbishment of Spellow library.
One type of business that does seem to be thriving on County Road are salons and beauty parlours. More than one are based on some blocks along the high street.
Susan Casey has owned Silver Premier Hair and Beauty salon for the last 19 years. Asked what she thinks is driving their proliferation and success, she suggests they have become one of the few “community points” in the area, with spaces like the library and Jack's currently closed.
She told the ECHO: "It is a social thing for some people. Some people just want to come in for a gab."
After two years interrupted by lockdown set before a decade of austerity, it’s easy to see why people would want to re-establish the bonds within their local community. Ms Casey notes how some of her customers will come by on days when they are not booked in - often just to have someone to talk to.
But she feels the salons on the roads can’t make up for the lack of food provision many in the nearby terraces relied on. She added: “The area has been deprived now. You look outside and it's just dead.
"You need food shops. Butchers, fishmongers, there's nothing like that now. One of my clients is 92 and now has to take the bus into town to do all of her shopping. She has to go to the stalls on London Road - but the buses are currently on strike.”
'As long as the need is here, we'll be here'
Less than a mile away on Walton Road, a food pantry is being set up outside of the Blue Base. The building is run by Everton In The Community, the charity arm of Everton FC, whose home of Goodison Park has been a central institution of County Road for over a century.
The pantry is being coordinated by the charity and Fans Supporting Food Banks, an initiative set up in 2015 by Dave Kelly and West Derby MP Ian Byrne. The fan-led initiative initially started out doing collections of food to deliver to North Liverpool foodbank, but had since branched out to offer mobile pantries across the city.
Mr Kelly explains the model means food insecurity can be tackled and people remain fed in a dignified manner - with the operation more akin to a food market than foodbank. But while the pantry provides a relaxed atmosphere, it’s popularity reflects some of the challenges Walton is now facing.
Mr Kelly explains how the pantry has only been running for a few weeks, but it already serves one of the largest memberships of those operated by Fans Supporting Food Banks. This doesn’t necessarily point to rife levels of poverty in the area, but that a wider and more diverse demographic are now feeling the pinch.
It’s outlined that many working families take advantage of the membership, which enables £20 worth of items to be purchased for £3.50. This includes fresh fruit, vegetables and meat - as well as other items.
Mr Kelly told the ECHO: “We felt that taking the pantry on the road and being mobile actually enables us to identify areas of need like this. Areas that aren't well blessed with supermarkets, greengrocers and butchers.
"On one extreme you have Walton Value which is well blessed, and on the other you have Great Homer Street. The you have this void on Country Road and Walton road with very little."
But Mr Kelly is clear in that the weekly operation - replicated in areas such as Kirkdale, Toxteth, Croxteth and West Derby - should be viewed as a hand up rather than a hand out. He points to the quality of the items on offer as a means of helping break the stigma of food insecurity - with the pantry ensuring families don't have to skip meals to pay for other bills.
He added: "That's why the fresh fruit, the fresh veg, the fresh meat, is putting a totally different angle on three bags of food from a food bank. Many people think of these types of initiatives as picking up a few cans of beans.”
Ryan O’Hanlon, Blue Family Coordinator at Everton FC, is running today’s pantry along with a selection of volunteers. In the car park where the food is being laid out, Goodison Park sticks out above the railings.
The proximity of the stadium is a stark metaphor for how close the club is to the social challenges Walton faces, and its willingness to keep playing a role within the local area. Asked how he feels about the success of the pantry in its early phase, Mr O’Hanlon describes it as “bittersweet”
He added: “It's great that we're here but it's horrible that we are. If we weren't here though, what would these people be doing?
“The £3.50 isn't a full shop, but it's supplementary so people can afford more things. Other food or their gas and electricity. Petrol prices as well. It's not going to solve every problem, but it's going to help with others. That's our aim.”
Mr O'Hanlon believes the closure of Jack’s on County Road could be one reason for the high membership in the early weeks since it launched. He’s therefore seen a wide demographic walking that bit further down to Walton Road - many of whom he says are in full time work, a sign that food prices are spiralling while many people’s wages stagnate.
There’s a sense of optimism as food is handed out and conversation is had by all those in attendance. While there’s clear fulfilment in being able to help the Walton community, there’s a feeling that it can’t always be like this
Mr O’Hanlon added: “This can be a stop gap for some people, for others, they'll be here every week. As long as the need is here, we'll be here.
“We're not going anywhere any time soon. But this is the only industry in the world that wants to get rid of its own jobs.”
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