Land Regeneration

From physical buildings and development sites to the reclamation of brownfield land, regeneration activity is taking place across the region, creating new areas which will naturally attract inward investment, create jobs and provide enhanced facilities for communities. Over the past six years, the NWDA has leveraged in to the region additional private sector investment of around £2 billion.

REMADE in Lancashire

REMADE, which stands for REclamation and MAnagement of DErelict land, has been set up by Lancashire County Council in partnership with the Northwest Regional Development Agency as part of the Agency’s commitment to tackling the region’s derelict land problem. A quarter of all derelict land in England is located in the North West and it is a blight on people’s lives, harms the image of the area and deters investment.

Lancashire has over 2,400 hectares of derelict, under-used or neglected brownfield land. This dereliction, made up of former industrial sites, quarries, old railways, disused reservoirs and tips, can be very harmful to our environment. It can be a source of pollution, a hazard to people living nearby and makes an area look run down and neglected. It also has an adverse economic impact, reducing property prices and making the area less attractive to visit and invest in.

REMADE is a multi million pound programme with a target to reclaim 300 hectares of this derelict land by 2011.

Newlands

Launched in the summer of 2003, Newlands is a unique £23 million scheme which aims to transform 435 hectares of derelict land across the region into thriving, durable, community woodlands that deliver true socio-economic benefits, as well obvious environmental benefits.

The first five-year phase of Newlands covers the Mersey Belt area.  Since the launch, nine key locations have been prioritised:

• Moston Vale, North Manchester 
• Bidston Moss, North Wirral 
• Lower Irwell Valley Improvement Area, Salford 
• Brickfields, St Helens 
• Belfield in Rochdale 
• Town Lane, Southport 
• Stanlow, Ellesmere Port 
• Mouth of the Weaver, Runcorn/Frodsham 
• Gibfield Tip, Wigan

Newlands features in the Government’s Sustainable Communities Plan where it is described as: “bringing a new lease of life to the Northwest’s urban areas through a combination of environmental improvement, derelict land reclamation and, vitally, the development of new opportunities for leisure and recreation.”

Newlands Executive Briefing

Newlands Leaflet

See also the Newlands section on the Forestry Commission website

National Coalfields Programme

The NWDA is working with English Partnerships to bring back into viable economic, environmental and community use a number of former colliery sites across the region as part of the National Coalfields Programme. Coalfield communities continue to be characterised by poor health, low employment levels, low educational achievement and poor housing. The development of these sites will assist former coalfield communities by creating new employment, homes, leisure facilities and green public space. There are eight former colliery sites in the Programme in the Northwest, these are:

• Agecroft, Salford
• Ashton Fields, Walkden
• Bickershaw, Leigh
• Bickershaw North, Leigh
• Cronton, Knowsley
• Haig, Whitehaven
• Lea Green, St Helens
• Old Boston, St Helens

Speke and Garston Coastal Reserve
Part of Mersey Waterfront, a pan-waterfront strategic partnership established by the NWDA with funding of £8.5 million, the Speke Garston Coastal Reserve is a key project within Mersey Waterfront. It is delivered by a multi-agency steering group led by the Mersey Basin Campaign. Mersey Waterfront is investing millions of pounds into many projects that will transform the area and energise local communities.

The Speke Garston Coastal Reserve will open up what was until recently an abused, neglected and dangerous wasteland. It will include new footpaths, secure access, new habitats and landmark landscaping. These improvements will enhance an area which is already designated as a Special Protection Area for birds and borders the National Trust's Speke Hall – one of the finest timber framed buildings in Britain.

Land Regeneration in East Manchester
The NWDA-funded development partnership between Urban Splash, English Partnerships and New East Manchester, is applying an innovative solution to the disposal of contaminated land excavated during the development of new homes at New Islington in the Manchester district of Ancoats.  The New Islington Partnership has established an on-site land treatment works that is allowing earth otherwise destined for landfill to be cleaned and reused in the development. 

By using recycled materials from the on-site ‘land cleaning’ process, rather than paying charges for landfill, the Partnership has saved in excess of £550,000 and diverted more than 60,000 cubic metres of earth from landfill.