Extra details on Parkside regeneration submitted to St Helens Council

Parkside Regeneration, a venture between St Helens Borough Council and developer Langtree, is a project to transform a former colliery in Newton-le-Willows into the largest 'Freeport' sites in the Liverpool City Region.

With Freeports benefitting from tax and customs incentives, the Parkside site aims to attract a range of logistics and manufacturing firms to strengthen the region's position as an attractive location for global trade.

It is hoped that the Freeport sites across the city region will create more than 14,000 new highly skilled jobs, deliver £800m of investment and generate an additional £850m to the economy.

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Further details of the project submitted

The site is expected to attract high end logistics and manufacturing firms (Image: St Helens Council)

The 1million square feet location, previously described as a "sweet spot" between Liverpool and Manchester, was given outline planning consent in November 2021 following a public inquiry.

A reserved matters planning application has now been submitted to St Helens Council, which outlines further details of the project that had not yet been covered.

This includes matters such as the logistics, landscaping, and layout of the future site, as well as updates to the building designs.

'What we are proposing far exceeds anything I've seen'

A new link road is under construction to connect Parkside to the motorway (Image: St Helens Council)

Explaining the recent application, Langtree Group Chief Executive John Downes, said: "The scale of the project and our desire to deliver a best-in-class development across the board means this has necessarily been a lengthy process.

“It’s been worth the hard work because what we are proposing far exceeds anything I’ve seen in the logistics arena. 

"Every detail, from energy efficiency and supply, to landscaping, site layout and lighting has been carefully thought-through so that potential occupiers can be satisfied that they are bringing their brand to a suitable home.

“Major occupiers are increasingly putting head-office functions in key distribution hubs, and we recognise the importance of the office areas as places for people, and the relevance of building design to facilitate health, wellbeing, and productivity. 

"We have therefore reflected this by upgrading our office specifications within each building, as well as the façade treatments that go with them. 

"It will mean a wider range of jobs available for local people, with higher salaries and different career paths, too.”

Parkside expected to provide a huge boost to the area

Councillors and developers at the Parkside site (Image: St Helens Council)

Commenting on the submission, David Baines, Leader of St Helens Borough Council said:

“I am confident that residents will be pleased with the project details that we are bringing forward. 

"Parkside will be a high-quality development that will enhance the area, provide a positive setting for businesses to locate to and ensure environmental net gain. 

"And being part of the Liverpool City Region Freeport will bring additional benefits for businesses right across the borough and beyond, creating prosperity and tangible benefits for our residents in the form of good quality jobs and the increased opportunities that a growing economy brings. 

"Should the application be approved, we can look forward to progressing into the delivery phase and engaging as much of our local supply chain as possible to help with the construction and fit-out of the units.”

Proposals to be ruled upon later this year

An aerial shot of the proposed site (Image: St Helens Council)

The final building and landscape designs, along with a range of other detailed issues such as junction designs, drainage systems and lighting, is expected to be ruled upon by St Helens Borough Council’s planning committee this September.

If approved, work will then commence on securing a contractor to deliver the first phase of the project, which will include two speculatively built units of 367,700 square feet and 198,100 square feet. 

Details of a third unit are also being submitted as part of the reserved matters application comprising a further 227,400 square feet.

Overall, the first phase development at Parkside is expected to generate more than 1,300 new jobs.

Further to this, Parkside Regeneration also confirmed that it will be submitting a separate planning application to allow the necessary consent to move surplus material in land earmarked for Phase Two of the scheme in the coming weeks. 

These plans are proposed to help minimise the amount off-site imported material needed to deliver the extensive landscape designs and site levels across Phase 1.