Have your say on Southport's Lord Street Gardens regeneration

THE 1st stage of a dedicated consultation and engagement process into the future of Southport’s Town Hall Gardens was launched on:- Tuesday, 26 August 2025.
 
A £10 million regeneration project for the Lord Street site was announced earlier this summer after the gardens became a key focal point for the community since the tragic events of July 2024.
 
Thousands of people gathered in the gardens for a community led vigil, the visit of HRH King Charles III and, more recently, a 3 minutes silence to honour everyone directly impacted by the events of 2024.
 
Funded by Central Government, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Sefton Council, the regeneration of the gardens is the shared hope of the families of Alice Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Stancombe as their way of saying ‘thank you’ to the Town who support them throughout an unimaginably difficult time.
 
Artistic drawings which showcase the potential opportunities for the gardens have already been published, along with the launch of a dedicated website detailing the project’s background.
 
The vision is to create a welcoming, child friendly and family focussed multi-use performance space that has capacity to hold both small and large scale events including concerts, performances, arts festivals, dance shows and much more.
 
Sefton Council as the landowner has today launched the first stage of a dedicated consultation and engagement process to ensure all communities have the opportunity to share their views on the future look and feel of the Lord Street Gardens.
 
Cllr Paulette Lappin, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Economy and Skills, said:- “Since this announcement we have seen an overwhelming buzz of excitement for this regeneration project. This is not the 1st time the Gardens will undergo a renaissance and many of us will remember its concrete heavy appearance of the 1980s, while avid local historians will look back further to its elegance of the late 1800s and early 1900s when it was also an open air multi-use performance space. The consultation will happen across 2 phases and we are keen through this initial phase to capture your views on what you have seen, heard and read so far. The 2nd stage will then consult on a robust plan and proposal that has considered the engagement we receive over the next month."
 
She continued:- “We especially want to hear peoples views on the potential of future water features, parking, floral planters, trees and the 1990s pavilion buildings which are currently in-situ. I would also encourage everyone to read through the Frequently Asked Questions on our dedicated webpage which goes into considerable detail about the project as well as the history of the gardens and its current ageing infrastructure.”
 
Residents who want to have their say can formally submit their feedback in 3 ways:-
 
•    By email via:- SouthportrRcoveryTeam@Sefton.Gov.UK.

•    In writing to Southport Recovery Team, Southport Town Hall, Lord Street, PR81DA.

•    Completing a form in person at Southport Town Hall.
 
The Stage 1 Engagement process runs for a month from:- 26 August 2025 to 23 September 2025.

Any feedback from this initial stage will be reported to the Project Board, and thereafter fed into the design and development process.

Stage 2 of the consultation process will take place in due course as detailed design progresses.

For more information and details on the project so far please visit this website.

What are your thoughts on this news topic? Email our Newsroom at:- News24@SouthportReporter.Com or send us a message on:- Mastodon, Facebook, or Twitter. Please do let us know as we love to hear your views....

The Southport Tavern is inviting people to join them to celebrate 2nd birthday!
Photos and report by:- Andrew Brown - Stand Up For Southport.

THE Southport Tavern, in Southport Town Centre, is inviting people to join them in celebrating their 2nd birthday, on:- Saturday, 30 August 2025, from:- 7.30pm.

Guests attending this special free entery event will be able to enjoy great live music, free food and more as the venue continues to improve under the guidance of Licensee Steve Richards.

Steve took over the pub, which was formally called:- 'The Albert,' located on London Street, 2 summers ago with a determination to completely change the venue's identity and reputation. He said:- "We are looking forward to welcoming everyone to join us for our second birthday! We will have some superb entertainment from two singers, and a real celebration. Everyone is welcome! It's taking place on the same weekend as the Southport Air Show, so hopefully there will be lots of people in Town. We'd love everyone to call in and join us. We're right next to Southport Train Station so for anyone heading home by rail after the air show, it's a great reason to pop in for a pint on your way back. This has been a great summer for big events in Southport, after the recent Southport Flower Show too, and more to look forward to this autumn."

Since The Albert changed to become the Southport Tavern, many changes have been taking place with a packed programme to enjoy throughout all 7 days of the week.

There are two new interactive dart boards, which costs £10 to play per hour, but are free on Wednesday nights.

Wednesdays also see the popular Open Mic nights taking place.

There are pool tables available which are free to play on Mondays and Tuesdays.

On Thursday night they link up live to pubs across the UK for a live interactive quiz with a studio host.

The back room has become sectioned off to ensure it can be used as a function room, and it's proving popular.

It has recently hosted wedding celebrations, birthdays, work events and more.

Catering is provided by Steve and his team.

A number of groups meet regularly at the Southport Tavern, including:- Sefton Older People's Forum, Sefton Autism Group, Man Cave, and the Green Party.

Several local businesses also use the function room for meetings.

Fridays are Curry-oke nights, when you can enjoy curry and chips and sing karaoke.

Saturdays are well known for live music, with the Southport Tavern investing in supporting local bands and singers including:- Quandary, Fag Ash Lil, Absolutel Zero, Liv Grace, April Moon and more, plus tribute bands.

Sundays are thriving! Southport Tavern is home to a thriving bingo scene.

Steve said:- "Our bingo events have become a real institution! They are so busy! It's madness how popular they've become. People love our bingo afternoons. We also do Mega Bingo on the last Sunday, of the month, when there are even bigger prizes to be won. The bingo is followed by Curry-oke again. We have a huge range of live sports on offer with 10 screens now, with Sky Sports, TNT, and Amazon, so there's always lots of choice. We show all sports. This season there are more live games to watch than ever before. We have invested in opening our beer garden, where you can also sit outside and watch live sport on a big screen. We have a great choice of draught beer including:- beers from Southport Brewery. We believe in supporting local businesses. We're a member of Southport PubWatch, with the safety of our customers paramount. We now have four darts teams and a pool team. The changes we have made at Southport Tavern over the past two years are like night and day! This pub offers a completely different experience for people to come and enjoy now. Lots of former regulars have been coming back to say how much they love the changes; we have fantastic feedback from 1st time visitors too. It's really encouraging. Come and see the new look Southport Tavern for yourself, and join us in celebrating our 2nd birthday.”