Costs surge in Birkenhead town centre scheme as bill now hit £26m
A town centre scheme that was already £12m over budget has seen costs surge by a further £2m.
Extensive works in central Birkenhead are now expected to cost £26m and costs could rise even more.
For a year and a half, works along Grange Road, Conway Street, and Europa Boulevard have dominated Birkenhead town centre causing traffic delays, disruption for businesses, and a drop in footfall as people told the LDRS they tried to avoid the area. Criticism of the works deepend over the summer after the scheme’s massive overspend and major delays were investigated.
Large areas of Grange Road are now finished and public perception appears to be warming slightly. Trees have been planted and benches installed with around 80% of the entire project now complete.
The project is expected to be finished by March 9, 2026 with defects being worked through with contractors. However it’s expected Grange Road will be clear of barriers by Christmas, ahead of the busy shopping period.
However the council’s problems are not over. A report before a November 18 regeneration committee said: “Current spend suggests a contract cost of around £23m, with an additional £3m expected for management fees. Ongoing design delays mean costs are likely to continue rising.”
The report added: “While work continues, these issues have caused slippage, pushing the project to a revised completion date of March 2026 (adjusted due to the removal of St John Street and Catherine Street). Wirral Council has increased the project budget following [Contractor] Graham’s revised forecast of £24.39m, up from £21m, driven by 27 new compensation events.
“The project is now 78% complete. [Contactor] Walker Sime is reviewing the impact of these events on the programme and costs. Many compensation events have been resolved, but high-value ones remain pending due to requests for further evidence.”
On Grange Road, central paving has been finished between Vincent Street and Catherine Street while paving works near Santander and JD Sports have moved forward. Waterproofing works outside Conway Park station have been finished as well as new beds to collect rainwater.
At the Price Street junction with Europa Boulevard, works on the south side have been finished with the north side now being worked on. Work is also progressing at the Europa Car Park, Grange Road West, and Charing Cross.
At a Wirral Council policy and resources committee meeting, councillors are expected to move £7.821m around to help close the gap caused by the project’s overspends. The proposed funding to cover the budget gap comes from a number of sources such as previously agreed borrowing currently available or other grants.
A majority of the funding will be taken from the Wirral Waters Investment Fund, a pot of money intended to stimulate developments in the docks area. If approved by councillors, £5.25m could be moved over.
Following an investigation by the council’s internal audit team published earlier this year, Wirral Council has now published its action plan for how it plans to learn lessons from the town centre scheme’s problems.
At a recent Wirral Council audit and risk management committee meeting on November 4, councillors unanimously said they regretted the situation and would continue to hold officers to account. Further work is also being carried out by the council’s external auditors, Grant Thornton, with findings currently expected to be published towards the end of the year.