Work starts on 66 new homes on former Wirral school site

Lovell Partnerships is working in partnership with North West housing association Onward Homes on 66 'affordable' homes of the former Foxfield School site off Douglas Drive in Moreton.

Planning permission was granted in March for the project. The development include associated open space, roads and pavements, landscaping and additional drainage.

The project involves the redevelopment of the former Foxfield School site on Douglas Drive in Moreton (Image: Cartwright Communications) The homes will be a mix of terraced and semi-detached two and two-and-a-half storey properties with two-, three-, and four-bedrooms. A variety of tenures including shared ownership, affordable rent and Rent-to-Buy will be available through Onward.

The development follows the council’s decision to use the site of the former Foxfield School on Douglas Drive for new homes, following the school’s relocation to Woodchurch in 2015.

The school buildings were demolished in 2018 and the site has been derelict since.

Left to right: Richard O’Neill (Onward Homes) Sandy Livingstone (Onward Homes), Tahreen Shad (Lovell), Sandy Kelly (Onward Homes) and Barry Muir (Lovell) on the site of new housing development on Douglas Drive, Moreton (Image: Cartwright Communications) Part of the development will be named Blakeley Way in honour of Chris, who was Moreton West and Saughall Massie Conservative councillor for nearly 20 years before he sadly died in 2020, aged 69. 

Tahreen Shad, regional partnerships director at Lovell, said: "We are pleased to have started work so soon after receiving a planning decision.

"The site has been vacant for some time, after the school relocated in 2015 and the old site was demolished in 2018, so this project will really give the area a new lease of life.

"This project also builds on our 15-year-long partnership with Wirral Council, helping to unlock important sites such as this one to provide much-needed affordable homes.

"The plans include a range of sustainable design measures such as high-performing insulation and low-energy fittings. We are also keen to prioritise a vibrant and cohesive green environment for residents.”

Funding for the project has been delivered through Onward’s Strategic Partnership with Homes England, which will support the housing association to build 5,000 new homes by 2030.

Sandy Livingstone, executive director (property) at Onward, said: "We are excited to begin our latest affordable development in the Wirral, and to be partnering with Lovell for the first time.

“The development provides much needed homes that are affordable for our customers in the Wirral.

"As well as providing more quality, choice and affordability for those who rent, these new homes will also help more people take their first steps on the local property ladder, through our affordable home ownership tenures.”

This scheme follows the completion of Lovell’s multi-million-pound regeneration of the former Fiveways estate in Rockferry, delivering 283 homes in partnership with Wirral Council and Riverside, with the final handover taking place in December 2023.