Liverpool’s life sciences hub and one of its popular markets have received a multi-million pound boost, which has been welcomed by the city council.
Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, has revealed a funding package of £31 million for Liverpool in his speech at the Convention of The North conference today.
The development at Paddington Village, located in the 450-acre Knowledge Quarter Innovation District at the heart of the city, will receive the majority of the funding. The Minister has expressed the government’s support for an “arc of opportunity” running from the development at Paddington Village to Bramley Moore Dock, as part of a larger plan for the city.
Late last year, the investment proposal of Liverpool City Council was presented to DLUHC, and this announcement is a result of the Interim Report of the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel, which was chaired by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram.
The new funding will see:
- Upto £13m spent on delivering HEMISPHERE One – a new 8-storey Grade A office which will include up to five floors of new labs and promote net zero principles in Paddington Village
- Upto £13m to acquire sites (such as Smithdown Lane Police Station) and remediate and masterplan phase two of Paddington Village – Paddington South.
- Upto £5m to enable an upgrade for Great Homer Street Market in Everton, which will allow for its expansion to attract more traders.
Colin Sinclair, CEO of Sciontec Developments Limited and Knowledge Quarter Liverpool, said:
“It is great news that Liverpool has been able to unlock additional funding for further development of its innovation infrastructure. This is a clear and deserved recognition of the enormous strides we have taken as a trailblazer in health and life sciences innovation and our potential for further success.
“The world-class laboratory and workspace created at HEMISPHERE will play a pivotal role in that continued success and an expanded Paddington Village will be the engine room for the delivery of wider Investment Zone plans for the next decade and beyond.”
Sciontec, a partnership between Liverpool City Council, the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University, and Bruntwood SciTech, will deliver the HEMISPHERE One project, which is worth £60m.
The scheme, which occupies an area of 115,000 sq ft, will comprise 80,000 sq ft of lab space situated on the top five floors of the building. This design is aligned with the Health and Life Sciences Investment Zone vision of the Liverpool City Region.
Construction of HEMISPHERE One is expected to begin in early 2025 and be complete by early 2027.
