Consultation to launch on £4m high street revamp in Anfield

OAKFIELD Road and Walton Breck Road which takes people past Anfield stadium is set for a major upgrade. A £4 million scheme to revamp the main high street in Anfield, creating a greener and safer experience for residents and visitors, is to be the focus of a public consultation.

Liverpool City Council is to launch the consultationon:-Wednesday, 22 May 2024, with a hat-trick of public events showcasing how the main road; and connecting streets; leading to Liverpool FC's iconic stadium is to be upgraded.

This project is the latest element in a £300m investment programme in the Anfield area, which 1st began in 2014. Over the past decade this has led to the creation of more than 600 new and 500 refurbished homes, a revitalised Stanley Park, new shops, environmental street works, improved community facilities and upgrades to the stadium itself.

For the new High Street scheme, the Council is working in partnership with AECOM whose brief has been to design a visually more appealing and healthier public street scene with a priority to improve pedestrian movement and safety.

The focus will be on highway and public realm upgrades along:- Walton Breck Road, Oakfield Road, Pulford Street, Back Rockfield Road and Gilman Street.

As part of the initial design stage, the current proposals aim to:- improve walking routes, create wider footpaths, install new landscaping and public realm features, as well provide new trees and new underground bins.

A key proposal is a suggested reduction in speed limit on:- Walton Breck Road from 30mph to 20mph, between the junctions of Blessington Road, and Kemp Avenue to improve safety for pedestrians.

The highways element will also include:- new improved carriageways and crossings, as well as providing new on-street and resident parking bays with a focus on rationalising car parking, bus stops and taxi ranks. And there's a proposal to close access to Back Rockfield Road from Pulford Street, including a safe area for vehicles to turn around.

The outline designs will be on display at a trio of public drop-in events, at The Liverpool Lighthouse, Oakfield Road, L4 0U, on:-

• Wednesday, 22 May 2024, from:- 10am - 5.30pm
  

• Thursday, 23 May 2024, from:- 1pm - 7pm
  

• Wednesday, 12 June 2024, from:- 12pm - 5pm

The online consultation also goes live on:- 22 May and will be open for feedback until:- Friday, 14 June 2024.

Feedback will help shaped the outline designs and a report to the Council's cabinet will be submitted in the Autumn with a view to appointing a contractor to begin delivering the scheme next Spring.

Feedback from the public consultation about the future for Anfield Square, and a planned way forward will be publicised in the summer.

Councillor Dan Barrington, Cabinet Member for Transport and Connectivity said:- "The redevelopment of Anfield stadium has understandably received global attention, but the works to improve the surrounding community are more important in many ways. Creating a healthier, greener, safer and more visually appealing high street will have a major impact on the day-to-day quality of life of our residents in this community, who have already seen a lot of improvements over the past decade. I hope everyone in the neighbourhood gets to visit our public consultation events and gives their feedback. Their views are vital to ensuring this scheme works and delivers long-lasting improvements to living in, working in and visiting Anfield."

Councillor Nick Small, Liverpool City Council's Cabinet Member for Economy and Growth, said:- "Enhancing the public spaces along Oakfield Road and Walton Breck Road is a vital aspect and a longstanding goal of the Anfield regeneration programme. Importantly, these proposed improvements to the high street will connect various regeneration projects in the surrounding area. This investment will also provide a boost to the existing businesses and those looking to invest and grow here, and there's more improvements to come once plans for Anfield Square are formalised."

"If the aviation industry had the safety record that roads do, planes would be grounded. We have to do better than this" says Brake's CEO at key conference for road victims

BRAKE, the road safety charity, hosted its second After the Crash conference to showcase excellence in post crash care.  The 1 day, sell out conference for professionals was held in Manchester City Centre and brought together more than 200 people from the Police, emergency services, legal sector and other organisations that support families bereaved or seriously injured from road crashes.

Delegates heard from a range of expert speakers and panellists to learn more about the specific needs of road victims and what excellence in post-crash care looks like, throughout a packed programme expertly hosted by Dan Campsall, from road safety consultancy Agilysis.

The conference began with a keynote speech from Chief Constable Jo Shiner from Sussex Police. In her role as National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) Lead for Roads Policing, CC Shiner spoke about how the compassion, advice and support provided by organisations such as Brake can bring comfort to families at such an awful time in their lives, and highlighted the importance of working in partnership to enhance the support that can be provided. She ended with her wish for victim support for those involved in road traffic collisions to be on a par with other violent and preventable homicides.

"The 1st mission of policing is to save life but sadly every year hundreds of people lose their life on UK roads. What we do next together to support victims and families is of huge importance." CC Jo Shiner, NPCC Lead for Roads Policing

There followed a stirring call from Commander Kyle Gordon, Metropolitan Police, to change the mindset regarding road death and roads policing. He questioned why so many people still consider the current level of road death to be 'acceptable' and why roads policing continues to receive so little funding, resource and recognition compared with some other branches of policing. Commander Gordon called for delegates to stand and observe a minute's silence, to reflect and remember road victims, and asked everyone in the room to take a bold and brave stance to end road death and injury.

In his opening address, Brake's CEO Ross Moorlock compared the safety record of roads with that of the aviation or rail industry, reminding the audience that if the aviation or rail industry experienced the same number of deaths, planes would be grounded and trains would be stopped.

Ross then shared information about the charity's National Road Victim Service, which is the national provider of trauma-informed, case-managed support for road victims across the UK. He explained that every year the service supports thousands of families that have been devastated by bereavement or catastrophic injuries following a crash, as well as providing expert support to help Police family liaison officers with their caseloads. Ross spoke about the importance of Brake's person-centred approach and how no 2 people have the same response to grief and trauma.

This theme continued, with Dr Nicola Lester, a specialist in psychological trauma, exploring the effects of traumatic bereavement and the importance of a trauma informed approach, which includes:- giving victims a voice, enabling them to have choice and control, and creating a safe space to help them cope with the often challenging bureaucracy within the criminal justice system.

"If the aviation or rail industry had the safety record that roads do, planes would be grounded, and trains would be stopped." Ross Moorlock, CEO of Brake, the road safety charity

A central theme of the day was the need for secure funding for road victim support, in line with the much greater resources and funding available to Police and other organisations that support victims of homicide, for example.

In a panel session about the changing landscape of road victim support, chaired by:- UK ROEd's CEOP Ruth Purdie OBE, Detective Inspector Steve Kilsby, Leicestershire Police, and Commander Kyle Gordon, Metropolitan Police, discussed the differences in the funding, resourcing, attitudes and procedures for a homicide death versus a road traffic death, highlighting that road deaths deserve the same level of care and accountability.

Alongside the focus on evidence and expertise, the day was full of emotion too, with impactful sessions from road victims talking about their own experiences. Calvin Buckley talked about his heartbreaking loss following the death of his partner Frankie Jules-Hough and their unborn daughter Neeve in 2023, when their car was hit by a speeding driver. Frankie's father Frank Hough hit the message home when he spoke about the storm of grief he felt when Frankie died, and how he was offered help, but:- "couldn't hear it."

Despite decades of experience working in NHS trauma services, and a PhD in road safety policy, Dr Ian Greenwood made it clear in his presentation that he spoke first and foremost as a father of Alice who died in a crash in 2008, aged just 12. Many in the audience were visibly moved as he talked about the crash and explained some of the challenges and consolations for road victims using their experience to campaign and try to prevent further unnecessary road deaths.

The conference also covered complex cases, restorative justice, support for victims of crashes involving uninsured drivers, and the signs and symptoms of compassion fatigue. Last, but by no means least, there was also a video presentation from Baroness Newlove, Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales, who spoke about the importance of immediate access to specialist support for road victims, regardless of the status of any ongoing Police investigation.

"Too often road victims are left stranded without support in the immediate aftermath of a crash whilst the Police assess whether a crime has occurred. Victims must be supported in those critical moments." Baroness Newlove, Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales

The After the Crash conference is a flagship event in Brake's calendar of activity. CEO Ross Moorlock commented:- "It is always very humbling to host this conference and stand together with the professionals who operate on the very front line of road victim support. The people in the room today are the ones who knock on doors with bad news, who stand with families at the scene of a crash, and who we are privileged to help give road victims the expert support they need and deserve. This is a great opportunity for us to work together, to discuss the challenges and to find the ways forward by showcasing best practice in care for road victims. A huge thank you to everyone who took part and supported the conference."

The After the Crash conference was sponsored by long time Brake supporters Alderstone Solicitors, HCC Solicitors and Slater and Gordon, making it possible for Police and and other emergency service professionals to attend for free. The conference also included an exhibition with a range of top legal firms and other bereavement, injury and trauma charities coming together to network and share their work.

To learn more about this conference visit:- Brake.Org.UK/AftertheCrash.

To hear about events like this sign up to MyBrake:- Brake.Org.UK/Get-Involved.

To sign up for Brake's Police Family Liaison Officer Hub visit:- Brake.Org.UK/flo-hub..