Member Article

Ground broken at 6.75 acre Albany Road Development

An official ground breaking ceremony was held for the 6.75 acre Albany Road development which is on the site of the former Lancashire Watch Factory.

The first phase is being built by Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT), part of the First Ark Group, together with partners the Iliad Group, Knowsley Council and Harbur Construction.

The former Lancashire Watch Factory scheme will include a complete restoration of the original Grade II listed factory building and is comprised of an initial 70 new Extra Care homes with accompanying Extra Care facilities.

Mike Harden, CEO of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, and Councillor Andy Moorhead leader of the council joined developers KHT and Iliad Group in celebrating the official ground breaking on site of their landmark Albany Road, Prescot regeneration project.

The Watch Factory is expected to be completed by April 2016 and, following completion, will be owned and managed by KHT .

The scheme forms the first phase of a multiple phase regeneration strategy for the area.

Chief executive of the First Ark Group, Bob Taylor, said: “It’s great to see the start of the regeneration here at the old Watch Factory site.

“We are planning to bring the history of the development into the plot’s transformation with the original listed building forming the centre of the site.

“However, we will also be reaching forward into the future via our work, installing state of the art Extra Care facilities at the site.

“Every property at the development is designed to be a home for life, and each can be adapted around the future needs of residents, making the area a great place to live for communities for years to come.”

KHT secured funding from the Department of Health for the scheme, which meets the government’s Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3 and is being built to Lifetime Homes standards.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sophia Taha .