Wallasey and Birkenhead town halls could be marketed
Wirral Council is taking significant steps to improve the way it manages the land and buildings it owns.
It follows a detailed review of the local authority’s assets, the continued rollout of the Corporate Landlord Model (CLM) and development of an action plan to improve the council’s management of its estate.
As part of this the council is set to explore whether there is potential market interest in Birkenhead Town Hall and Wallasey Town Hall and assess the viability of options for the historic buildings.
A report submitted to the Policy and Resources Committee, due to meet on Wednesday March 11, recommends launching a market testing exercise for both town halls as part of a wider review of properties owned by the council.
The aim is to better understand the options for the two listed buildings. Any decision on the future for the assets would have to be presented at a future meeting of the committee.
The report outlines the financial implications of retaining the buildings, which require considerable investment in ongoing maintenance.
A separate report on CLM describes how responsibility for the management and maintenance of sites is being transferred from individual council departments to become a centralised function of the council.
A well run estate will minimise the number of assets required while also making better use of buildings and improving operational efficiency. Work is already underway to rationalise the estate, which will generate budgeted savings and reduce long term maintenance and operational costs.
Additional resources to strengthen the council’s approach to managing its estate will be supported by a £1 million investment in expanding the asset management service as the Corporate Landlord Model is fully implemented.
The review of the council’s estate has revealed that the overall condition of many buildings is poor, with 1,103 issues, ranging from minor to more significant, relating to building condition identified so far. Almost half of these have already been addressed, prioritising the most urgent cases.
The report on the town halls also highlights the financial implications of retaining those buildings, which require considerable investment in ongoing maintenance.
To fund works required by both town halls the report says borrowing would be necessary. This would cost the council £700,000 a year, over an expected 50 year period, for repaying the principal and interest – and amounting to a total cost of £35 million over that period.
For more details see Policy and Resources Committee - Wednesday, 11th March 2026 6.00 p.m.
