Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee update, January 2026

A new Wirral Housing Strategy is among the items set to be considered by councillors this month.

Members of Wirral Council’s Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee will be presented with the new Housing Strategy covering the period 2026 – 2031 when they meet on Monday January 19.

This is the first meeting of the Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee in 2026. In addition to their usual business overseeing and scrutinising council service delivery the committee meetings over the coming months will also be focusing additional attention on the council’s budget and how each part of the authority can contribute the addressing the anticipated budget gap for 2026-27 financial year.

The Housing Strategy was developed with input from a wide variety of teams within the authority as well as key housing partner agencies and if approved will set the strategic context for the Council to develop key actions and improve the quality, supply, and affordability of housing in the borough.

More details of this item can be found at item 6 on the agenda here.

Councillors on the committee will also be asked to approve the proposed revision to the Council’s Housing and Regeneration Assistance Policy

The Council has a Housing and Regeneration Assistance Policy to allow the provision of assistance, including grants and loans and as with any policy, it is considered best practice to review, monitor and update the policy reflecting changes in local circumstances, need, service demands and government policy.

The proposed changes include:

• Discretionary Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) Top-Up – revised thresholds for financial support where mandatory DFG funding is insufficient, with new conditions including loans, Independent Financial Advisor (IFA) checks, and valuation requirements
• Revised financial thresholds for mean testing of Time Critical Adaptations Grant above £30,000 – Rapid help for residents with end-of-life or urgent medical needs to enable safe hospital discharge or to remain at home.

Overall, the proposed changes are intended to expand financial support options, clarify eligibility, introduce new safeguards (IFA/valuations), and add provisions for urgent or complex cases.

Further details of the proposed changes can be found on the meeting agenda at item 7.

The committee will also be asked to endorse the Local Nature Recovery Strategy for the Liverpool City Region, prepared by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

Local Nature Recovery Strategies are locally led strategies that identify constraints, opportunities and priorities for nature recovery. It is Item 8 on the committee agenda.

Also due to be considered by the committee is regeneration in Liscard and members will be asked to authorise the delivery of the Liscard Regeneration Programme.

The proposed programme includes a Property and Neighbourhood Improvement Scheme, procurement process for the appointment of a development partner to deliver housing on Seaview Road car park, plus using the funding to deliver a capital community grant scheme for local people, alongside exploring options to provide a community hub.