Liverpool & Merseyside

Council Watch

What our councils decide, what they spend and what they plan to build. Our reporting on Liverpool City Council and the wider city region in one place, with guides to how it all works and links to the official records so you can check them yourself.

Latest report: 19 Oct 2026

Latest council news

Development

Anfield's Breck Road Library Could Become a Betting Shop

Breck Road Library in Anfield has been shut since October 2025. Boylesports now wants part of the building for a betting shop. Here's what's planned.

19 Oct 2026 · 5 min read

Development

£800,000 for Birkenhead's Duke Street: What's Planned and Where the Money Goes

Wirral Council has approved £800,000 for Duke Street in Birkenhead. It pays for designs, not building work, which is put at £3m to £8m and not yet funded.

18 Oct 2026 · 5 min read

Development

Bootle Golf Course £20m Plan: What's Proposed and What It Means for Public Golf

Victor Anichebe's Lumira Group says it has lodged a £20m hotel, padel and clubhouse plan at Bootle Golf Course. What's on Sefton's planning register so far.

18 Oct 2026 · 6 min read

Civic

Why You Should Care About Speke’s Missing Park and Liverpool City Council’s Missing Answers

Liverpool City Council put a new park in Speke on paper in 2000. Over 25 years on, residents are still asking what happened to it and where the paperwork went.

8 Oct 2026 · 11 min read

Civic

Liverpool Parking Charges Compared With Other UK Cities: What the 11pm Policy Raises and Who Pays

Liverpool charges for city-centre parking until 11pm. We compare other UK cities and scrutinise the council's £1.1m revenue estimate and evidence.

7 Oct 2026 · 17 min read

Development

Liverpool's Plan for 2043 Closes Tonight: What It Could Mean for Your Street

Liverpool's Local Plan consultation closes at midnight tonight. See what the 2043 plan proposes for housing, HMOs, takeaways, trees and development.

30 Sep 2026 · 11 min read

Civic

Liverpool approves taxi licensing changes with new QR feedback system

Liverpool approves taxi licensing changes including QR feedback in licensed vehicles. How complaints work and how to identify Merseyside taxi plates.

24 Sep 2026 · 7 min read

Civic

Colomendy: A Possible Final Goodbye

Colomendy gave 350,000 Merseyside pupils a week in North Wales across 87 years. The operator collapsed in 2025 and the council is now selling the site.

19 Sep 2026 · 9 min read

Transport

Sandhills Station and Everton's New Stadium: Why the Matchday Transport Fix Is Still Being Reworked

Liverpool councillors have deferred the latest Sandhills station upgrade. What Merseytravel wants to change, what it will not fix and what happens next.

2 Sep 2026 · 9 min read

Development

St John's Beacon: What Happens Next for Liverpool's Radio City Tower?

St John's Beacon remains closed after Radio City left. Here is what Liverpool's 2026 planning applications and operator search mean for the tower.

30 Aug 2026 · 7 min read

Civic

Lark Lane Redevelopment: £1m Secured, Still No Timetable

A million pounds was secured to redesign Lark Lane in January 2024. Thirty-one months on there is no published scheme, budget or start date. What is confirmed.

26 Aug 2026 · 7 min read