Local wins
Tunnel Rd/Wavertree Road Crossing Campaign - We have won this campaign! Liverpool City Council has secured the funding, approximately £1.5 million, and following further visits to the junction, declared it a number one priority. Funds have been released for the design phase, which will be followed by consultation, finance and procurement processes. Work will start in 2028 but the Council are open to meeting with us to discuss interim options to make it safe. The Leader of Liverpool City Council has said this is down to Liverpool Citizens.
Neighbourhood Safety in Everton - On Valentine's Day 2025, 30 people from across the Chapter and Liverpool City Council did a walk around Everton Ward with the Leader of the Council. As a result of which the following improvements have been made:
- Installation of street lighting
- Clearing fly tipping sites
- Cutting back all the overgrowth in the local park
- Making plans for a nature garden
- Improving park lighting and lighting in the multi-use game area
- Action days on safety with the local police have been held
- Children and young people being involved in consultation about new play equipment for the local park.
These changes have had a real impact for people in the area. Young people can now leave the youth club in the dark evenings feeling safe, students and local people can cycle across the park along a cycle path that now has glow in the dark lights, something that has made a big difference for those having to cross the park in the dark after work.
The full article can be read here: www.citizensuk.org/chapters/liverpool-citizens/liverpool-news/a-win-for-everton/
Bus route story
Specialist hospital works with community partners to improve bus service in local area
Staff from The Walton Centre have been working with Arriva to improve transport links to the hospital and the surrounding area, through their membership of Liverpool Citizens.
The Trust was a founding member of Liverpool Citizens (part of Citizens UK), which is a broad-based community alliance uniting diverse local organisations across education, health, housing, faith, community and charitable sectors to empower local communities to make sustainable change. Through listening to our local staff, issues with bus services in the Fazakerley area, where the hospital is located, were identified. The Trust has been leading work to address the issues and deliver improvements alongside the bus operator Arriva.
The Walton Centre's Neuromodulation Co-ordinator, Jonathan Bygroves, has been a key member of staff supporting these efforts. He said: “Over the years, getting the 62 bus to work has always been more stressful and difficult than should have been. When we began working with Liverpool Citizens, I knew this was something we could address together. My colleague Frank Burns and I quickly established that the bus route was limited and unreliable for both staff and patients, which was having a sizeable impact.”
Issues reported by staff and patients included delays, last minute cancellations, and buses too small to accommodate the number of passengers. These issues were put to Arriva at the Founding Assembly of Liverpool Citizens. After subsequent feedback sessions and discussions with Arriva were held, a number of small changes were made to the service, correcting the issues identified.
Jonathan added: “Through Liverpool Citizens, we were able to work with Arriva on the problems we were facing. In the first year we made huge strides and, I think, improved the service on offer.”
Walton Centre staff involved in Liverpool Citizens now have an ongoing relationship with the bus operator, which is leading to further improvements, in particular piloting a new version of their app, which should include better real-time information for passengers.
The Walton Centre's Chief Operating Officer Gary Price said: “It's a testament to our hardworking staff involved in Liverpool Citizens that they have been able to improve the service for our staff and patients so dramatically. Often, we complain about the things that are negatively impacting our lives, but rarely act on it, so it's excellent to see our staff working together with the community to make changes.”
The Trust's Interim Chief People Officer, Jane Mullin, added: “I am proud of the achievements of The Walton Centre staff involved in Liverpool Citizens; they have been able to influence by hard work and dedication an improvement in the service for our staff and patients.”
Tom Sunley, operations director for Arriva Merseyside said: “Working closely with The Walton Centre and Liverpool Citizens has been a brilliant example of what can happen when we all talk to each other. We've been able to respond directly to feedback and make meaningful improvements to services in the Fazakerley area for the people who rely on our services every day.
“We know how important reliable transport is for both staff and patients and these changes are already helping to make journeys simpler and more dependable. We'll continue to work together to build on this and deliver further improvements where we can so we can ensure our services support staff, patients and the wider community.”
For more information on Liverpool Citizens and the work it does, go to: https://www.citizensuk.org/chapters/liverpool-citizens/
Temporary accommodation
For children in temporary accommodation, as part of a pilot with Arriva Travel 200 free weekly travel passes (£5,500 value) through our campaign with Liverpool City Council and the Combined Authority.
