“They’re talking as if all our homes are falling apart”

A huge regeneration project aimed at improving housing in Blackpool’s Revoe area took a major step forward today – but not everyone is welcoming it.

Some residents are so opposed to the plans that they have staged placard-waving protests to try and get it stopped, even interrupting a council meeting.

This first stage of the wider Blackpool Central Housing Regeneration Area Framework is a hybrid development combining the demolition of up to 300 existing homes with the building of “new neighbourhood” of 230 energy-efficient homes.

Residents (from left )Anna Penfold, John Dacks and Michael Edge are opposed to plans to knock down hnmes off Central Drive | Local Democracy Reporting Service | Local Democracy Reporting Service

placeholder image — Residents (from left )Anna Penfold, John Dacks and Michael Edge are opposed to plans to knock down hnmes off Central Drive | Local Democracy Reporting Service | Local Democracy Reporting Service

The scheme has received £90.4million of government funding, secured in March 2024 through Homes England, enabling the council to intervene at a scale that would not otherwise be possible.

Blackpool Council submitted the plans today, after a consultation period, with the application expected to go before the authority’s planning committee at some future point.

The project, earmarked for Central Drive and a number of streets off it, includes new shops, green spaces, community facilities and flexible workspaces.

With Revoe acknowledged as one of the most deprived areas in the country, Blackpool Council says the scheme is a golden opportunity to put right an area it says is blighted by poor housing and the problems associated with it,

But far from welcoming the project, there is a mixture of resentment and concern about it from a number of the residents who actually live there.

Blackpool Council issue an artists impression of how the neighbourhood around Central Drive could look after transformation | Blackpool Council

Many of them do not want their homes to be bulldozed and feel the council should use the funds to improve existing homes.

These residents, supported by members of community union group Acorn, have vowed to fight it.

Blackpool Council has submitted plans for major redevelopment of the town's Revoe area - but not everyone has welcomed it. | National World/Third party

What objecter says

Anna Penfold, 41, of Rydal Avenue, who is also a member of the community union, Acorn. She said: “I definitely do not want this. Me and my husband want to keep our home and we want to keep this community together.

“They’re talking as if all our homes are falling apart, but if you saw our house you’d see there was no damp and no need to knock it down.

“This is our own home, we are still paying off the mortgage but it is ours. They are throwing us out and the alternative is to go and live in one of those new toy boxes they want to build, which probably won’t last 20 years.

“The way this will work out, it will financially ruin us. With the £80,000 they are offering us, we will never be able to afford a like-for like house.

“We feel this is all wrong and that the council are doing this for their benefit and not for the people who are having to live it, the residents themselves. The council isn’t listening and doesn’t care.”

Blackpool Council issue an artists impression of how Central Drive could look with Blackpool Tower in the background after the trannsformation | Blackpool Council

She added: “We all need some TLC and of course Revoe needs regeneration. We just don’t want it to be like this, forcing demolition on people who don’t want it, causing them stress and putting a strain on their mental health.”

As well as Acorn, the residents have also been supported by the Rev Matthew Lockwood, leader of the Beacon Church on Reads Avenue.

He has helped organise meetings of community group Revoe Together and says that while the area does desperately need regeneration, many residents feel that knocking down homes is not the answer.

He previously stated: “I think a much better idea would have been to use the money to actually improve the homes that are there, rather than undertake a full scale demolition exercise. It feels like a mass dispersion of vulnerable people.”

If approved, demolition work would begin in phases, with new homes and public spaces delivered over several years.

Blackpool Council issue an artists impression of how Central Drive could look after the major transformation investment. Revoe Library in is the background | Blackpool Council

What Council Leader says

Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “The Revoe regeneration programme is about more than just repairing Central Drive, but renewal of it back to its heyday.

“It is a once in a generation chance to create more green spaces to play in, affordable homes run by housing associations rather than private landlords, and bring a community feel back to the area to make it one of the more desirable neighbourhoods in Blackpool.

“It’s absolutely not lost on us that we are talking about people’s homes and we’re very conscious that for tenants and local residents this kind of change will be of great concern. There is support in place for anybody who needs it to find a new home.

“We are undertaking our biggest engagement project to date for this programme

“We have had council teams on the ground in Revoe for the best part of a year now. They have knocked on the door of all affected homes at least three times each and we’ve held dozens of drop in sessions.

“Our teams, including support workers and financial advisors, continue to be based at the community centre, working to advise and support people.