On-site at East Float

YM visited House by Urban Splash’s exciting new development at Wirral Waters for an in-depth chat with the firm’s director of development, Simon Humphreys

FOR URBAN SPLASH, a company that made its name repurposing unloved spaces throughout the North, taking on the challenge of transforming a forgotten piece of Wirral dockland into a thriving new community made perfect sense.

Located within the multi-billion pound Wirral Waters regeneration project, East Float will be a collection of around 350 modern homes – created in joint partnership between House by Urban Splash and Peel L&P with support from Homes England and Wirral Council.

Much like Liverpool’s Ropewalks, an area revitalised by Urban Splash, the Wirral Waters’ vision is to take unloved and unused post-industrial land and buildings, and repurpose them for a viable future.

“Ropewalks used the tight grain of the streetscape and the redevelopment of the heritage buildings to turn the tide where Wirral Waters builds on the incredible dock basins and quayside, with the views into and out of the site and the connections to the water, to transform,” explains Simon Humphreys, director of development for Urban Splash.

“Wirral Waters is helping to support the emerging view that Wirral should concentrate its development in and around Birkenhead, and reuse its many derelict sites.

“Wirral has many very special attributes which should make it attractive in the marketplace. The old strapline of the ‘Leisure Peninsula’ still rings true with almost uninterrupted access to the coastline from Birkenhead to Burton Marshes (and through lockdown my family walked it all!).

“Focussing on brownfield development and improving connectivity within Birkenhead and to the wider Wirral and all it has to offer will provide the best outcomes for people looking to settle and remain here.”

Wirral Waters is predominantly arranged around two very large working dock spaces – East Float and West Float. East Float is the main residential neighbourhood and West Float will provide space for business and industry.

The whole dock system will remain operational once development work is completed, so residents can expect the regular sight of ships slipping past their front windows.

Built using a range of modern methods of construction (MMC’s), the first modular houses are set to arrive at East Float this month. Town House and Row House house-types, which form the scheme’s first phase, are being built using closed panel timber frames at House by Urban Splash’s modular factory in Alfreton.

The panels are assembled into single-storey pods, with floors, ceiling and wall panels that then run down a fit-out line where windows, wall and floor finishes, bathrooms, kitchens, electrics and lighting are installed before delivery to East Float.

Each house is then assembled on-site from these pods – a two-storey home consists of two pods and a three-storey home of three. Depending on accessibility and site conditions, Simon expects the team will be able to manage six to nine lifts per day (two or three three-storey homes), meaning the dockside plot will transform rather quickly.

 

 

Within each house-type there are a range of different internal layouts to choose from, as Simon explains. “In Town House, for example, the main living and kitchen space can be on the ground floor, linking with the terrace, or located on the top floor to get those great views of the River Mersey and Liverpool skyline on one side, and Bidston Hill and the Welsh hills on the other.

Each floor has three potential layouts to provide everything from a single open-plan space to family bathrooms, en suite bedrooms and even a whole floor master suite. In order to provide opportunities for as many customers as possible, there will eventually be four distinct house-types available at East Float – Row House (available in two, two-and-a-half and three-storey types), Town House, the award-winning signature home design, and 2 apartment types named Mansion House and Corner House.

“We don’t want to duplicate and hopefully this will mean there is something for everybody at Wirral Waters. The best places encourage diversity rather than put up barriers,” says Simon.

Putting up barriers is not something Simon and Urban Splash wants to do at East Float. The site will have significant public areas at either end, providing green and play space which in turn connects to quaysides that are open to all.

The aspiration is to create the right level of privacy and security for the new homeowners, without it being a gated community, and still open up the dockside to the wider community.

Aside from the ingenious construction methods being employed at East Float, and the flexibility of its housing offering, Simon is particularly proud of the development’s green credentials.

 

 

“The most recent IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report made it very clear that we all have a role to play in driving down emissions, and that we need to do that rather quickly to avoid catastrophic warming,” he says.

“To better understand what role House by Urban Splash can play in dramatically reducing emissions we have assessed our Town House to use as our benchmark or starting point.

“The outcome was a bit of a surprise. Whilst we are striving to make good decisions in this area all of the time, we know that the very act of making things uses both material and energy resources.

“What we can say is that Town House exceeds all current industry carbon reduction targets, is over 50% more energy efficient than a typical new build home and is close to being zero carbon ready.”

Embodied carbon emissions, those used in creating Town House in the first place, are also considerably lower than what is currently expected from the industry. House by Urban Splash has achieved this through a combination of ‘high-performing envelopes’ with significant levels of insulation reducing the heating load, the use of air source heat pumps to meet the hot water demand, and utilising responsibly sourced materials for the build.

And as the national grid increasingly decarbonises, with gas and coal-fired power stations going offline, House by Urban Splash has committed to powering all the homes with electricity – an increasingly sustainable source of energy.

Sustainability, flexibility and desirability – an exciting new neighbourhood is in the making on the Mersey’s Left Bank.

CONSIDERING A MOVE TO EAST FLOAT?

 

From Woodside Ferry Village to a drive-in cinema – here are some of the neighbourhood highlights…

JD AERIAL FITNESS ACADEMY

At JD Aerial Fitness Academy, you can get fit the fun way. The team here – who, collectively, have more than 15 years of professional performing experience – teach aerial arts to people of all ages and experience levels. They aim to boost health and well-being through creativity and work to help students use aerial fitness to reduce anxiety, depression and low self-esteem. The studio offers aerial hammock, silks and hoop classes, pole fitness, flexibility contortion classes, and children’s circus sessions.

WOODSIDE FERRY VILLAGE

Birkenhead is home to Woodside Ferry Village, a waterside food hall that proudly celebrates local independent eateries. It currently has eight food and drinks vendors for visitors to enjoy – including Low Slow & Dough (Mexican), Little Napoli (Italian), Bamboo Thai (Thai), HAKU (Japanese), Caffe Cream (ice cream and hot drinks), Scooby’s (American), PAUSHA (wine and cocktails) and Tipsy Duck (beers, spirits, and soft drinks).

GLEN AFFRIC BREWERY

The Glen Affric Brewery is an award-winning craft brewery that produces an eclectic range of beers for the modern palate. New releases include a mango session IPA, a piña colada pale ale, and a rhubarb and custard ale. The popular brewery offers indoor and outdoor seating too. Cheers to that!

WOODSIDE DRIVE-IN CINEMA

Nearby your new home at East Float, Wirral Waters, you’ll find Woodside Drive-In Cinema. The outdoor cinema shows a good range of films from musicals like Grease, family favourites like Moana or (if you’re up to it) classic horrors including Silence of the Lambs.

THE SOCCER DOME

If you have any football fanatics in your household, you’ll be pleased to find The Soccer Dome just down the street from your new East Float home. This sports complex offers coaching, holds a number of leagues, children’s parties, and walking football sessions.

WILLIAMSON ART GALLERY & MUSEUM

Williamson Art Gallery & Museum, Birkenhead, is one of Wirral’s hidden gems. Here you’ll find masterpieces, ceramics, sculptures, and a Della Robbia Pottery collection.

TATE LIVERPOOL

When you move to East Float, after a scenic ferry ride across the river, you’ll stumble upon a world-class art gallery. Tate Liverpool is situated on the Royal Albert Dock. Entry remains free for everyone (with a charge for exhibitions).

For more information about East Float or to make an appointment to visit the on-site sales pavilion, head to housebyurbansplash.co.uk