Can transformation of St Helens bring confidence back?

St Helens town centre is undergoing monumental change.

About £80m has been spent on a revamp which includes demolishing the 40-year-old Hardshaw shopping centre to make way for a major new development.

When work has been completed there will be a hotel, new market hall, 65 new homes, shops, an extended bus station linked to the railway station, and new public spaces.

For several of the people the BBC spoke to ahead of the local elections on 7 May, the change is desperately needed.

"It's challenging at the moment, especially for independents and smaller businesses that might not have the backup of a larger chain," said Nik Lowe, manager of the Book Stops book shop in Market Street.

"The cost of living is obviously affecting everything, so whether it's business rates, whether it's electricity prices, gas prices, rent.

"Everything's going up and to not have people's disposable income going up in line with it means that they'll cut back on what they see as non-essential purchases."

He added: "People revert to convenience when possible as well so if you can get all your stuff from a supermarket or if you go to a retail park where there's free parking then people are going to head there and probably not take the trip out into the town centre like they used to."

Lowe, whose shop is part of a Charitable Community Benefit Society, said that while some businesses were struggling- there was reason for a degree of optimism with the huge regeneration project dominating St Helens town centre.

"Hopefully when that's completed that will springboard some more investments and hopefully get a bit more footfall into the town," he said.

But for Lowe, a message of confidence was also vital.

"I think there's a difference between what people see online and what people see physically," he said.

"Customers who come in on the street, the people who come in here, they love what we're doing and they want more things like this.

"So, you know, this is a proof of concept that small independents can work.

"Sometimes it's just about finding the business model that's right for you and then the narrative as well to be able to tell the public to be able to come in."

Others viewed the offering in St Helens with more cynicism.

For Graham Rudge, 53, the town centre has seen a long and steady decline.

"Back in the 90s it was bustling," he said.

"We used to have a fountain and everything, Hardshaw Centre behind us.

"People used to meet up, go to shops. Now, it's just a place you pass through really. It's like Windy City. You see the homeless and there's not much here apart from the odd busker, it's sad."

In an online website dedicated to the redevelopment of the town centre, St Helens Council described it as a "once- in-a-life-time" opportunity.

It said: "We want our town centre to be child and family-friendly, safe and sustainable thriving places for local businesses, shoppers, visitors, and residents, and that's what our plans will help to deliver."

Elsewhere, complaints were raised about the town's road surfaces and the town's specialist education provision.

Rachel Wilson, 39, who volunteers at a community coffee drop-in session, said one of her biggest concerns had been the provision of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP) for children - like her own - with additional needs.

"I know from personal experience that when I have tried to contact the council, local MPs, they're not equipped, they haven't got the knowledge," she said.

"This is, you know, it's a nationwide thing but they're not equipped and it's almost like our children don't matter.

"My child is in the wrong setting and if he's not able to find another setting we potentially may have to go private, but even when we've looked at private schools -they're not equipped for children like my child."

The BBC has asked the council for a response.

Dawn Woods, 50, who helps to run the cafe - which aims to help tackle loneliness - spoke outside St Helens Parish Church in the centre of town.

"The roads are just horrendous," she said.

"You can't go down a road without hitting a hole, the Chain Lane area, so Blackbrook, Haresfinch. That area is terrible."

When the BBC asked about the situation on the area's roads, St Helens Council said it was delivering a "record" £17m Highways, Capital and Network programme,

"The programme includes a package of 17 key carriageway resurfacing schemes across all wards in the borough, delivering four miles of road resurfacing," a spokesperson added.

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