Southport’s historic Town Hall gardens space will undergo its most significant regeneration ever, creating a family-friendly, child-orientated, and safe open-air performance and gathering space as a lasting tribute to the people of the town.
The transformation is being led by the families of Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice Da Silva Aguiar, and Bebe King, whose shared love of dance, music and the arts has inspired a vision for a new town square that will be an inclusive community focussed events space in the heart of Southport Town Centre.
The Town Hall gardens space has long been an integral part of Southport’s rich history, but in 2024 it took on new meaning as a place of unity, healing, hope and remembrance.
Thousands gathered there for a community vigil and used it as a place to leave tributes and flowers for the victims of the tragedy, demonstrating the community’s strength in adversity.
Their families envision the Town Hall gardens space as a safe and joyful place, full of energy and creative expression, particularly for Southport’s younger generations.
Ahead of the full-scale transformation, temporary improvements have been made to the Town Hall Gardens space to enhance its appearance and atmosphere. Floral planters were installed earlier this year to bring colour and vibrancy to the area during the Spring and Summer of 2025, creating a welcoming and uplifting space for visitors and residents alike, before works commence on the space in due course.
The Southport Town Hall Gardens project is a transformative regeneration initiative that maximises the incredible potential of the public realm space between Lord Street and The Atkinson.
By undergoing a significant transformation the space, currently known as the Town Hall Gardens, will double in size to become a welcoming, accessible civic square that is also a flexible event-friendly space in the town centre. These events will range from markets to music concerts, dance festivals to Christmas activities, and will take place all year round.
The Town Hall gardens form the very centre of Southport. Throughout its existence the area has been transformed multiple times with different architecture, flora, water features, hoardings and more.
In its current form the area is showing considerable signs of wear and needs significant refurbishment, with broken paving and balustrades in visible need of repair. There are two small but vacant pavilion buildings as well as a storage unit and a disused underground space.
There is also a fountain, dedicated to Princess Diana, and a series of benches and raised beds which are tended to by the Lord Street In Bloom Volunteers.
The Town Hall gardens has been a focal point of Southport for generations and has been a natural gathering place for historic announcements, Royal visits and small-scale events, such as pop-up markets.
While the area has historic and cultural relevance, following the tragedy of July 2024, the gardens took on arguably its most significant role in its history. The space emerged as a natural place of public gathering, grief, and strength and was a visual symbol of the town’s desire to stand by the families of Alice da Silva Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Stancombe who tragically lost their lives. It also became a beacon of support and unity for those injured in the tragedy and images of the gardens, awash with tributes, were broadcast around the world.
It was that showing of unity and togetherness that inspired the families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie to approach both Sefton Council and Central Government to see what they could do to pay tribute to everyone in the town and say ‘thank you’ for their support at what was an unimaginably difficult time.
The legacy project came from and is led by the families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie. It is their project to say ‘thank you’ to the people of Southport.
Sefton Council, as the landowner, will act as the accountable body for the project throughout its development and a Project Management Board, led by an independent chair, will oversee the delivery of it.
It is being co-designed with engagement and consultation from those directly affected by the tragedy, the local communities, businesses and cultural partners.
Specific costs will be finalised in due course but significant early-stage input has identified that the project, to be delivered to a high standard in line with the wishes of the families, would cost circa £10 million.
This funding has been confirmed and will come from three different sources. Central Government (The UK Government) has pledged £5 million while Sefton Council will give £2.5 million. In addition, £2.5 million will come from Councils in the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority including Liverpool, St Helens, Knowsley, Halton and Wirral.
Once completed Sefton Council, as the landowner, will have responsibility for ongoing maintenance of the space.
There are no proposals to demolish heritage buildings like the Town Hall, The Atkinson, Cambridge Arcade and Crown Buildings, which will all remain. However in order to maximise the potential of the space, consideration is being given to the removal of the two vacant pavilion buildings (formerly a bar and restaurant) and the storage unit. The future of the existing fountain and balustrades will also be assessed.
The aim is to create a unified space that is sympathetic to its existing civic surroundings, while maximising the area available for events, gatherings, shows and more with additional infrastructure and provision to support events of a medium and large scale.
It will be child-friendly and family-focused, and this will be the key consideration in design development.
The conservation of the town’s heritage is central to this scheme. The setting of the listed Southport Town Hall, Atkinson and Cambridge Hall is being enhanced by this project. All designs are subject to complete heritage impact assessments and will align with Southport’s Townscape Heritage Project and national guidance from Historic England plus National Planning Frameworks.
Only one listed outbuilding, a former deck chair storage unit adjacent to the Town Hall – is proposed to be removed.
KKA Ltd, a firm of architects, is leading the concept design stage with the three families. Elsie Stancombe’s uncle is an architect for KKA and he has personally designed the concept.
Procurement will be led by Sefton Council, and will follow all relevant procedures in line with transparency and best value principles. Opportunities for local contractors and suppliers will be prioritised wherever possible.
As Sefton Council is the accountable public body, all major milestones will be published, consulted on and subject to scrutiny. Community engagement is integral.
Yes, which allows for additional scrutiny and transparency. The project will undergo formal planning and heritage approvals, including standard public consultation. Sefton’s Planning Committee, which acts independently of Sefton Council, will determine the final scheme based on policy, public input and expert advice.
Tree retention and planting are part of the early-stage strategy. While some reconfiguration may be necessary, new trees and biodiversity gains will significantly outweigh any perceived losses, resulting in the space gaining more trees rather than losing them. The gardens are central to the families’ vision.
You may have heard people refer to the area as the Princess Diana Gardens but this is incorrect . The gardens is however host to a fountain which was installed in memory of Princess Diana following her death in 1997.
The fountain incurs significant maintenance costs and suffers from repeated technical issues, while portions of the fountain’s surrounds are damaged or broken.
As part of the proposals, in order to maximise the potential space of the new gardens, consideration is being given to the fountain being removed. The families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie have met with both His Majesty King Charles III and Prince William in person, who have both given their full support to the proposals. A new fountain (or fountains) may form part of the new design.
Detailed design and public consultation will take place through the latter part of 2025. Subject to planning and heritage approvals, our aim is for site works to begin in 2026, with completion aimed for 2027.
Community engagement opportunities will be publicised via Sefton Council platforms in due course. Drop-ins, surveys and engagement with schools will ensure a wide range of voices shape the future of this project.
Southport Town Hall, The Atkinson and Cambridge Hall remain key civic and cultural anchors. This project strengthens their setting, use, and visibility, helping secure their long-term future as active, accessible, community-first buildings.
As previously stated this is a project led by the families who wanted to do something to thank the communities of Southport and their ongoing support of all those affected by the events of 2024.
The Town Hall gardens played a significant role at that time and, prior to that, was a space (alongside the Atkinson) much loved by Alice, Bebe and Elsie, so the area carries an incredible significance.
This is one of a number of ways Sefton Council is committed to helping everyone who was directly affected by the events of 2024 and we continue to offer significant support to all those who ask or need it.
Funding was given by Central Government, Sefton Council and the Liverpool City Region specifically for this project and it cannot be spent elsewhere.
Government’s recent announcement of a Growth Mission Fund for projects such as the refurbishment of Southport Pier will ensure that this project proceeds as well, and a comprehensive background and guide to the Southport Pier project can be found here.
Access and mobility remain key considerations and future limited vehicle provision will be vital to ensuring this is a child friendly, family focussed space.
While wider parking and vehicle access will be reviewed to prioritise pedestrian flow and safety, appropriate provision for The Atkinson and Southport Town Hall will need to be taken into consideration.
This can be reviewed further during the consultation and engagement period.
No. This is a legacy project designed to be a ‘Thank You’ to the people of Southport. It will be a space for play, joy, and community, inspired by the strength shown in moments of tragedy. Discussions relating to any future memorialisation elsewhere are, understandably, incredibly personal and these conversations are ongoing.
Public feedback will continue to shape the future of this project. An official consultation phase will launch late this year (2025). Stakeholder engagement, planning submission, funding confirmation and enabling works will follow, with community updates at each milestone.
One of the best examples to illustrate this ambitious legacy project is the Piece Hall, Halifax. Since reopening in 2017 the site has welcomed more than 12 million visitors, equating to an annual footfall of around 3 million. Events in the space range from major music concerts to arts, crafts, and community workshops, with significant focus on events for schoolchildren.
If you are able to offer professional support or would like to find out more about how to get involved with the regeneration project please email southportrecoveryteam@sefton.gov.uk