BN4108_Case_Study_Report_Silvia_Rossi_Final.docx

UCLAN, MSc Building Conservation and Regeneration BN4108 Urban Regeneration
Silvia Rossi, G20635985, Assignment 2: Regeneration Case Study Report, November 2015 p. 1 / 18
ASSIGNMENT 2
Regeneration Case Study Report:
Morecambe’s West End
Figure 1: West End Road, Morecambe (Source: LCC, 2009, Planning and Regeneration)

1. INTRODUCTION
The decline of the domestic seaside tourist industry during the second half of
the 20th
century trapped many English coastal towns in a self-reinforcing cycle
of unemployment, physical decay, housing market imbalances and
concentrations of deprived and vulnerable households.... thus undermining the
viability of the local economy (Rickey and Houghton, 2009 p.46).
Since 2002, Morecambe has been one of Lancaster District Council’s
regeneration priority (LCC, n.d.a) and the 2008 Council’s Core Strategy
identified the centre of Morecambe as a ‘sub-regional Regeneration Priority
Area’ (LCC, 2008). Since 2003, various interventions, including two
Townscape Heritage Initiatives, have been undertaken to develop a modern
visitor offer based on its outstanding Promenade, its built heritage, its natural
surroundings and its iconic seafront buildings (LCC, 2008, section 5).
The simultaneous regeneration of the housing area of the West End, to the south
west of the town centre, was recognised as crucial to the sustainable
regeneration of the resort of Morecambe (LCC, n.d.b) leading to the creation of
the West End Masterplan, targeted – among other things - at reducing and
controlling the over-supply of poor quality Houses in Multiple Occupation
(HMOs) (LCC, n.d.a).
2. THE PURPOSE OF REGENERATION
‘Urban regeneration’ is, as currently understood, a multi-purpose activity aimed
at improving interrelated socio-cultural, economic and physical/environmental
conditions in urban areas affected by deprivation and decline (Tallon, 2013). By
combining all these elements better places are created, narrowing the gap
between struggling and successful areas (LCC, 2008, section 5). So, although
the actions of urban regeneration are intended to manifest in physical changes to
the nature of a place (Turok, 2005 in Tallon, 2013), the underlying
transformations, for successful and lasting results, must concern ‘people’ and

‘business’. Community participation is also encouraged by contemporary
policies and practices, which envisage creating synergies between public,
private sector and voluntary sectors in various forms of partnership.
The wide-ranging concerns of regeneration can be grouped under the four
dimensions identified above, as described by Tallon (2013) in Table 1.
Table 1: Interconnected approaches to Urban Regeneration (Source: Tallon, 2013)
Not surprisingly regeneration is a complex endeavour and a long-term process,
where patience is needed. However, this is also a problem given short-term
property perspectives [David Taylor in RegenerateLive (2006)].
3. THE REGENERATION AREA AND ITS SPECIFIC PROBLEMS
Figure 2: Map of Lancashire with close-up on Morecambe’s location (Sources: Wikipedia &Weather-
Forecast.com)

The maps in Figure 2 show the position of Morecambe (district of Lancaster), in
north Lancashire, in the North-West of England. The map in Figure 3 shows the
relative position of the West End Regeneration Area (indicated by the red
boundary of the West End masterplan) to Central Morecambe and to the new
M6 link, due to open early in 2016. White Lund (in/around the red circle area),
to the south-east of the masterplan boundary is one of the key locations for
general employment (LCC, 2008, section 5) in Lancaster District. A number of
elements, therefore, represent economic opportunities for the area, together with
its position open to the view across Morecambe Bay and the presence of the
Promenade.
Figure 3: Annotated map of Morecambe (not in scale) with the West End Regeneration Area, Central
Morecambe, the new M6 link and the employment area of White Lund (Source: OS/Edina Digimap, annotated
by S. Rossi)
However, continuing social, economic and physical deprivation, in common
with other coastal towns, outweigh the economic opportunities outlined above,
putting the West End community in the 10% most disadvantaged when
measured by poverty, unemployment, poor health and low educational

achievements (Lancaster District CVS, 2015 p.10). Also, associated anti-social
behaviour and drug-related crime are at a high level. On the other hand, the
West End is atypical of many coastal communities with a lower average
population age, lower than average house prices – with the potential
disadvantage of holding back investment in the area - and reasonable access to
services (p.11).
A large proportion of the large Victorian seaside terraced houses, constituting
West End’s prevalent housing stock, are highly subdivided into small flats
(HMOs) (LCC, 2012). The increase of this type of accommodation at the lower
end of the rental market has led to a change in the type and tenure of housing
and consequently a change on the demographic profile of the area (p.5).
Despite the area being densely populated (Lancaster District CVS, 2015), it also
has the highest concentration of empty homes (LCC, 2014c) in the District,
generally poorly maintained.
Moreover, the West End’s retail area has an exceptional vacancy rate for shops
for medium sized towns ...in excess of 36% (LCC, 2012 p.10), making for a poor
appearance of many shopping streets (Lancaster District CVS, 2015 p.26). Also
public areas and green spaces are scarce.
4. AIMS, OBJECTIVES & IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SCHEME
The aim of the Council-led Masterplan
for the West End, adopted in 2005, was
to reverse the housing and social
problems identified above by creating
an exceptionally good place to live,
work and play...with a significant
appeal to families (LCC, 2009 p.8).
Figure 4: Three cornered set of principles guiding
the West End Masterplan vision (Source: LCC,
2009)
The guiding principles in Figure 4 were used to establish the approach used to
deliver the vision of a new Morecambe West End (p.8) and to identify some

strategic objectives (in Table 2, page 6) to be used as a basis for identifying and
prioritising the phases of projects delivery illustrated in Figure 5.
Figure 5: West End Masterplan (2005) showing the priority areas for intervention (Source: BDP/ LCC)

Guiding Principles Main Strategic Objectives
1. Perception Increase the attractiveness of the West End for existing
and new long-term residents, with a knock on effect on
overall image
2. Place Diversify the types of housing available
Increase the amount of usable quality open space
Improve the quality of the built environment
Assure the sustainability of local shops though
consolidation and by establishing a niche market identity
3. People Increase the proportion of owner occupiers in order to
improve stability
Table 2: Strategic objectives grouped under relevant guiding principle (Source: Adapted from LCC, 2009, p.7)
The initial strategic objectives outlined in Table 2 were subsequently expanded
to include other socio-economic aspects, thus creating a complex evaluation
matrix (in Appendix) for prioritising actions in the zones of intervention
highlighted in Figure 5. The zones were identified on the basis of a SWOT
analysis i.e. a market assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the area, as
well as the opportunities and threats (LCC, 2009 p.10).
The strategy of the resulting Masterplan shown in Figure 5 was to retain overall
layout of the West End and enhance it by means of remodelling and demolitions
of selected properties, redevelopment of key sites and the improvement of the
public realm (LCC, 2009).
Key elements of the Public Realm Strategy, as illustrated in Figure 6 (page 8),
are: a compact commercial core area, physically and visually connected with the
coast and the Promenade, and an associated internal Living Street; strong
connections with Morecambe Town Centre by reinforcing the important east-
west routes (Promenade/cycle path, coastal road and Living Street); the
retention of the characteristic formal grid-iron street pattern, but providing a
sense of street hierarchy; the provision of Access for All and open spaces
connected along a north-south primary route (LCC, 2009).

Figure 6: West End Masterplan: Public Realm Strategy (Source: LCC, 2009)
Achievements in the first 3 years of the Masterplan included the remodelling of
36 residential properties, facelifts and demolitions in other areas of poor quality
housing (zone 11), the commercial redevelopment of part of zone 1, partial
street improvements in zone 8, the re-design of West End Gardens with a new
build café and work on planning progress for the Housing Exemplar project. As
a result the West End was shown in national statistics to be no longer in the top
1% most deprived communities in the country (Morecambe Town Council, 2014
p.8).
However, the recessionary climate and a new Economic Programme for the
District focussing on the ability of projects/proposals to attract funding,
deliverability issues and prospects for actual implementation (LCC, 2009 p.18)
prompted a review of the Masterplan priorities in 2009. Figure 7 (page 9)
illustrates the new high ranking areas offering the greatest regeneration impact
(p.22) according to new corporate (Core Strategy) and economic assessment
criteria.

Figure 8: Marlborough Rd, terraced
houses before demolition (above) and
new build (below) (Source: LCC,
Regeneration)
Figure 7(below): Revised Masterplan (2009)
with annotations, including boundary of
Cluster of Empty Homes project plan (2012)
(Sources: LCC, 2009 & LCC 2012)
Figure 9(right): Housing exemplar,
Chatsworth Gardens, view of the rear yard
(Source: Placefirst)

Not surprisingly the focus is on economic regeneration with priority to: a)
commercial projects, b) the connections with the town centre and c) selected
housing projects having an impact at strategic level. Bold Street/ Marlborough
Road is an area needing a high level of intervention as it exhibits some of the
poorest quality housing in the district (LCC, 2014a). Figure 8 shows the new
image of Marlborough Road with the new build and Figure 9 shows the final
look of the ongoing project for the Housing Exemplar. For the Council this
presents the opportunity of a change of perception of the West End which
would help to attract new families (LCC, 2014b), and, equally or perhaps more
importantly, to attract further investment.
The LCC (2012) approach for bringing back the empty homes into use, in the
Cluster of Empty Homes bid area identified with a red boundary in Figure 7,
based on a mix of Council-led and developer-led schemes was abandoned in
favour of the latter. In April 2013 the City Council Cabinet considered a
developer’s proposal for refurbishment of Chatsworth Gardens ( Housing
Exemplar) through a managed private market rent tenure model (LCC, 2014b)
and decided that rather than take the risk themselves it would be better to pass
this on to the developer... (Morecambe Town Council, 2014 p.3). The partly
Council funded Chatsworth Gardens scheme - which contained the highest
concentration of Council owned empty homes of the West End regeneration
area (LCC, 2012) – would provide affordable and energy efficient homes in the
West End (LCC, 2014b).
In the meantime the Council has directed some funding to implement a two year
Empty Homes Strategy for the Lancaster District aimed at maximising
opportunities to bring empty properties back into use through a range of
approaches, measures, interventions and enforcement action (LCC, 2014c p.3).

5. EVALUATION OF THE SCHEME
CABE’s guidance for evaluating Masterplan design (Stewart, 2004) and the
four elements of quality of place of CLG (2009 p.12) provide a useful
framework for evaluating the strength and weaknesses of the West End
Masterplan .
Strong points include:
 A clear vision of ‘quality of place’ in relation to housing, workplace and
leisure. These were further developed into interconnected physical,
economic and social objectives - the necessary ‘ingredients’ to achieve
(sustainable) urban regeneration, as seen in section 2.
 The improvement of the quality of the public realm with emphasis on the
existing connections with the town centre as well as within the area.
 A good provision of open/green spaces (in the original scheme), although
an intervention in the main existing park was given a low priority.
 A strategy of enhancement of the housing stock, with demolitions where
necessary, and the retention of the street layout, thus preserving the
character of the West End, dominated by Victorian townhouses.
 A compact core commercial area defining the heart of the scheme.
 The redevelopment of disused sites to provide facilities for leisure and
retail and associated employment opportunities.
 A high quality new housing scheme as a flagship for the area.
The weaknesses, also emphasised by the community consultation response to
the draft Masterplan (LCC, 2004), were:
The absence of provision of additional parking for residents and visitors
(p.6), although this is understandable in view of the aim of reducing
housing density by the demolition/remodelling of HMOs to create single
family dwellings.

The lack of a good range of entertainment facilities for local children and
visitors (LCC, 2004 p.6), although the area has a large number of
underused community venues, which could be made fit for purpose
(Lancaster District CVS, 2015).
The Masterplan was partly implemented, with funding allocated by the Council
and its regeneration partners, but then, in post-recession times, its objectives
were reviewed with a new focus on economic return, thus unbalancing the
original holistic approach.
A recent consultation with the resident community – arguably the main, but
most vulnerable, stakeholder in the Masterplan process –highlighted some
generalised feelings of ‘frustration’ and ‘loss of confidence’ to the slow pace of
regeneration (Lancaster District CVS, 2015 p.21) in the West End. Also, a
number of issues, mainly related to health and wellbeing, cropped up showing
the need to tackle problems in a much more integrated way. Only very recently
has the Council been able to respond to these long-standing issues, with funding
awarded to simultaneously address poor quality housing stock in the private
rental sector and tackle the underlying social and health needs of residents
(DCLG, 2015 p.3). This approach, however, shows that a gap still exists in
practice in the integration of the physical and social dimensions of regeneration.
A focus on ‘social sustainability’, intended as a combination of design of the
physical realm with design of the social world, based on an understanding of
what people need from the places in which they live and work (Woodcraft, 2015
p.133), should be pursued more systematically in regeneration Masterplans.
Little research has so far been conducted on seaside town regeneration in the
UK (Tallon, 2014) but regeneration projects elsewhere in the UK offer some
useful comparisons and lessons. Some of the key aspects of the successful
regeneration of the St Paul’s estate in Cheltenham (Taylor, 2014) - a deprived
and crime-ridden area - are directly relevant to this case-study:

 A partnership approach between different stakeholders including the
Council, Housing Associations, local residents , the police and architects
with the Council giving strong leadership throughout the project;
 Specifically, the early and continuous involvement of residents in the
Masterplan design process to renovate the housing stock and regenerate
the public realm, with training to community representatives to support
their role;
 A holistic approach with innovative design solutions for the new housing
and ‘transformational improvements’ to the retained homes;
 A hub for community-driven activities and a new communal open space;
 The launch of a programme of employment and training initiatives, which
included award-winning initiatives with the young people on the estate
(p.278).
The scheme received a number of awards for the quality of design and the
effective regeneration impact due to the reduction of crime rates and
improvements in house values and mixed tenures (p.275). But the main impact
was to create a sense of pride and ownership across the estate that never existed
before (Taylor, 2014 p.290).
Similarly in the design-led regeneration of the deprived seaside town of
Scarborough community participation was encouraged from the very beginning,
indeed there was the specific requirement that the funding would only be
available if the public was fully involved (Taylor, 2009 p.28). Hall (2009)
recommends that, in today’s economic environment, regeneration projects in
coastal towns should take a long view on change, as well as seeking short-term
wins (p.33). However, engaging and empowering the local community should
be regarded as a key priority and a pre-requisite for success.

6. RECOMMENDED AMENDMENTS TO THE WEST END SCHEME
The scheme could be revised - adopting some of the lessons of the St Paul’s
estate regeneration in Cheltenham and building on the recent community
consultation in the West End - to include a focus on social sustainability, in
partnership both with the local community and with the health authority. Social
inclusion and community cohesion could be promoted by providing an
accessible main community hub in the core area, where a variety of cultural,
educational and recreational activities could run for both adults and young
people, and where a training programme for unemployed people could be
provided. As Hall (2009) suggests this is often an opportunity to create a
significant new civic building (p.33) or – better suited to the Masterplan ethos -
to regenerate a significant empty one. This should run in parallel with the
Council’s recent intervention aimed at the integrated environmental
regeneration of poor housing and early detection and treatment of health issues.
Moreover, the provision of public and green spaces should be made a high
priority in the implementation plan. In particular Regent Park, in zone 6 of the
Masterplan has the potential to be a focal point in the regeneration of the West
End (Lancaster District CVS, 2015 p.23).
7. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Morecambe’s West End can look forward to further significant opportunities for
improvement with various imminent developments in sight. The revised
Masterplan still acts as a focus for regeneration, although restrictions to funding
opportunities mean that only carefully targeted interventions are possible and
that implementation times are likely to be longer.
However, continuing social issues connected with health and wider wellbeing
indicate the need for urgent action, which local government can now provide to
some extent. The reliance on physical and/or economic regeneration to provide
sought social improvements has been shown to have some indisputable merits,

but it has also proved fragile in a changed economic environment in the absence
of real concerted actions across all dimensions of regeneration and of a more
serious involvement of the community from day one.
A more decisive focus on social sustainability should begin to be injected into
the objectives of the West End Masterplan, alongside the economic priorities, so
that changes in the physical realm have a stronger and more direct regeneration
impact for both old and new residents. This could also reconcile the interests of
all stakeholders and thus allow for the creation of the virtuous circle of
optimism (Lancaster District CVS, 2015 p.21) that the West End urgently needs.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CLG (2009) World Class Places. The Government’s strategy for improving
quality of place [online] Available at:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120919132719/http://www.commu
nities.gov.uk/documents/planningandbuilding/pdf/1229344.pdf (Accessed 19
November 2015)
DCLG (2015) Transformation Challenge Award 2015-16 - Successful Bids
[online] Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/3
81902/141201-_Table_of_successful_bids_-_Final.pdf (Accessed 20
November 2015)
DTZ Pieda Consulting (2002) Regenerating Morecambe - An Action Plan,
Morecambe Action Plan Partnership [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/planning/regeneration/morecambe-s-west-end/
(Accessed 17 November 2015)

Hall, C. (2009) Coastal Towns: Issues, Solutions and Lessons, Urban Design,
Issue 112, pp.32–33 [online] Available at:
http://www.udg.org.uk/publications/urban-design-journal-issue/urban-design-
112-autumn-2009 (Accessed 20 November 2015)
Lancaster District CVS (2015) West End Million Community Profile, Lancaster
District Community & Voluntary Solutions [online] Available at:
http://localtrust.org.uk/assets/downloads/profiles/wem-comm-prof-
v2.4%20FULL.pdf (Accessed 17 November 2015)
LCC (2004) Winning back Morecambe’s West End, Community Consultation
on the draft final Masterplan [online] Available at:
http://committeeadmin.lancaster.gov.uk/mgConvert2PDF.aspx?ID=1538
LCC (2008) Lancaster District Core Strategy [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/ldf-html/index.html (Accessed 9 November 2015)
LCC (2009) West End Masterplan Mid-Term Review - Final Report [online]
Available at:
https://www.lancaster.gov.uk/GetAsset.aspx?id=fAAzADUAMgAzAHwAfAB
UAHIAdQBlAHwAfAAwAHwA0 (Accessed 16 November 2015)
LCC (2012) Morecambe’s West End: Empty Homes Project Plan, Lancaster
City Council Regeneration and Policy [online] Available at:
http://committeeadmin.lancaster.gov.uk/documents/s40605/Appendix%202%20
Clusters%20of%20Empty%20Homes%20Bid.pdf.pdf (Accessed 17 November
2015)
LCC (2014a) Bold Street / Marlborough Road [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/planning/regeneration/morecambe-s-west-
end/bold-street-marlborough-road/ (Accessed 18 November 2015)
LCC (2014b) Housing Exemplar/Chatsworth Gardens [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/planning/regeneration/morecambe-s-west-
end/housing-exemplar-chatsworth-gardens/ (Accessed 18 November 2015)
LCC (2014c) Lancaster City Council, Regeneration and Planning Service
Empty Homes Strategy 1 July 2013-30 June 2015 [online] Available at:
https://www.lancaster.gov.uk/GetAsset.aspx?id=fAAxADEANQAxADUAfAB
8AFQAcgB1AGUAfAB8ADAAfAA1 (Accessed 17 November 2015)
LCC (n.d.a) West End Masterplan [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/planning/regeneration/morecambe-s-west-end/

LCC (n.d.b) Regeneration [online] Available at:
http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/planning/regeneration (Accessed 17 November
2015)
Morecambe Town Council (2014) Supporting papers, 25/09/2014 [online]
Available at: http://www.morecambe.gov.uk/media/uploads/2014/09/2014-09-
25-Supporting-Papers.pdf (Accessed 9 November 2015)
RegenerateLive (2006) 10 ways to define regeneration, Building, 17 February
2006 [online] Available at: http://www.building.co.uk/10-ways-to-define-
regeneration/3062794.article (accessed 9 November 2015)
Rickey, B., Houghton, J. (2009) Solving the riddle of the sands: Regenerating
England’s seaside towns, Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal Vol.3,
No1, 46–55 [online] Available at: http://www.metropolitanlines.co.uk/wp-
content/uploads/2010/03/PDF-12-JURR-Seaside-Towns.pdf (Accessed 17
November 2015)
Stewart, P. (2004) Design Reviewed Masterplans, Commission for Architecture
and the Built Environment (CABE) [online] Available at:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110118095356/http:/www.cabe.or
g.uk/files/design-review-ed-masterplans.pdf (Accessed 19 November 2015)
Tallon, A. (2013) Urban Regeneration in the UK, 2nd ed. Abingdon: Routledge.
Tallon, A. (2014) Coastal towns and regeneration [Editorial], Journal of Urban
Regeneration and Renewal Vol.7, No3, pp. 205–207 [online] Available at:
http://ingentaconnect.com/content/hsp/jurr/2014/00000007/00000003/art00001
Taylor, A. (2014) A case study of the regeneration of the St Paul’s estate,
Cheltenham: Working in partnership and engaging with the community to
deliver improvements in a deprived area, Journal of Urban Regeneration and
Renewal Vol.7, No3, pp.275–293 [online] Available at:
Taylor, N. (2009) Scarborough’s Renaissance, Urban Design, Issue 112, pp.28–
29 [online] Available at: http://www.udg.org.uk/publications/urban-design-
journal-issue/urban-design-112-autumn-2009 (Accessed 20 November 2015)
Woodcraft, S. (2015) Understanding and measuring social sustainability.
Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal, Vol. 8, No 2, pp. 133–144
[online] Available at:

APPENDIX: West End Masterplan, ‘3Ps’ Matrix (LCC, 2009 p.9)

BN4108_Case_Study_Report_Silvia_Rossi_Final.docx

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (16)

Viewers also liked

Viewers also liked (20)

Similar to BN4108_Case_Study_Report_Silvia_Rossi_Final.docx

Similar to BN4108_Case_Study_Report_Silvia_Rossi_Final.docx (20)

BN4108_Case_Study_Report_Silvia_Rossi_Final.docx