First Place Delivery Agreement Signed for Liverpool City Region 2026

Key Points

• Place Delivery Agreements (PDA) for Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Homes England and the National Housing Bank have been signed by the three parties.
• This PDA will enable the delivery of joint partnerships to deliver faster homes, regeneration and economic development within the Liverpool City Region.
• It will be done through a Joint Delivery Unit comprising personnel from all the three bodies.
• This PDA will increase the influence of the mayor over the decisions on housing and regeneration investments.
• Key projects within the scope of this PDA include Liverpool North Docks Mayoral Development Corporation and the Central Station Gateway.
• This PDA will be running for three years with annual reviews.
• Homes England intends to sign PDAs with all mayoral strategic authorities.

Liverpool (Liverpool standard) October 2026 – Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Homes England and its subsidiary, the National Housing Bank, have signed a Place Delivery Agreement (PDA), creating a new partnership to accelerate the delivery of homes, regeneration and economic growth across the city region. The agreement, the first PDA to be signed anywhere in England, will ensure that national investment, capacity and expertise are focused on realising Liverpool City Region’s ambitions to create new homes, unlock major regeneration opportunities and drive long-term growth.

What is the Place Delivery Agreement and why does it matter?

The Place Delivery Agreement is a new mechanism that supports the government’s devolution agenda by moving the relationship between Homes England, the National Housing Bank and Mayoral Strategic Authorities from collaboration to co-delivery. Through dedicated Joint Delivery Units with colleagues from Homes England and the Strategic Authorities, shared commitments and strengthened accountability arrangements into mayors, they give local leaders and communities a stronger role in shaping the housing, regeneration and growth priorities that matter most in their areas.

As devolution progresses, PDAs will become the principal way Homes England works with mayoral authorities to drive housing delivery, regeneration and growth, supported by the Agency’s new regional operating model. Alongside this, the Agency will continue to work with local partners in non-mayoral areas, ensuring every place can access the support, investment and expertise needed to achieve its ambitions.

What are the three pillars of the Liverpool City Region PDA?

The PDA with Liverpool City Region will give increased mayoral influence over housing and regeneration investment decisions and align Homes England and National Housing Bank activity around three key pillars set by Liverpool City Region.

• Transformative growth – delivering Liverpool North Docks Mayoral Development Corporation and Central Station Gateway, large-scale projects that will transform the city region.
• Housing pipeline – maintain and enhance the City Region’s housing pipeline to increase the delivery of social, affordable and council homes.
• Tackling barriers – working together to create the conditions needed to accelerate housing delivery across social, affordable and council home delivery, skills, capacity and issues in industrialised construction, and enhancing place-based investment.

How will the Joint Delivery Unit operate?

To support this, a dedicated Joint Delivery Unit will be created, bringing together Homes England, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and the National Housing Bank. Working as a single team, the Joint Delivery Unit will provide a clear route for delivery, develop investable project pipelines and help accelerate the housing, regeneration and growth projects that will shape the future of the city region. The Unit will be led by nominated co-chairs from each organisation.

What did Mayor Steve Rotheram say about the agreement?

Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram, commented: “I’m delighted that Liverpool City Region is the first place in the country to sign a Place Delivery Agreement with Homes England and the National Housing Bank.” “This gives us a real opportunity to get more council and social homes built, get stalled schemes moving and make sure investment is focused where it can make the biggest difference.”

“We’ve got huge ambitions for housing and regeneration across our city region, from the North Docks and Central Station Gateway to projects right across our boroughs. This agreement means we can work with Homes England and the National Housing Bank as one team to get on and deliver them.” “For me, this is what devolution should be about – giving places more control and then getting on with the job.”

What did Homes England Chair Pat Ritchie say?

Chair of Homes England, Pat Ritchie CBE, commented: “Successful places are built by empowering local leaders to drive change in their communities.” “Today’s agreement marks an important step in deepening our partnership with the Liverpool City Region, enabling us to work together more effectively to deliver new homes, unlock regeneration opportunities and support economic growth.”

“By strengthening the link between local priorities and national investment, expertise, tools and powers, we can re-wire the system to better support delivery and have a greater impact for the people and places we serve.” “We look forward to expanding this approach with mayors across England in the months ahead.”

What are the North Docks and Central Station Gateway projects?

The Liverpool North Docks Mayoral Development Corporation will help unlock around 17,000 homes and support the long-term transformation of Liverpool’s northern waterfront. The MDC will seek to unlock development opportunities for 17,000 homes and 5m sq ft of commercial and employment space across 430 acres of derelict former docklands.

Central Station Gateway will support around 4,300 homes alongside commercial growth, connectivity improvements and regeneration across 86 acres of the city centre. As well as North Docks, the partnership will also focus on making good ambitious £5bn plans to maximise the potential of land around Liverpool Central station.

What is the duration and review process for the PDA?

This Place Delivery Agreement is dated 1 October 2026 and strengthens the relationship between the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Homes England and the National Housing Bank, through an enhanced single delivery framework to accelerate housing delivery, unlock regeneration and underpin the vision of the Liverpool City Region Growth Plan to transform productivity across the LCR. This PDA shall commence on the date hereof and shall continue for an initial period of 3 years (subject to an annual review) and shall thereafter continue for such further period or periods as shall be agreed in writing between the parties.

This PDA will operate on a 3-year basis and will be reviewed annually to ensure it remains aligned with evolving national policy, mayoral priorities, market conditions and delivery opportunities.

What are the wider implications for housing investment?

The PDA will also give Liverpool City Region a greater role in shaping housing investment across all tenures, helping to ensure investment reflects local priorities and opportunities. Increased mayoral influence over investment decisions will be complemented by efforts to mobilise greater levels of private and institutional investment, supporting the delivery of new homes and the growth of local communities.

Homes England aims to agree a Place Delivery Agreement with every EMSA and MSA over the coming weeks, supporting local ambitions through a shared commitment to delivering place-based growth and regeneration.

Background of the Place Delivery Agreement development

Place Delivery Agreements (PDAs) change the relationship between Homes England, the National Housing Bank and Mayoral Strategic Authorities from one of collaboration to co-delivery. Through a shared delivery framework, PDAs align the resources, expertise, investment capability and land and regeneration tools of Homes England and the National Housing Bank behind mayoral priorities. Each PDA features agreed delivery commitments and strengthened accountability arrangements, and is supported with a dedicated Joint Delivery Unit, bringing together colleagues from the mayoral strategic authority, Homes England and the National Housing Bank. The first Place Delivery Agreement for the Liverpool City Region was agreed in October 2026 with more to follow.

The PDA with Liverpool City Region builds on the existing Strategic Place Partnership, which focused on collaboration around shared ambitions and priorities. PDAs build on the Agency’s strong foundations of working with places, including its regional operating model, Strategic Place Partnerships and other memorandums of Understanding it has with places across England, and represent the next stage in how the Agency works with Mayoral Strategic Authorities and Established Mayoral Strategic Authorities. They provide a more formal framework for aligning Homes England’s investment, expertise and delivery activity behind locally led priorities, giving mayors a stronger role in shaping housing delivery, regeneration and growth across their areas.

Prediction: How will this development affect housing delivery and local communities?

The Place Delivery Agreement is expected to accelerate housing delivery across the Liverpool City Region by aligning national investment with local priorities through the Joint Delivery Unit. For local communities, this could mean faster delivery of council and social homes, as Mayor Steve Rotheram indicated the agreement provides an opportunity to get more council and social homes built and get stalled schemes moving. The increased mayoral influence over investment decisions should ensure that funding is directed to projects that address local housing needs, particularly in areas like the North Docks and Central Station Gateway where large-scale regeneration is planned.

For housing developers and regeneration partners, the PDA creates a clearer delivery route through the Joint Delivery Unit, which will develop investable project pipelines and help accelerate housing, regeneration and growth projects. This streamlined approach may reduce barriers to delivery that have previously slowed housing projects, particularly around skills, capacity and industrialised construction issues identified in the PDA’s third pillar.

The agreement’s three-year duration with annual reviews provides stability for long-term planning while allowing flexibility to adapt to changing market conditions and policy priorities. If Homes England successfully expands this model to other mayoral strategic authorities as planned, the Liverpool City Region PDA could establish a template for housing delivery partnerships across England, potentially transforming how national housing investment is coordinated with local devolved authorities.