Southport News
The latest Southport news: planning decisions, council and crime updates, business and community stories, each linked back to its official source.
Top story
Bootle Fire Cause: E-Scooter Battery, Fire Service Confirms
An e-scooter's lithium-ion battery started the Stone Square fire that killed four. Merseyside has had 150 such fires since 2023, 67 of them in people's homes.
More stories
Southport
Southport Aviary Pause Rejected 35-27: How Each Ward Voted
Full Council voted 35 to 27 against pausing the Botanic Gardens aviary closure. All 20 Southport councillors present backed a pause; Formby's six voted against.
Sefton
Sefton Planning Committee: Petition Route Ends 31 October
From 31 October a petition will no longer send a Sefton planning application to committee, and councillors lose call-in. Here is what replaces it and who decides.
Formby
Formby Sports Bar on Brows Lane Can Open Until 12.30am
Sefton approved a sports bar with pool, snooker and darts above the shops at 27 Brows Lane, Formby. Customers are allowed in until 12.30am at weekends.
Southport
Southport Cove Resort Site Opened Up to New Bidders
Sefton will run a competition for the Esplanade park and ride land. A sale would likely move the Eco Centre and could affect fireworks and Flower Show parking.
Southport
Southport Aviary: Scrutiny Bid Lost 5-3, No Birds Rehomed
Councillors voted 5 to 3 against a report on how the aviary closure was decided. No bird has been rehomed yet, and donors can now ask for theirs back.
Council
Sefton Cabinet 1 October: £7.7m Overspend, Hiring Freeze
Sefton forecasts a £7.689m overspend and proposes a recruitment freeze. Also on 1 October: Hesketh Park Conservatory, the Esplanade site and garden waste costs.
House prices
Sefton House Prices July 2026: £224,289, Up 3.7% in a Year
The average Sefton home cost £224,289 in July, up £7,901 in a year but 0.5% below June's record. Liverpool and Wirral prices are rising almost twice as fast.
Southport
Southport Town Hall Gardens: Have Your Say by 5 October
Sefton has published the designs for the £10m Town Hall Gardens rebuild. Comments close at 5pm on 5 October, with a model on show at The Atkinson.
Southport
Queens Road Southport: Council Admits Drivers Ignore Ban
Sefton Council says early camera data shows drivers ignoring the Queens Road restriction, and it has no approval for camera enforcement at that junction.
Bootle
Bootle House Fire: Woman and Three Children Die
A woman and three children died in a house fire on Stone Square, Bootle, early on Tuesday. Crews were called at 3.38am. A fifth person is in hospital.
Schools
Formby High School Teacher Banned From Teaching For Life
A former Formby High School teacher is banned from classrooms for life, with no right to ask for it to be lifted. The decision was published on 16 September.
Planning
Formby Lidl and M&S Scheme Refused Against Officer Advice
Councillors refused the Lidl and M&S scheme off the Formby Bypass against officers' advice. The council's own consultants put the village's trade loss at 15.9%.
Data
Sefton Claimant Count August 2026: Up 225 to 6,410
Sefton's claimant count rose 225 in August to 6,410, its biggest monthly jump since July 2024. Kew and Norwood led the rise across Southport's seven wards.
Planning
Formby Lidl and M&S: Planners Urge Yes Before 16 Sept Vote
Sefton planners back a Lidl and M&S Foodhall off the Formby Bypass, with a vote on Wednesday. Council consultants put the village centre's trade loss at 15.9%.
Planning
Greenbank High School Rebuild: New Building Due Autumn 2028
Sefton planners back rebuilding Greenbank High School in Birkdale, with a vote on Wednesday. The new building would open in autumn 2028 as lessons carry on.
Southport
Southport Pier: 27 Arches Gone, New Steel Due This Month
AE Yates has removed 27 lighting arches, a kiosk and the halfway house from Southport Pier. New British steel goes in on the landward end later this month.
What's On
Books Alive Southport: Trail Sites and Free Author Events
The free Jolly Postman trail runs 10am to 4pm daily, 24 to 31 October, at seven town-centre sites. Author events on 29 and 30 October are free but booked.
Southport
Southport Aviary Closure Faces Scrutiny on 15 September
Sefton councillors review the Botanic Gardens aviary closure on 15 September, and one of the four welfare groups backing the closure has withdrawn support.
Southport
Maureen Fearn, Southport Councillor for 33 Years, Has Died
Flags fly at half mast for Maureen Fearn, Kew ward councillor from 1983 to 2016 and Mayor of Sefton three times. Council and Lib Dem leaders pay tribute.
Planning
Santa's Secret Forest Ince Blundell: 21 Nov, Five-Year Bid
Santa's Secret Forest opens on 21 November at Ince Blundell. A new application asks Sefton for five years, and comments close on 25 September.
Food hygiene
Sefton Food Hygiene: Every August Rating So Far Is a Five
All 34 inspections published so far for August scored 5, from a Lord Street chippy to Formby's Chapel Lane. No venue in the borough currently holds a zero.
Licensing
Southport Alcohol Bids: Wine Rack, Baltic Store, Zia Pizza
A Birkdale wine shop wants on sales to 11.30pm, an Eastbank Street store wants 6am off sales, and Zia Pizza seeks a licence. Deadlines 11, 15 and 22 September.
House prices
Sefton House Prices Hit Record £225,433, Up 5.2% in a Year
The average Sefton home reached £225,433 in June, the highest figure since the index began in 1995. Terraced homes rose fastest at 6.7%; flats barely moved.
Formby
Formby Hall Hosts Golf Tourism England Convention, July 2027
Golf Tourism England's 2027 convention runs 25 to 27 July at Formby Hall, ten years after the first one was held there. A pre-event trip to Royal Birkdale and Hillside is planned.
Jobs
Sefton Claimant Count July 2026: 6,295, Under-25s Rise
Under-25s make up 1,340 of Sefton's 6,295 claimants, the highest July figure since 2021. The 25 to 49 group fell again. All seven Southport wards.
Business
Sefton Visitor Economy Hits £716.9m but Tourism Jobs Fall
Sefton's visitor economy grew 5% to £716.9m in 2025 on 7.79m visits, but tourism jobs slipped again to 6,160 and visitor numbers are still below 2023.
Schools
Southport Ofsted 2026: Every Grade for 7 Local Schools
Birkdale High scored Strong standard in four of six areas. Educ8 Southport needs urgent improvement. Every 2026 Ofsted grade for seven local schools.
Business
Sir Henry Segrave Southport: Wetherspoon Plans Hotel Use
Wetherspoon will run the Lord Street pub as a hotel and has applied to change its licence. Representations close Friday 21 August. What is actually changing.
Formby
Formby dunes fire burned 10 hectares, six engines sent
Six fire engines fought a gorse fire in the dunes near Albert Road from 8pm on Wednesday. Wind pushed it to 500m by 200m, and lighting a fire there is already an offence.
Southport
Southport aviary closure saves £60,000, budget book shows
Sefton's own budget puts the saving at nil this year and £60,000 in 2027/28, against £80,750 to run the aviary. PETA backed the closure on Thursday.
Business
Emily's Formby operator in liquidation a year after CVA
Rebel Restaurants Group Ltd, which trades as Emily's on Brows Lane, appointed liquidators on 6 August, thirteen months after creditors approved a rescue plan.
What's On
Southport Flower Show 2027: 19-22 August, Parking £10
Show parking is £10 all day at Princes Park and Birkdale and cannot be pre-booked; Sefton's Esplanade car park is £5.50. The 2027 show runs 19-22 August.