Ringo Starr’s birthplace is saved from demolition after public campaign

Liverpool City Council planned to demolish 9 Madryn Street as part of a housing regeneration scheme in the Dingle area of the city.

Some local residents feared their community, known as the Welsh Streets, would be torn apart and said the homes were perfect for young people and families stepping on to the property ladder.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps intervened after a group of residents wrote to him about their concerns.

He returned to Madryn Street yesterday to unveil a deal with Liverpool’s executive mayor, Joe Anderson, which will see around 32 properties, including Starr’s former home and 15 others on Madryn Street, refurbished and put on the market.

Around 400 neighbouring properties in the Welsh Streets will still be pulled down but the council will receive around £14m from the Government towards saving 700 decaying terraces in Anfield, in the north of the city.

Liverpool has some of the largest stocks of Victorian and Edwardian terrace houses in the UK. With many of the properties now neglected, decisions on whether to demolish or refurbish have proved highly divisive.

Announcing their decision outside 9 Madryn Street yesterday, Mr Shapps and Mr Anderson were caught in angry scenes between the sides.

Some residents claimed they were being forced out while others said they were tired of waiting for the promised new homes and gardens.

Mr Shapps said: “As we’ve seen this afternoon, communities are at war with each other about whether this was a good idea or not.

“My view is that it’s not a good idea to destroy homes, that’s not what government should be about. Rather than destroy swathes of housing indiscriminately, we have listened to the local community.”

Sources differ on how long Starr lived at Madryn Street before his family moved to nearby Admiral Grove, where he was living as a teenager when the Beatles shot to fame.

Admiral Grove remains a private house while Madryn Street has been boarded up for some time and is covered in graffiti left by Beatles fans from across the world.

Nina Edge, of the Welsh Streets residents group, said they were looking forward to seeing the detail of the plans but expressed concern that the surviving terrace will look at odds surrounded by new homes. She said: “I fear it will look ridiculous.”