Lumi Place New Ferry

15/06/2026

Hi all

KFC frozen chicken back.
If you want some come and get it from Lumi Place 9a Bebington Road New Ferry

FIRST come first served

We asking £2 donation however is not essential

Thanks

15/06/2026

Load of food available fresh veggies and fruits. Tons of bread outside of the shop.
Ready to go so make your way to Lumi Place and get your bag.
See you soon

14/06/2026

An Open Letter to Wirral Council

For as long as I can remember, Wirral Council has repeatedly told us that it is on our side. We have been told that the Council wants nothing more than to see businesses in New Ferry precinct thriving, and that it wants every business owner here to succeed.
I will not hide the fact that, from where many of us are standing, this does not feel true.
As the saying goes, when something is repeated often enough, people may start to accept it as truth. But repetition does not change reality.
For years, New Ferry has taken hit after hit. I am not only talking about the terrible explosion in 2017. I am talking about everything that followed. I am talking about the long delays, the broken promises, the failed support, and the clear lack of meaningful action for local businesses.
There have been many promises made over the years, including promises made after public consultations. Yet, from the point of view of many business owners, those promises have not been delivered.
Several times, we have had the opportunity to speak with officers from Wirral Council. After our last meeting in February, we were told that within a few weeks there would be another meeting, where we could sit down together and agree practical steps forward.
That meeting never happened.
Why?
The answer seems painfully clear. New Ferry does not appear to be a priority for the local authority. It has not felt like a priority for a very long time.
One of the biggest issues has been the loss of proper parking. Since the former car park was closed, the number of visitors coming into the precinct has dropped dramatically. From what local businesses are seeing every day, footfall appears to have fallen by around 75 to 85 %.
That is not a small inconvenience. That is a disaster for small businesses.
The replacement car park is not sufficient for the needs of visitors, customers, residents, and local traders. On top of that, it is regularly occupied by vehicles connected with the new development site, which means the few available spaces are often not available to the people who actually need to use the businesses in New Ferry.
How can shops survive when customers cannot park?
How can businesses recover when the basic access they need has been taken away?
How can anyone say New Ferry is being supported when the practical reality on the ground says something very different?
At the moment, many of us feel there is no hope for this place. It no longer matters whether the council is Green, Labour, Liberal Democrat, Conservative, Independent, or any other political colour. Without proper funding, real vision, and a clear understanding of what New Ferry actually needs, no party label will lift this place back up. New Ferry does not need slogans. It does not need another promise. It needs people in power who understand the scale of the damage and have a real plan to fix it.
Even the news that Money Matters, a business which has served New Ferry for 17 years, will be closing at the end of this year does not appear to have caused any real urgency or concern. This is not just another shop closing. This is another piece of New Ferry disappearing. This is another sign that small businesses are being left to struggle alone.
We are not asking for miracles. We are asking for fairness. We are asking for communication. We are asking for the promises made to New Ferry to be honoured.
Small business owners are not machines. We have bills to pay, families to support, staff, volunteers, customers, and communities depending on us. We cannot survive on kind words, press statements, and meetings that lead nowhere.
So I ask Wirral Council directly:
How are small business owners in New Ferry supposed to survive?
What is the real plan for us?
When will promises become action?
When will the businesses still standing in New Ferry be treated as something worth protecting?
When will proper parking be provided for customers and local businesses? We need action now, not in 18 months.
Or will these questions, like so many others before them, simply remain unanswered?
New Ferry deserves better.
Its businesses deserve better.
Its residents deserve better.
And after everything this community has been through, we should not still have to beg to be seen, heard, and supported.

Wirral Council
Justin Madders

14/06/2026

Hi everyone,

Just a reminder that our Free Food Event is on tomorrow from 8:45am onwards.

There is plenty of food available, but everything is offered on a first come, first served basis, so please arrive early to avoid disappointment.

If you have any questions, feel free to message us on WhatsApp or through Facebook and we’ll be happy to help.

As always, we kindly ask for a suggested donation of £3 per food bag to help cover the costs of bags, transport, and keeping the service running for the community.

Free range eggs tinned food and cereals excluded from free food and can be purchased separately from the store

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow!

Team Lumi Place CIC

11/06/2026

Again, you asked, we listened, and we have acted.

We know that food prices in the supermarkets are reaching levels that many people simply cannot keep up with. That is why we have introduced a selection of affordable food items on our shop shelves to help ease the pressure on household budgets.

Please note that these items are not part of our free food redistribution service, as they have not been donated to us. We have purchased them specifically to make them available at low prices for our community.

As always, every penny raised goes straight back into supporting Lumi Place CIC, helping us continue our free food events and community services.

Pop in, have a look, and grab a bargain while stocks last.

Thank you for your continued support.

Lumi Place CIC
Community before profit.

09/06/2026

To all of you
Justin Madders Wirral Council Jo Bird Mark Anthony CraigBeckys Unique Sewing Boutique Sue Percy

With great sadness, I read the news that Money Matters Shop will be closing its doors this December.

For many people, it will simply be another shop disappearing from our high street. For those of us who run businesses in New Ferry, it is yet another reminder of how difficult it has become to survive.

We were promised support.

We were promised that part of the Woodhead car park would remain available and operational for customers. That promise was never delivered.

We were told that local businesses would be supported and that the council would stand alongside us as we worked to keep our high street alive. Yet many of us feel the exact opposite has happened.

Instead of support, we have seen increased costs, higher business rates, parking restrictions, fines issued to delivery drivers and business owners simply trying to keep their operations running, and the continual loss of parking spaces that customers relied upon.

Most importantly, we have watched the footfall in the precinct decline dramatically. When parking becomes difficult, people naturally choose retail parks, supermarkets and out-of-town shopping centres where access is easy and convenient. The result is fewer visitors, fewer customers and less income for independent businesses that are already operating on the thinnest of margins.

The reality is that businesses in New Ferry are not “blooming” and they are certainly not “thriving”. Many are simply fighting to survive from one month to the next.

Every shop that closes represents more than an empty unit. It represents someone’s dream, someone’s livelihood, jobs lost, services lost and another reason for people not to visit the high street. It creates a domino effect that impacts every remaining business.

Money Matters Shop has served the community for years and its closure should concern everyone who cares about the future of New Ferry. Today it is them. Tomorrow it could be another business. Eventually, if nothing changes, there will be very little left to save.

High streets do not die overnight. They decline one closure at a time, one lost customer at a time and one broken promise at a time.

To the team at Money Matters Shop, thank you for everything you have done for the community over the years. We wish you all the very best for the future.

And to those making decisions about the future of our town centres, please listen to the businesses that are still here. We do not need more obstacles. We need practical support, accessible parking, realistic policies and a genuine commitment to keeping our high street alive.

Because right now, many of us are not thriving.

We are barely existing

08/06/2026

Why Are We Always Shocked When Another High Street Shop Disappears?

Every few weeks, another announcement appears on social media.

A shop is closing. A business is shutting its doors. Another familiar name disappears from the high street.

Almost instantly, the comments begin.

“Such a shame.”

“I used to go there all the time.”

“The high street is dying.”

“Why doesn’t somebody do something?”

But perhaps the uncomfortable question we should be asking is this:

Who is really responsible?

For years we have watched our high streets slowly change. Independent shoe repair shops have disappeared. Sewing and alteration businesses have closed. Sweet shops have gone. Ice cream parlours have vanished. Family-run cafes have shut their doors. Even well-known national chains that once seemed untouchable have disappeared from towns across the country.

Yet many of us still act surprised every time it happens.

The reality is that businesses do not usually close because people dislike them. Most close because people stop using them.

Many of us say we want thriving local high streets. We say we value independent businesses. We say we want choice, character and community. But when it comes to spending our money, our actions often tell a different story.

We drive to large retail parks because parking is easier.

We order online because it is convenient.

We choose giant supermarkets because everything is under one roof.

We click a button on a website rather than walking five minutes to a local shop.

Individually, these choices seem small and harmless. Collectively, they reshape entire communities.

The irony is that many independent businesses often provide better service, better quality and sometimes even better prices than the larger retailers we choose instead.

The local shoe repairer can often make a favourite pair of shoes last for years for less than the cost of replacing them.

The local sewing shop can alter clothes perfectly rather than forcing customers to buy new ones.

The local sweet shop remembers customers by name.

The independent café serves food prepared by people you know rather than a corporate recipe designed hundreds of miles away.

The local business owner often lives in the same community, supports local charities, sponsors local events and spends their earnings locally.

When that business closes, the community loses far more than a shop.

It loses experience.

It loses jobs.

It loses local investment.

It loses personality.

And eventually it loses part of its identity.

The Role of Local Councils

While consumers must take responsibility for where they spend their money, it would be unfair to pretend that local councils have no role in the decline of our high streets.

Across the country, many small business owners feel they are fighting a battle on several fronts. Rising rents, increasing utility costs, higher wages, insurance premiums and competition from online retailers are difficult enough. Yet many businesses also face parking restrictions, reduced town centre access, complicated regulations and ever-increasing charges.

Too often, councils talk about supporting local businesses while making it harder for customers to reach them.

A customer who can park for free at a retail park may think twice about visiting a high street where parking is limited, expensive or difficult to understand. A delivery driver facing restrictions may choose easier locations. Small businesses often spend hours dealing with paperwork, permits and regulations that larger companies can absorb much more easily.

Many traders feel that town centres have become places that councils manage rather than places they actively help to grow.

Of course, councils face their own financial pressures and difficult decisions. Budgets are stretched and resources are limited. However, if local authorities genuinely want thriving high streets, they must see small businesses as partners rather than simply ratepayers.

The success of a high street benefits everyone. It creates jobs, reduces empty properties, attracts visitors, improves community safety and generates economic activity that supports the wider area.

A successful town centre is not created by businesses alone. It requires cooperation between traders, customers and local authorities.

When any one of those groups fails to play its part, the entire high street suffers.

The Hard Truth

What makes the situation even more frustrating is that many people only realise the value of a business after it has gone.

A shop can struggle for years with declining sales, rising costs and fewer customers. During that time, many people simply walk past without giving it a second thought.

Then the closure announcement appears online.

Suddenly hundreds of people comment about how much they loved the place.

The sad truth is that love shown after closure does not pay the bills that arrived before it.

Businesses cannot survive on memories.

They survive on customers.

This is not about blaming individuals. Everyone has budgets, pressures and reasons for how they shop. Modern life is expensive and convenience matters.

However, if we genuinely want vibrant high streets, we must recognise that they do not exist by accident.

They exist because local people choose to support them.

Every coffee bought from a local café matters.

Every repair carried out by a local tradesperson matters.

Every purchase from an independent retailer matters.

Every visit helps keep lights on, staff employed and doors open.

If communities want thriving town centres in ten years’ time, then support cannot begin when a closure notice appears in the window.

It has to begin today.

The next time you need a gift, a repair, a coffee, a pair of shoes, a birthday card or even simple everyday items, consider looking at your local high street first.

Because once a shop disappears, bringing it back is often impossible.

And if we continue to spend all our money elsewhere, one day we may wake up and discover that the high street we miss so much no longer exists.

At that point, there will be nobody left to blame but ourselves.

The future of our high streets will not be decided by politicians, councils or multinational corporations alone.

It will be decided by the choices we make every single day.

The question is simple:

Do we want local shops, or do we simply like the idea of them?

08/06/2026

Hi all.

Food Bags & Fresh Bread

Our free food bags are packed and ready to go, and fresh bread is available outside on the trolley.

Time🕘 8:45am – 10:00am

Availability📍 First come, first served

Please arrive as early as possible to avoid disappointment. Once it's gone, it's gone.

Donations💚 We kindly ask for a £3.00 donation to help cover the cost of the bags and transport. If money is tight, please pay what you can. Nobody will be turned away if they are unable to donate.

See you soon!

Lumi Place CICCommunity before profit.

08/06/2026