'We want new Wallasey Bus Yard to be a benefit for the whole community'

The owners of The Bus Yard say they want a new Wallasey beach site to be a benefit for the whole community.

They’re keen to replicate the success of their Crosby beach venue in Wirral, bringing positives not only for customers who get to enjoy great food and drink with a gorgeous view, but for other surrounding businesses too.

Andy Laird, one of the partners who created The Bus yard concept, says with every location they choose they see what added value they can bring to an area.

He said:

“If you’re taking on spots like we do, you’ve got to play your part in the community, and that’s always been a massive element of our business structure. We don’t just think about our own business, we look at the wider benefits and what we can contribute as well.

“We employ locally so we’ve already been speaking to Wirral Met about having apprentices join us, we buy produce locally, and we have live music so it gives local artists an opportunity to perform.

“Because obviously we’re on the beach, we liaise closely with the coastguard and RNLI, we promote beach safety and our staff have lifesaving training with the coastguard and fire service once a year, before our summer season starts.

“We also do lots of work behind the scenes keeping the beach clean. Our staff go out through service, before and after, continuously cleaning in and around the area and we work with local litter pickers.”

The Bus Yard opens from 11am to 8pm, so Andy says surrounding businesses get a knock-on benefit from any influx of customers.

“We finish quite early in the evening so then people go on to other places nearby. That’s what we’ve seen happening in Crosby. Where we are in Crosby, before we were there it wasn’t a particularly popular place to go on the beach but now it’s a hotspot and the whole area is getting a lift.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Bus Yard | L1 | Crosby Marina | Festivals | Events | (@the_bus_yard)

“Since we announced our plans for Wallasey, we’ve had lots of businesses get in contact because they can’t wait to collaborate.

“We’ve also reached out to Merseyrail because we’re really close to Wallasey Grove Road station so we want to encourage people to come by train.”

As an LCR Tourism Award winner, The Bus Yard owners say they’ve seen a lot of support from local residents who are excited for them to open.

“From the amount of messages we’ve had we know so many people are up for this, they’ve been really positive about it. They believe it’s what’s needed in the area so we’d ask them to get in touch with the council and share that support,” adds Andy.

“We bring a good family fun place to come and relax and enjoy the area; it’s amazing vibes, amazing food and amazing views on a great coastline.

“It’s not just about selling food and drink, it’s much more than that which is the reason we signed a nine-year lease with Sefton Council.

“We understand that when a business like ours moves in people have concerns, but our success and the responsible way we operate has been proven in Sefton, now we want to do that in Wirral.”