A further £35m is set to be invested in enabling and accelerating the construction of up to 4,000 new homes across the region.

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has approved an investment strategy for the remainder of its £45m Brownfield Land Fund, meaning the money that has not yet been used can be allocated towards preparing land in our region for developments.

It is hoped the investment will contribute to the construction of between 3,000 and 4,000 new homes.

All the investment will be directed towards building homes on so-called brownfield sites.

As opposed to greenfield sites, which have never seen any development, brownfield sites have previously been developed for a range of purposes.

Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram said the move would help to tackle housing shortage in the region.

He said: “For too many people across our region, the chance to own a home of their own remains out of reach. To tackle the housing crisis and help more people realise their home ownership ambitions, we need to take serious action to get more homes built across our region.

“When I was elected, I promised to prioritise brownfield sites for housebuilding and have been working hard to make that a reality.

“Last year we spent £11m to help deliver almost 900 homes on brownfield sites. We have now approved another £34m that should see help take the total to almost 4,000 new homes for people across our region.”

The approval of the strategy means there will soon be a call out to private sector companies to bid for the funding support, with local authority-led projects also set to receive investment.

The combined authority will be looking to support projects that meet a range of goals agreed within its housing strategy, including diversifying the region’s housing stock and improving the quality and number of affordable homes.

Seven sites have already received funding through the first tranche of money allocated via the scheme.

They include two in Halton, at Foundry Lane and Halton Court.