It has been said for a long time in the City that the Burslem Port is a project that has been waiting for the right moment to happen. That moment is now. The regeneration of Etruria Valley is about to happen just across the the Trent & Mersey Canal from Burslem Junction. Regeneration of Middleport is well under way with the first phase of new build housing near to the terminus of the canal now complete and submitted and approved plans to clear new housing sites alongside the rest of the canal. The new community in Middleport is developing an identity through the “Middleport Matters” community-led initiative, which has in turn evolved from the astonishing success of Middleport Pottery as a nationally known tourism destination.
Middleport is about to geographically reorientate itself to face Etruria Valley as the new roads link to the end of Newport Lane, meaning that it will stop being a relatively inaccessible sub-district of Burslem and instead become an opportunity site, two minutes from the A500.
There is an opportunity now that has never existed before to think about Middleport in a completely new way, as a modern residential area with great employment and transport links, beside an attractive waterway, right next to open land. This opportunity must not be missed.
