The new building, which is due to open in autumn 2015, will stand next to the current site in Springfield Park.

It will have 270 beds – including 48 for critical care – with most rooms including views of the park and all with easy access to play areas.

Once the new hospital is built, the old building will be demolished and the site developed to create a new park.

Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle, who is also a patron of the hospital, will be at the groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday.

The design of the new hospital was inspired by a drawing by a former patient.

Children have been consulted throughout the process, with more than 900 giving feedback on the design.

‘New chapter’

A children and young people’s design group have also provided ongoing guidance and feedback to the architects throughout the process.

Louise Shepherd, Chief Executive of Alder Hey said: “The ambitious vision for a new Alder Hey began over a decade ago.

“Today marks a massive achievement that is testimony to the hard work, perseverance and dedication of many people involved during that time.

“On behalf of everyone at Alder Hey, I would like to thank all those who have helped make this day possible. We can now all look forward to an exciting future.”

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson added: “The new Alder Hey will place our city at the forefront of the treatment of young people, providing the very best care for children and their families, within a beautiful green setting.

“I’m now looking forward to work progressing quickly, so this wonderful hospital can begin a new chapter in its history.”

Leicester mayor Peter Soulsby, who backs his city‘s bid, said the Curve theatre illustrates the quality and variety of performing arts spaces

The government-led programme is inspired by Liverpool’s time as European Capital of Culture in 2008.

The English contenders for the 2017 title are Chester, East Kent, Hastings and Bexhill-on-Sea, Hull, Leicester, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Southampton, and Southend-on-Sea.

Swansea Bay in Wales and Aberdeen and Dundee in Scotland are also competing.

The chosen place will succeed Londonderry, which is the City of Culture for 2013 and the first place to be awarded the title.

Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Oliver Colvile hopes the title will encourage investment in his city
Announcing the list of contenders, Culture Minister Ed Vaizey said: “The competition brings together communities and creates economic and social benefits and I am pleased to see so many local authorities and different partners coming together.”

All 11 places must formally submit their initial bids by 30 April.

The bids will be considered by an independent panel, chaired by Phil Redmond, creator of popular TV series including Grange Hill, Brookside and Hollyoaks, and a shortlist will be announced in June.

Mr Redmond said: “The UK City of Culture can be a real catalyst for change and I’m delighted so many places have registered their interest in the competition for 2017.”

One Great Wall isn’t enough for China – but this latest creation won’t do too well at keeping out advancing armies – because it is made from a staggering 85,794 Rubik’s Cubes.

The giant mosaic, the biggest of its kind in the world, is 220ft long and 13ft tall and shows the skyline of Macau.

Each Rubik’s Cube had to be solved by hand and placed onto panels before being assembled.

The amazing mosaic has been designed by Toronto-based Rubik’s enthusiasts Cube Works Studio.

To buy so many of the toy in the UK would mean splashing out £857,082.

And the unusual piece of art has been certified the largest Rubik’s Cube mosaic ever created by Guinness World Records.

Designer Josh Chalom, an insurance worker from Toronto, Canada, spent two weeks designing the mosaic.

Each cube has nine pixels and Mr Chalom had to make sure that not one of the 772,146 pixels was out of place.

The 53-year-old said: ‘I’ve always been a fan of reading the Guinness World Records and wanted to create something magnificent, that made people go ‘wow’.

‘The Rubik’s Cube has always fascinated me – it’s one of those things that everyone can relate to, all around the world.

‘At some point in our lives, we’ve all picked up one and either managed to crack it and complete the cube, or we’ve got fed up and given up.

‘It just shows that you can create huge pieces of work from everyday items.’

The designer, who has been creating art using Rubik’s Cubes for five years, worked with graphic architect Nick Hall, who made blueprints for the designs.

It took 90 days to complete the mosaic – and solving the Cubes one-by-one took five weeks alone.

A team of 25 pitched in to assemble the final model.

Mr Chalom said: ‘I was inspired by the brilliant architecture that I saw in China. There are a lot of old and special churches, combined with new and advanced buildings.

‘I wanted to create something that showed the old and new China.

The cubes came from a local Chinese factory and Mr Chalom was delighted with the final version.

He said: ‘I wanted to create something monumental and breathtaking – the reaction that we’ve had from people has been amazing.

‘Some people have been blown away by what they saw. It’s good to create something that makes people so intrigued and fascinated.

‘It’s also a great way to get younger people involved and interested with the unique ways you can create pieces of art.’

Insects including a weevil and a wasp transform into cars and motorbikes in these lenticular prints by Canadian design studio Joe Jin.

The Taxi-Dermy lenticular prints change depending what angle they’re viewed from and are inspired by the way aerial views have become commonplace in high-rise cities such as Toronto, where Joe Jin is based. “From above, automobiles that dot the city streets below begin to resemble insects,” explains the designer.

The collection includes a wasp turning into a BMW motorbike, a weevil becoming a Formula 1 racecar and a praying mantis turning into a Kawasaki motocross bike.

There’s also a beetle that turns into a Mini Cooper Clubman, the ‘stretch’ version of the Mini.

In its first year of operation, it is expected to host about 50 events and attract some 250,000 visitors. It is estimated that the exhibition and event programme will support 1,300 jobs in the wider economy and contribute an estimated £40m per year to the city region.

Announcing the news, Liverpool City Council leader Joe Anderson said: “This is great news for the city. It’s a really exciting project which will deliver a major boost to the city’s economy, creating hundreds of jobs and attracting thousands of new visitors every year. This investment is a significant milestone in the ongoing renaissance of Liverpool which will benefit everyone in the city for decades to come.”

Plans include a sky bridge to connect it to the existing facility, making ACC Liverpool the only purpose built interconnected arena, convention centre and exhibition facility in the UK. Funding for the development is set to be raised through borrowing, supported directly from the revenue generated by the centre, so that the development will be at zero cost to tax-payers.

A 200-bed four or five-star hotel is included in the development plans as well as the 8,100m2 exhibition centre, which will be managed by the existing ACC Liverpool management team. It will be used to stage both trade and consumer exhibitions, as well as large scale national and international conferences with attached exhibitions, large scale banquets and concerts for up to 10,000 people standing.

ISG appointed to build world class exhibition centre on Liverpool’s waterfront. Contruction of the new facilities is set to commence in Autumn 2013, with a scheduled competition date of 2015.