Shop Improvements completed after receiving £45,000 in grants from Great Harwood High Street Accelerator Panel
Shop Improvements completed after receiving £45,000 in grants from Great Harwood High Street Accelerator Panel
After being awarded £45,000 in grants from Hyndburn Borough Council, Great Harwood’s high streets are looking noticeably refreshed, with a number of store fronts receiving makeovers along Queen Street, Church Street and Blackburn Road.
Image, left to right: Peter Holden, Cllrs Scott Brerton, Stewart Eaves and Noordad Aziz
New and existing local businesses were successful as part of the Great Harwood High Street Accelerator plan in applying for “Community Chest” style grants, with the aim of reinvigorating the high street. Now that the work is complete, it has gone a long way to breathing fresh life into the town centre.
Peter Holden, Independent Chair of the Great Harwood High Street Accelerator Panel said:
“The Panel is delighted to see the huge impact these grants have had on Great Harwood’s high streets.
Taking a stroll through the town centre, the improvement is immediately recognisable and goes to show how a fresh new look can vastly improve a business’s chance of attracting customers.
Not only will this help the businesses thrive, but it has also greatly improved the overall aesthetic of the town, which can be enjoyed by everyone.”
Lauren Maguire, Owner of Brie Mine said:
“We were so excited to see our new updated deli & bistro front and debut it to the public.
This rebrand would not have been possible without the grant from the Council and we are so happy with the final results.
The investments made in our high street will undoubtedly help local businesses like ours, and we are grateful for the support.”
Image: Cllr Stewart Eaves, Cllr Scott Brerton, Lauren Maguire (Brie Mine Owner) and Cllr Noordad Aziz
Grants worth £45,000 were granted to shops and matched with over £15,000 of private sector investment. The full list of shops given grants are:
16 Queen St
38-40 Queen St
11 Queen St
13 Queen St
27 Queen St
63 Queen St
47 Queen St
49 Queen St
14 Queen St
6 Blackburn Road
2 & 2A Church St
15 Blackburn Road
12 Blackburn Road
23 Church St
27 Queen St
48 Queen St
37 Queen St
12 Queen St
32 Queen St
7 Towngate
44 Queen St
51 Queen St
To further brighten up the town centre, the Council also provided hanging baskets and planters to shops up and down the high street. Shop owners have erected these and will keep them looking green all year round.
Councillor Scott Brerton, Portfolio Holder for Business, Growth and Sustainability said:
“The scheme to provide grants to high street businesses to improve their shop fronts has been a resounding success. Queen Street in particular looks fantastic and I’m so pleased that so many businesses, including a few new businesses, have benefitted from these grants. Supporting local businesses is a priority of this Council and schemes like these shop front grants highlight this.”
Funding was provided via the High Street Accelerator Programme, which is a UK Government pilot awarded to ten areas across the UK to help partnerships between communities and Local Authorities to work together to address local challenges, such as empty shops and increasing visitors to high streets.
The Great Harwood High Street Accelerator Plan is funded by the UK Government via the High Street Accelerators Pilot Programme. The Plan can be viewed in full here https://www.hyndburnbc.gov.uk/great-harwood-plan/