Leominster improvements ploughing ahead

Leominster town centre is benefitting from the multi-million pound High Street Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ) Fund, which is breathing new life into high streets that are rich in heritage and potential.

The Leominster scheme was awarded £1.3 million Historic England grant funding which is matched by £2,185,500 of funding from Herefordshire Council. The council is working in partnership with Leominster Town Council, along with residents, businesses and community groups to deliver a range of projects, agreed with Historic England, which aim to renew and rejuvenate Leominster's High Street and Conservation Area.

The major investment has already transformed buildings with improvements to structure and facades to reflect the original detail, restoring local historic character and heritage features.

Cllr Philip Price, Cabinet Member Transport and Infrastructure, said: “Winning this funding was an incredibly competitive process and involved a lot of effort from the council and our local partners, so we are delighted to be carrying out these improvement works for the benefit of Leominster. Once finished, the enhancements will be beautiful and be a boost to the aesthetics and accessibility of the Town Centre that will bring benefits to local people and businesses for years to come.”

The works were originally intended to be completed in September, but delays due to drainage and sourcing of materials means the anticipated completion date is now the end of November, with some ongoing work to continue in Corn Square.

Cllr Price continued: “It is always a challenge when working with older structures, and some of the issues we have discovered have unfortunately led to the delays experienced. However, we are committed to doing the job thoroughly and with the long-term in mind, so where defects have been found we have fixed them rather than leaving them to be discovered down the line, and we will continue this approach.

“It can sometimes take longer than any of us would like to properly identify potential problems and the appropriate solution. As such, we are aware of the inconvenience to Leominster that will have been caused by the delays incurred by drainage and materials sourcing issues, so to help provide a boost to local businesses we are implementing a number of measures.”

These include:

• Free Parking – from 7 August two hours free parking in Etnam Street Car Park for the duration of the improvement work.
• Additional promotion of Leominster – funding to be provided by Herefordshire Council to support the promotion of events and festivals in Leominster. A total of £2,500 will be made available and we will be liaising with local businesses and Leominster Town Council on how this can be allocated most effectively.
• Support for events affected by the work – we understand the extension of this work may impact on planned events. We are keen to ensure the events continue and we will provide support to the organisers to help facilitate these where possible.
• Signage – Some businesses and residents have expressed concern about the placement of signs and safety barriers. We are committed to minimising disruption where possible and if notified of any concerns we will work with the contractors to alter signage.
• Herefordshire County Business Improvement District have also separately committed to support businesses in Leominster.

Cllr Price concluded: “We are committed to working with the local community, and there will be a residents and businesses meeting on Tuesday 23 July at Grange Court from 5.30pm. This is a great opportunity for local people to find out more, ask questions, and express any concerns or issues they may have.”

For more information, including FAQs, please visit our website.