Your town needs you! Hunt is on to find best British high street

Tamworth informed creative quarter

TAMWORTH is in the running to win up to £50,000 in prize money as part of a nationwide search to find Britain’s best high street.

Tamworth has entered the Great British High Street competition in the ‘town centre’ category in recognition of all the work being led by the borough council and Tamworth’s Town Team Destination Tamworth to revitalise the area.

This includes schemes such as the £5.5million Creative Quarter development, the Gateways Project to improve links between the town centre and Ventura Park, the I Am Tamworth initiative and an impressive programme of outdoor events.

But now it’s over to you. Residents, shoppers, visitors and businesses in the town are being asked to lend their support to the application by helping to create a buzz about the town on social media, using the hashtag #GBHighStreet.

Tamworth Borough Council’s Cabinet member for Economy, Cllr Steve Claymore, said: “Raising the profile of Tamworth and breathing new life into the town centre is one of our priorities and so much work is going on to achieve this aim.

“Securing the funding for the Creative Quarter is a major success for Tamworth and we should really be shouting about this and all the other fantastic initiatives going on.

“However we now need the support of everyone who visits, lives or works in Tamworth. Please share your positive experiences of the town on social media. Whether you’ve enjoyed one of our outdoor events or activities, or are impressed by a particular shop, please tweet your comments and photographs.

“This is great news for the town and fingers crossed we will make it through to the next stage.”

Once shortlisted entrants have been revealed later this month, members of the public will be invited to vote for their area online at www.thegreatbritishhighstreet.co.uk.

If successful, Tamworth would win a share of the cash prize pot, as well as dedicated support and mentoring from industry experts, which could range from one-to-one coaching to advice on digital marketing.

The Great British High Street Awards were a huge success last year with high streets, towns, cities and villages across the country vying for the top spot in seven different categories, all designed to celebrate the continued significance of UK high streets.

A number of projects were cited in support of Tamworth’s application. These include:

Creative Quarter

The major £5.5million development of a Creative Quarter in the heart of the town centre will include refurbishment and extension of the historical Assembly Rooms, transformation of the Philip Dix Centre into a Business and Enterprise Centre, redevelopment of the Carnegie Centre as a restaurant and improvements to the library and surrounding area.

Gateways Project

This £500,000 scheme is already underway to improve links between Tamworth town centre, Ventura Park and the Railway Station, including the improvement of the ancient Ladybridge to encourage people to walk between the two retail sites. The bridge has already been resurfaced with York stone paving stones and the next phase will see the installation of a sculpted timeline celebrating Tamworth’s heritage and history.

I Am Tamworth

This 12-month initiative, funded by Arts Council England, is the biggest and most ambitious arts project ever to take place in Tamworth. It aims to encourage more people to get involved in the arts, learn new skills and engage with community events. Many elements of the programme are also designed to attract visitors and improve footfall in the town centre, including I Am Visual Art – using empty shop units as a platform for local artists, I Am Music – creating a one-stop website where music events and artists can advertise free of charge and Trotters Trail – a trail of wooden pigs across the town designed by schools and community groups.

Outdoor Events

Tamworth boasts an impressive calendar of outdoor events which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors to the area each year. The events programme is grown and extended each year with attractions such as outdoor cinema, the We Love Tamworth family fun day, fireworks night and new for this year, the Tamworth Food Gusto Festival.

 

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24 COMMENTS

  3. isn’t that the coucil plan to do up all the council owned building’s its hardly a high street, there’s more albanian pop bands in george street than shoppers, might improve when we import half of the world onto the golf course

  8. There are some traders really trying to make a difference. Many in Market Street - Julie Anne’s Florist, Tool Box, Created in Tamworth, Fergus and Fogg’s, Nibbles are all really good and can be forgotten. Visit that end of town and hold more events there Add the Market Vaults and Uniform shop you get the buzz of a high street. Encourage more independent shops and Tamworth can thrive. It is important to note the people who visit the town, Castle etc are very complimentary. If we cannot love our town we won’t generate a buzz

  18. I’ve really tried with the town Center over the last few months. I’ve been there a hand full of times and every time I end up paying £2+ for parking only to be disappointed with the empty shops or lack of shops that interest me. Which seems to be an on going trend. More often than not I either end up at Ventura for convenience or I travel to Solihull because the choice of shops is incomparable and it’s restaurants and atmosphere dwarf that of Tamworth town Center. I just don’t see what all these developments are going to bring to the town without the shops to back them up. I just feel that times up for the town Center and I can’t see me returning at any point in the future unless I need to pop to the bank….

  19. What a laugh!!!! Parking £2 or £1.40 Precinct. Shops ?? Charity shops, Greggs, more Bakers & Cafes. Wilkos not half as busy since Home Bargains opened. Ankerside plenty vacant shops including the old Dunnes. Middle Entry about 4 shops empty!!! Plenty banks/estate agents. For a start not that many clothes shops, shoe shops or owt else! Market hit n miss. Retail Park continues to kill town centre! We go often but only for a few bits. lol

  20. Unfortunately there is nothing in the town centre that makes me want to shop there. There is a plethora of charity shops, fast food outlets and not a lot else. It needs a major push to encourage businesses to open up in the town, free parking perhaps, more independent food, retail shops, Farmers Market, something different that will make people visit. Look at Ludlow for example. The gangs of youths that hang around in the castle grounds and opposite Nationwide don’t help either.
    We have a fantastic castle, church and church grounds and lots of history that we can build on.
    The council needs a good shake up and they need to look at the town with fresh and different eyes. If not the town centre will die and the only thing we will have left is pound shops and Ventura.

  21. Back in the 70’s & 80’s, Tamworth had plenty of character with lots of shops. Bolebridge cycles, Gill and sons, woolworths, Co-op. A big Post Office and one night club, Stripes. Now all the town offers is food outlets, opticians, Estate agents, Solicitors and diminishing card shops. On a recent visit to the town, there were youths under the town Hall playing music and messing around. Can really see that winning a competition. Tamworth is more famous for Drayton Manor theme park than its history from Sir Robert Peel and the castle. Tamworth needs revamping and promoting properly.

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