BARROW and Furness MP Simon Fell met local people, Westmorland and Furness Council representatives and Historic England to mark the transformation of the High Street Heritage Action Zone.

Centred on Duke Street, the programme was set up in 2020 with £1.1 million of government funding delivered through Historic England alongside the council, which contributed over £500,000 in match funding with over £150,000 from business owners.

It has helped to drive economic growth by combining investment in buildings and shop fronts with community engagement and cultural events.

Improvements to the Duke Street area under the programme have encouraged other building owners and tenants to carry out works on their properties.

Several landmark buildings have also been sold to new owners working with the council to make further enhancements to the historic high street such as The South Lakes Rock School which has moved into the old Winders Accountants building on Ramsden Square.

Throughout the programme, 590 square metres of commercial floorspace have been brought back into use and 367 square metres of outdoor public space has been improved.

Three vacant or underused residential units have been brought back into use, with over £800,000 spent on the repair of historic buildings and installations such as the lighting column at Barrow Library.

Among the work funded through grants on numerous landmark buildings on and around Duke Street, Ramsden Hall has benefitted through repairs to windows, doors and the roof, which has allowed the Citizen’s Advice Bureau to stay as a tenant. 

The Conservative Club has been fully re-roofed with Westmorland slate, new drainpipes and other repairs. The fit-out of a new Chinese restaurant is now underway in the club’s old billiards room.

107-109 Duke Street has been re-roofed with Westmorland slate, drainpipes, and repairs to windows, render and repainting. Best known in recent memory as the Old Bank pub, this historic building is now open as Dodona Turkish restaurant.

Local businesses have also carried out works with the owners of The Priory hairdressers and Dandy’s furniture store choosing to invest in restoring their properties, encouraged by the improvements being delivered through the programme in Barrow town centre.

In addition, cultural events brought people back to high streets with over a dozen events attracting over 10,000 people since 2020.

Mr Fell said: “It is fantastic to see the improvements made to previously vacant and unused properties in the town centre. This, alongside the funding given to local groups for them to be able to move into formerly unused historic buildings and improve their own, is just great to see.

“Barrow Town Centre is starting to transform and will look very different in the next few years, what with the transformation of the Market and Forum, investment in Portland Walk, and the Town Deal bringing a university campus to town. It truly is an exciting time for the town, with all the investment flooding into the area.”

Councillor Virginia Taylor, Westmorland and Furness Council’s cabinet member for sustainable communities and localities, said: “The High Streets Heritage Action Zone programme is helping to unlock the potential of high streets, which in turn supports economic, social and cultural recovery, encouraging people to use the high street, rejuvenating town centres, improving housing opportunities and helping people feel proud of their town.

“We have key Council Plan ambitions to create welcoming, proud and resilient communities as part of our vision to make Westmorland and Furness a great place to live, work and thrive, and this programme is an excellent example of delivering meaningful results towards those aims.’’

Historic England’s Zinnie Denby-Mann said: “People in Barrow have really embraced this opportunity to work with us and our partners at Westmorland and Furness Council to harness the potential of the town’s rich heritage to create a better future for their high street.”