A £25,000 scheme to help traders improve the appearance of their shops in Burnham-On-Sea town centre has been launched this week.
The ‘Business Frontage Improvement Grant Scheme’ is being run by the Town Council and funded from a pot of £440,000 funding from Tesco to offset its store expansion plus cash from the council and former South West Regional Development Agency.
The new scheme is being targeted at independent retail, commercial properties and owners of vacant retail units in Burnham town centre.
It is designed to encourage repairs, renovations and enhancements to business frontages to enhance the appearance of the town centre.
Town Centre Manager Beverley Milner Simonds, right, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “Shop fronts and business frontages are the most clearly visible part of a building’s façade and they make a big impact on the appearance of the town centre.”
“They contribute to people’s first impression of the town and their condition can affect the town’s image, either positively or negatively.”
“Shop fronts and business frontages that are in poor condition and showing signs of neglect are often used as indicators of economic decline.”
“High quality fronts can make a town feel more welcoming to locals and visitors, improve its image, contribute towards a stronger sense of identity and, importantly, encourage a greater number of shopping visits by locals and visitors alike.”
The new scheme, which has been supported by Burnham-On-Sea Chamber of Trade, is now open for applications.
There are two grants available. The first option will provide up to 50% of the costs of eligible repairs and improvements to shop fronts, up to a maximum grant of £5,000. The minimum amount of grant funding available is £2,500, so the minimum value of works eligible for a grant will be £5,000. The maximum grant available is £5,000, so the maximum value of works eligible for grant will be £10,000.
Option two provides a maximum one-off grant of up to £1,000. There is no minimum value of works.
Applications are open now and close on 28th February 2015, or when all the funds have been allocated. Guidance notes are available to help traders understand the aims of the scheme and these, plus application forms, are available from the Town Centre Manager at bostowncentremanager@gmail.com
