Burnham-On-Sea is set to see a number of initiatives aimed at boosting the town centre following the pandemic during coming months, it has been announced this week.
During a Burnham and Highbridge Town Council meeting held on Monday (May 17th), Kinga Grabarczyk, Senior Economic Development Officer at Sedgemoor District Council, revealed that more than £280,000 of funding has been secured from the Government’s ‘Welcome Back Fund’ to boost local town centres.
It comes after Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick announced recently that £56million of funding will help councils across the UK prepare for the safe return of shoppers and tourists to seaside towns this summer.
Kinga explained that there will be financial support for Burnham and Highbridge Town Council to “spring clean the town centre and freshen up the High Street.”
New promotional banners to advertise the town centre and promote local events are being considered for lamp posts alongside main roads entering the town.
New flower planters are being planned along Burnham’s Esplanade to help “give the seafront a lift”, in addition to further planters, benches and new signs that are being installed separately as part of the Burnham Evolution project.
Additional public toilet facilities are also set to be installed between June and September for the main holiday periods in Burnham-On-Sea and Brean. These temporary loos will help to deal with the expected influx of extra holidaymakers due to foreign travel restrictions.
Kinga added that some of the funding will also be earmarked to a proposed new outdoor event being considered for Burnham-On-Sea beach over the summer months.
And she added that further financial support will be given from the fund to Burnham’s town centre over the Christmas period to make it “more attractive and welcoming.”
Cllr Andy Hodge, Chairman of the Town Council’s Town Improvements Committee, welcomed the funding news, saying: “This is very welcome. They are superb ideas.”
