Funding made available for Angel Pavement refurbishment

A ROYSTON shopping arcade will benefit from grant funding allocated to recession-hit shopping centres. Angel Pavement in Royston is to be given �22,000 from �400,000 of Hertfordshire Forward Partnership funding which is being invested in struggling town c

A ROYSTON shopping arcade will benefit from grant funding allocated to recession-hit shopping centres.

Angel Pavement in Royston is to be given �22,000 from �400,000 of Hertfordshire Forward Partnership funding which is being invested in struggling town centres across the county.

The arcade is set to undergo a facelift, funded by county and district councils and the Royston First Business Improvement District company. Paving slabs will be replaced and new street furniture being purchased.

Chairman of Hertfordshire Forward, county councillor Robert Gordon, said: "Planning for economic recovery in the wake of the recession is a high priority for the county council and the members of the Hertfordshire Forward Partnership, and we're now beginning to see a range of innovative, practical projects getting underway, to give a much-needed boost for local businesses and communities, thanks to the substantial grant awarded to Hertfordshire last year.

"We're grateful to our partners in the districts and boroughs who submitted bids for individual projects in their areas, and to the members of the panel who took on the unenviable task of deciding on which of the projects put forward could be allocated funding on this occasion," he said.

Speaking on behalf of Royston First, Geraint Burnell, Royston's town centre manager, welcomed the news.

He said: "Hertfordshire Highways will be carrying out the work on Angel Pavement, and we are waiting to hear back from them with detailed timescales and costings before we can proceed."

North Herts district council's Royston area committee pledged to support the scheme last year.