Town centre £3.1m update is set to begin

An artist's impression of what the White Hart Street improvements could look like

A £3.1m upgrade of a town centre to create "a destination in its own right" is about to start.

Buckinghamshire Council said work to update White Hart Street in High Wycombe would begin in a matter of weeks.

The scheme will include new paving, trees, seating and planters with greenery to create a "more continuous theme with surrounding walkways through the town".

Rachael Matthews, Conservative deputy cabinet member for town centre regeneration, said its aim was to increase "footfall and opportunities for all businesses in the area".

'Make the most of heritage'

The council said the work was part of its wider vision to regenerate Buckinghamshire "focussing on enhancing our much-loved market towns".

It said the project aimed to "make the most of their heritage whilst modernising the space to make it fit for modern life and the needs of residents and businesses".

The Future High Streets Fund will be used and it is hoped to upgrade and re-let empty shops.

The council is also adapting Tesco in Denmark Street, retaining the supermarket on the ground floor and redeveloping the first floor into a new home for the county’s archives that people can visit.

It will also improve Red Lion Walk, the walkway from the Swan car park into the High Street along the Three Tuns Pub, where a Swan mural can now been seen,

Matthews said: "The aim with the White Hart Street investment is for it to become a destination in its own right rather than the 'cut through' that it is now.

"We’ve worked hard to retain Tesco in the town centre too to bring more people into High Wycombe, increasing footfall and opportunities for all businesses in the area."

She said with other investment in the pipeline, she was "very positive about the future prospects of the town".