Shopfronts in market town to receive £490k boost

Tavistock Street is one of the two areas targeted by the funding

Shopfronts in a historical market town are due to be revitalised thanks to £490,000 in funding.

Historic England gave the money towards improving the Tavistock Street and Broadway areas of Bedford.

A total of £6.5m has already been dished out as part of the project, which aimed to breathe new life into older buildings in the town.

Bedford MP Mohammad Yasin said it was a "real vote of confidence in our town's rich heritage".

The money will be handed to Bedford Borough Council, which began the High Street Heritage Action Zone Programme in 2020.

Six shopfronts have been improved in that period, with money also spent on repaving Silver Street and widening the pavement in High Street.

"The £490,000 grant from Historic England will allow us to build on the regeneration work already done in the town centre," said Yasin, a Labour MP.

Tony Calladine, from Historic England, said the project had been a "remarkable success".

He added: "This new phase focusing on Tavistock Street and Broadway is attempting to extend these benefits."