Community funding to bring the bounce back to our high street

‘High Street Sparks’ is a new bursary scheme that will run for the next three years. It’s part of the £95 million government-funded High Street Heritage Action Zone programme delivered by Historic England, which has been designed to give 60 different high streets across the country a boost.

Post-pandemic Plymouth, like many other towns and cities, is evolving. The ‘High Street Sparks’ scheme will gift small grants of up to £2,500 (and £5,000 in exceptional cases) to community projects that focus on a specially designated conservation area in the city centre.

Adopted in 2019, the conservation area is focused on Royal Parade and the Civic Square and bounded by New George Street to the north; Old Town Street and St Andrews Cross to the east; Notte Street to the south and Raleigh Street, Derry’s Cross and Athenaeum Lane to the west.

'High Street Sparks' grants can be used to fund projects or events that utilise underused buildings, empty shops and outside spaces or other initiatives that give people a chance to discover, celebrate and appreciate the area’s fascinating heritage. Community groups don’t even need a bank account to apply.

Steve Hughes, chief executive of the Plymouth City Centre Company, said:

The deadline for applications in this first round of funding is midnight on September 30, 2021. Visit our High Street Sparks page for a downloadable application form and more information.