Bilston submits Portas Pilot bid

BILSTON town centre has submitted a bid to the Portas Pilot Round 2 scheme in an attempt to secure £100,000 towards High Street improvements.

The bid’s main proposition is to actively involve the town’s young people in shaping the retail and leisure offer. Bilston also intends to tap into the entrepreneurial spirit of local people by offering the chance to start a retail business with market stalls on the town’s popular market.

And it intends to market itself more effectively with the help of a new website and social media, making use of the creative talents of local youngsters. 

Cheryl Welsh, Bilston town centre manager said: “Our bid is all about harnessing the fantastic spirit of local people, especially our young people and building on the investment the town has seen in the past few years. 

“Occupancy rates in the town centre are actually quite good and we have a very busy market, the heartbeat of the town. So we’re not complaining about empty shops in our bid – rather, we’re saying let’s build on all the good things happening in Bilston.”

The bid has the support of  more than 600 individuals, community organisations and is backed by Wolverhampton City Council. 

“Right from the start, Bilston people have been behind this bid. We hope Mary Portas recognises the passion and energy we have to offer to transform the town,” added Welsh.

The purpose of the pilots is to test the ideas in the Portas Review and provide an opportunity for local partnerships to develop and share knowledge about the effectiveness of various options for High Street improvement.

In May Wolverhampton was chosen as one of 12 towns and cities to receive a share of a £1.2m government pot set up to rejuvenate rundown shopping areas in the first round of Portas Pilot bids.

The money has been dubbed “Portas Cash” after the shopping guru Mary Portas who put forward ideas for revamping Britain’s declining High Street in a review last year.