Professionals hired to draw up detailed plans for £19m investment in town

The Brighouse Deal has taken another step forward as Calderdale Council and The Brighouse Town Deal Board appoint the team to deliver the next stage of developing projects to be funded by the £19m investment.

Global professional services company Turner & Townsend, which is headquartered in Leeds, won a competitive tender to develop full businesses cases.

Its team, which includes architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, planners and project managers, will now work with the Town Deal Board and the council to turn the vision, already put forward and approved by Government, into costed and designed projects.

The business cases need to be submitted back to Government by the summer.

Once Government has approved them, this will give a green light to release funding to appoint the contractors and find the partners who will actually deliver the schemes.

In September 2019, the Government announced a £3.6bn Towns Fund to support 101 Town Deals across England. Brighouse was one of those successful at bidding for investment, receiving £19.1m for the next four years.

The money will be spent on initiatives such as developing a new market, improving access to the canal side from the town centre, attracting more visitors to Brighouse and encouraging them to stay longer and providing better access to education, apprenticeships and jobs to ensure young people have a future in the town.

Councillor Sophie Whittaker, co-chair of The Brighouse Town Deal Board, said: “We know this is a long process, but this is a significant step forward and we can’t wait to see the plans which Turner & Townsend will put forward in the coming months.

“We will also be asking residents, retailers, businesses and community groups to get involved in the planning stages in the weeks ahead to ensure they have their say.”

Peter Foy, director at Turner & Townsend, said: “The Brighouse Town Investment Plan represents the kind of bold vision required to transform the area for future generations.

“The community has already contributed so much to this plan through their feedback and we are delighted to be working with Calderdale Council and the Brighouse Town Deal Board to make it a reality.

“Getting this right needs a methodical approach that maintains a focus on the social, environmental and economic outcomes we all want to achieve.”