North Yorkshire Council
Corporate Director of Community Development
27 February 2026
Permission to apply for funding to support High Street improvements Sherburn in Elmet from Local Authority High Street Fund
Report of the Head of Regeneration
1.0 PURPOSE OF REPORT
1.1 To seek approval for the submission of an application to support High Street improvements Sherburn in Elmet to the Local Authority High Street Fund for funding of £250,000 from the Director Community Development in consultation with the Chief Finance Officer sub-delegated to the Assistant Director- Resources.
2.0 SUMMARY
2.1 The report recommends that North Yorkshire Council apply for grant funding of £250,000 from the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority (YNYCA) to support High Street improvements Sherburn in Elmet from the Local Authority High Street Fund, a fund set up to support projects emerging from the Town Investment Plans programme.
3.0 BACKGROUND
3.1 On 06 May 2025 the North Yorkshire Executive committee made the decision to accept funding from YNYCA for The Town Investment Plan (TIP) programme which will develop tailored investment plans for 32 towns and key service centres across North Yorkshire. These plans will provide a strategic, co-ordinated approach to regeneration and investment at a place-based level. They will help the Council and its partners to understand investment priorities and provide a structured focus for future business cases and investment decisions.
3.2 As part of YNYCA commitment to the programme, a fund has been created to support capital projects emerging from the TIP programme. The Local Authorities of North Yorkshire and York are eligible to bid for funding. The project list for the Local Authority High Street fund was considered by the Growth Board on 18 Dec 2026 who supported the applications going forward, subject to development and approvals.
3.3 Regeneration and Localities Officers have reviewed evidence and carried out community consultation in Sherburn. This highlighted the safety, poor levels of lighting, lack of a diverse retail offering, and restricted opening times, are the key issues preventing people from visiting the centre as an investment priority for the town. Officers worked with stakeholders and relevant council services to develop a project proposal for High Street improvements Sherburn in Elmet to create feature lighting that will enhance the town centre and create an attractive area for events.
4.0 HIGH STREET IMPROVEMENTS SHERBURN IN ELMET
4.1 The funding will be used to introduces festoon lighting in the council‑owned car park on the west side of Low Street, along with resurfacing and safety improvements to the car park.
4.2 The total project value is £200,000 of which amount that will be applied for from LA High Street Fund is £200,000 and will be used to fund the purchase of festoon lighting and associated equipment, the resurfacing and making safe the existing car park, to commission Align Property Services to design and manage the project, preliminary works, contingencies, contractor overheads and profit, inflation to the end of the proposed construction period, and Project Management/ Legal/Finance costs.
5.0 CONSULTATION UNDERTAKEN AND RESPONSES
5.1 As part of the project development, internal consultation took place with Tom Jenkinson (Localities), Conor King-Stephenson and Duncan Ferguson (Regeneration), and Councillor Bob Packham (North Yorkshire Councillor for Sherburn in Elmet Division) and Peter Baumann (Sherburn in Elmet Town Council). Discussions have been held between these Officers and Councillor to agree the scope of the project, with support from Align Property Partners, who provided early project cost estimates to ensure the project remained within the maximum budget amount of £250,000.
5.2. Legal have assigned a main contact in relation to the grant application process.
5.3 Community and business engagement has been undertaken as part of the TIP programme and demonstrated support for the type of intervention that this project will address.
6.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
6.1 On going revenue implications have been considered as part of the project development. After completion the asset will be the liability of Sherburn In Elmet Town Council, who will take on all maintenance and ongoing revenue implications.
7.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
7.1 Grant terms and conditions are not available at the present time but will be reviewed by Legal Services when released, should the bid be successful. If any of the grant terms and conditions present unacceptable risk for the Council then the grant offer would be declined.
8.0 EQUALITIES IMPLICATIONS
8.1 There are no Equalities implications from submitting the application. Equalities implications will be re-appraised if the application is successful as part of the acceptance procedure
9.0 CLIMATE CHANGE IMPLICATIONS
9.1 There are no Climate Change implications from submitting the application. Climate and sustainability implications will be reappraised if the application is successful as part of the acceptance procedure
10.0 CONCLUSIONS
10.1 That the Council makes an application to the Local Authority High Street to cover the costs of delivering the High Street improvements Sherburn in Elmet
11.0 REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
11.1 The funding will contribute towards a need identified as part of the Town Investment Plan programme. The relevant council services have been consulted, and revenue implications have been considered.
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12.0 |
RECOMMENDATION
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12.1 |
That the Corporate Director Community Development in consultation with the Chief Finance Officer sub-delegated to the Assistant Director – Resources approve the submission of the grant of £250,000
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Appendices – None
Background Documents - None
Helen Jackson
Head of Regeneration
25 February 2026
Note: Members are invited to contact the author in advance of the meeting with any detailed queries or questions.