Selby MP Shows Support for Rejuvenation of Historic Town Centre
Historic England and North Yorkshire Council have been showing Keir Mather MP how they have been working together to rejuvenate Selby’s historic town centre.
Representatives from Historic England and the Council accompanied the Selby and Ainsty MP on a visit around the Selby High Street Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ), where £562,000 has been invested to breathe new life into the town thorough the development and repair of its historic buildings and streets.
Established in 2020, Selby High Street Heritage Action Zone is a 4 year programme aimed at enhancing and celebrating the historic town centre and making it more attractive to locals, especially younger people.
During his visit, Keir Mather was shown several key projects including the regeneration of historic business premises on New Street, Micklegate and The Crescent, where the former Nat West bank has been repurposed as a much-needed dentist practice.
The MP also visited the Grade I listed Selby Abbey, which has been at the heart of the HSHAZ’s Cultural Programme, hosting a range of community events and activities through the Selby Stories Programme such as Sing a Song of Selby and artist-in-residence Serena Partridge’s tiny embroideries placed in the Abbey’s nooks and crannies. The Abbey was also recreated virtually, at the centre of a Minecraft modelling of the town developed by young people.
During the visit, Keir heard about Historic England’s aspirations for other empty and underused historic buildings in the town, most notably the Grade II* listed Abbot Staithes, which is currently on the Heritage at Risk Register.
It was brilliant to welcome Historic England to Selby and to learn about recent investments in our town. Speaking as both a local resident and our town's MP, it's great to see the impact of work already undertaken, but also to feed back on what more we can do. If you have any ideas for enhancements which Historic England might be interested in, please do get in touch with my office.
