Updated Town Centre Recovery Plan July 2021

Updated Town Centre Recovery Plan July 2021

Progress against the actions of the Macclesfield Town Centre Recovery Plan

Updated 19th July 2021

Progress against the actions of the Macclesfield Town Centre Recovery Plan – 19th July 2021 
Action Agreed Next Steps Progress Assessment (RAG) Updates
a) Undertake continued engagement work with town centre residents, particularly workers to keep up to date with their needs and a focus on unemployment and schemes available to support
  • Set up a communications sub group
  • Audit digital/physical comms channels
  • Raising the profile of the voluntary sector and looking at increasing/training up volunteers
  • Think about connections with groups like U3A
Green
  • Focus on volunteering opportunities – promote them – community response sub-group (Aoife, Emma, Helena)
b) Use exisiting schemes such as ‘People Helping People’ to support vulnerable residents, both those living in the Town Centre and elsewhere. Encourage and support resilience and continued ability to deal with future crisis
  • Develop case studies of people that have accessed such support.
  • Create a summary of services for local media promoted through various comms channels
Green
  • Ongoing action – lots of work going on anyway around this
  • Needs to be more strategic
  • Discuss with town partnerships
  • Moss Rose moving forwards – links with MFC – people asset
  • Streetwise, CAB doing lots of work
c) Building upon existing schemes such as ‘Shop Safe Shop Local’, undertake an education campaign around mask wearing and social distancing, with a key focus on the sunflower lanyard
  • Continue with local campaigns as appropriate
  • Refer to action (h)
Green
  • Social distancing signs to be replaced – CEC highways
  • Promote hand sanitiser stations
  • Raise on 14th April as part of hospitality sub-group
d) Provide new toilet facilities
  • Continue to pursue a location for a new facility
Amber
  • Need permissions
  • Exchange Street challenges
  • Tentative discussion about other locations
  • MTC working with CEC who are bidding for a Changing Places Toilet.in the Town centre.
  • MTC met with Indoor Market Traders who have indicated they would be keen to have the toilets in the Indoor Market made public.
e) Potentially bring together existing mechanisms such as Macc App and Treacle Traders to build a Macclesfield Website to promote the town
  • Refer to action (a), audit of current comms platforms
Green
  • Need to promote a coordinated approach. Network of sites
f) Explore opportunities to develop Macclesfield heritage, culture and art trail
  • Link in with existing art and culture group facilitated by CEC
Green
  • Continue conversations – await funding
  • Tunnicliffe trail discussions ongoing
  • Met with the LEP and Marketing Cheshire for a walkaround the Town. Promote town activities with marketing Cheshire to gain visitors to the town.
g) Develop retail and business network for Macclesfield and building upon existing networks such as Marketing WAM
  • Set up a comms channel/mailing list for local businesses
Green
  • Discussions with retailers face to face
  • Macc Means Business to ask about home working
  • Mailing list created
h) Develop Shop Local campaign and scheme, building on existing practice
  • Continue with current campaigns as the opportunity arises
  • Explore resurrecting Totally Locally
Amber
  • Ongoing campaigns and longer term
  • Totally Locally unlikely to be resurrected
  • Macc Hospitality Action driving forward as are Treacle market.

 

i) Set up a sub-group to explore the potential of developing outdoor hospitality facilities and use of space
  • Set up outdoor hospitality sub group
  • Explore public opinion on greater pedestrianisation in the town centre
Green
  • First meeting on 14th April and now meeting monthly
  • Going forward on pedestrianisation – Chestergate consultation forthcoming (CEC)
  • Successful delivery of Five Clouds area
  • Levelling Up bid
  • Challenges around Sunderland Street – meeting demand and expectation – longer term traffic modelling
j) Explore the possibility of bringing together all town centre events ‘kit’ including market stalls and provide power points in public spaces to enable further events
  • Hospitality sub group (see action (i)) to explore further
  • Review and consider options to explore further market offering
Amber
  • Ongoing discussion – longer term
  • Welcome back fund submission in progress for equipment such as deckchairs. Storage is an issue.
k) Host a community Fair/Festival/ Eco-summit
  • Environment sub group to be set up and work alongside existing ECO-summit group
Green
  • Being held on 15th May
  • Added value group set up after
  • Matt Todd now a working group member and lead on Environmental Sub group.
l) Create a central list of businesses and their offer, together with events and activities
  • Pursue the expansion of the mailing list created under action (g) to provide more in depth information about businesses and their offer (requires business support)
  • Explore options such as information points to communicate to those who don’t use the internet/social media
Green
  • Link to action g
  • Conversations with Canalside radio
  • Noticeboards ongoing
m) Create a list of community spaces to use and rent
  • Community Response group to explore and identify potential community spaces
Green
  • CEC and community response sub-group to action and communicate
  • List now in place and available.
n) Further promotion of this to wider community and places of work, utilising existing mechanisms
  • Refer back to action (a)
  • Creation of posters and banners to promote further
Green
  • Lots of comms by CEC and MTC
o) Pursue and engage with absentee landlords
  • Promote pop up shop available in Grosvenor Centre
  • Engagement with absentee landlords to be explored as part of the wider regeneration strategy (see longer term actions)
Amber
  • Work continues with absentee landlords but so far has not been successful.
  • Pop up Shop in the Grosvenor available for groups.
  • Treacle Market to offer 2 stalls for local shops at Treacle Market
p) Explore possible usage of the Town Hall and other assets in the town for new uses
  • To be explored as part of the wider regeneration strategy (see longer term actions)
Amber
  • Heads of terms on South Park pavilion transfer agreed
  • Discussion session held with CEC, MTCRWG and interested parties around the Town hall.
  • Town Hall sub group to be formed as part of the MTCRWG.
q) Develop more attractive shop front support scheme
  • To be explored as part of the wider regeneration strategy (see longer term actions)
Green
  • MTC conservation area appraisal – ‘good practice’ examples
  • MTC are designing a guide for Shopfronts.
r) Develop a Delivery Cooperative. Inform residents of schemes to help them find employment e.g. New Leaf, Journey First
  • To work with ELOV with a view to rolling out on a larger scale
  • Map and promote employment support schemes across Macclesfield
  • Explore and communicate opportunities for retraining and volunteering
Green
  • Need to push to a community business
  • Involved in Comms Group – lunchtime deliveries. Town Council using it
s) Develop centralised volunteering programme
  • Scope the potential for town ambassador programme
Green
  • Ongoing as part community response sub-group
  • Link to new MTC website and CVS
  • Need to link to wider regeneration and tourism and culture
t) Support wider active travel activities and linkages to wider sustainable transport policy
  • To be explored as part of the wider regeneration strategy (see longer term actions)
Green
  • Funding for lighting of Middlewood Way agreed
  • 130 bus funding agreed
  • Workers community transport network
  • CEC and MTC doing lots of work around this – 20 is plenty campaign
  • Castle St near completion Cycle racks will be available.
  • MTC and CEC exploring Cycle racks on Mill ST.
  • Concept designs for Chestergate are out for public consultation.
u) Create more green spaces in the Town Centre in the longer term
  • Pursue conservation area appraisal and conservation management plan for town centre conservation area
  • Explore options for increasing more greenery in the public realm as opportunities arise
Green
  • Pocket Park finished
  • Scoop and Scales developing planters
  • Rangers working with lots of groups
  • Grow Macclesfield driving lots of activity forward in partnership
  • Green fest arranged for Sep 18th – lots of groups attending.
  • CEC on verge of public consultation on concept designs for Chestergate and Market Place
  • Welcome Back funding for planters etc when approved
v) Support parking improvements
  • Pursue options for introducing EV charging points – Explore possibilities for increased cycle storage provision in the town centre
Amber
  • CEC completed report on EV Charging with strategy and Macclesfield identified as a high priority
  • Levelling Up Fund linkages
  • CEC Car parking consultation complete – outcome will be shortly made public.