Skelton-in-Cleveland is now home to a smart new car park right on its High Street, where the site was previously waste ground.
The neat new facility comprises 27 lined parking bays, including two disabled bays and four with access to electric vehicle charging points – one standard charger and one fast charger – in response to the increasing popularity of more environmentally-friendly electric cars.
Funding of £570,000 was provided by the Tees Valley Mayor and Combined Authority (TVCA)’s ‘Welcome To’ fund to cover the costs of both the new Skelton car park and the improvements made at the Fountain Street car park in Guisborough.
At Skelton, the funding has allowed for an entirely new drainage system to be installed first, along with a redirection of some underground electricity cables to supply the car chargers with power. A meter will keep a record of usage there.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “This development shows that we’re not just funding large-scale, transformative projects bringing investment and good-quality, well-paid jobs in the long-term – we’re also helping to improve people’s day-to-day lives too.
“The car park is bringing derelict land back into use, making our high streets even better and providing more access to the brilliant local businesses that call Skelton their home. It’s also helping to increase the number of EV charging points, so people using the cleaner vehicles can get around more easily.”
The car park and the area immediately surrounding it is the latest in a line of improvements made to the small East Cleveland town, some of which began back in 2016 as part of Skelton Villages Civic Pride's Skelton Town Heritage Project, which resulted in a £1.5m National Lottery Heritage Fund award being granted to the community group to deliver these extensive improvements within Skelton.
Councillor Chris Gallacher, cabinet member for Economic Growth, said: “The project has seen the installation of new planters, trees, seats, and landscaped areas along the High Street, with new paving, street furniture and a mosaic artwork erected on the wall outside the car park, depicting the history of the town.
“Local community groups and schoolchildren played a part in both the design and installation of the mosaic artwork, making it a highly personalised addition to the High Street for residents and visitors to enjoy.
“One of the Council’s main objectives is to improve the appearance of our high streets, so we are delighted with how Skelton is looking now.”
Ongoing maintenance of the new floral features is being carried out by the volunteers of Skelton Villages Civic Pride, with local businesses taking turns ‘sponsoring’ a barrel planter and funding new plants, making the upkeep of the High Street a real community effort.
Overlooking the new car park, at the top of Swilly Lane, is a beautiful seating area for anyone to enjoy, taken care of by Friends of Skelton Community Orchard, with views across Skelton towards the coast.
Twelve business units have also received facelifts under The National Lottery Heritage Fund/Council’s Façade Improvement Programme to boost the overall look of the High Street.
The successful bid for National Lottery Heritage Fund money saw £1.5m being made available for the overall package of works that have been delivered for the Skelton area over the last seven years.
Council staff carried out a door-knocking exercise to find businesses willing to make a 10% contribution towards any initial costs – then, the remainder of each business’s bill was covered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund monies.
Examples of the type of work carried out for the twelve businesses included installation of new windows and doors, removing roughcasting and restoring the brickwork finishes to properties, installing shutters and canopies, undertaking leadworks, repointing works, painting and other redecoration works.
One of the local business owners, John Prouse of Skelton Optical, had work undertaken during Phase 2 of the Façade Improvements Programme. He said:
“The Skelton Townscape Heritage Project has done absolute wonders to the transformation of my business premises. When I took over Skelton Optical in 2019, the front of the building was in dire straits and did not look very appealing at all. The project was very impressive with the attention to detail such as the specially selected sandstone from Pickering, choice of colours for the paintwork and even the style for the hanging sign.
“The communication and co-ordination between the Council, architect and building contractors was impeccable and I was always informed of what was happening during the different stages of development.
“The feedback I get from my clients on how nice the building looks makes me proud to have this business in Skelton and it inspired me to completely renovate the inside of the Opticians too! It's so nice walking to work along Skelton High Street and see not just my own business but many others looking fabulous.
“I can't thank the Heritage Project enough for doing such a great job!”
David Renwick, Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund said of the Heritage Project:
“Investing in heritage means investing in the community it belongs to, which is why we are proud to support the Skelton Town Heritage Project to revamp the town’s High Street, thanks to National Lottery players. This will not only preserve this important heritage to be enjoyed by locals and visitors from further afield but will also play a significant role in boosting the local economy and aiding the wider regeneration of Skelton.”