Surrounded by quaint rural villages and traditional market towns, with its iconic imposing hill overlooking the borough, Pendle offers a real mix of modern and traditional settings.
To allow work to get under way, most traders will be moved a short distance away to the former Poundland shop on Hartley Square, where a temporary market hall will be created. Shaw’s Greengrocers Veg-it and Michael’s Butchers and Farm Shop will be in Richmond Court, where the health centre pharmacy was, and Granny’s Kitchen is moving to Earnies in Dockray Street.
Elsewhere, improvements are planned for the town parks along with the creation of an Advanced Digital Skills Academy - designed to improve employment prospects - and efforts to high profile and long-term vacant and under-used buildings back into use. Among these is historic Trafalgar House next to the Town Hall, which will have its heritage front restored ahead of new purposes being found for the rest of the building.
Meanwhile, work has started on Colne's The Little Theatre £262k expansion. A total of £262,500 will enable Colne Dramatic Society to future-proof The Little Theatre. In less positive news, residents have labelled a proposed countryside electricity storage site as 'madness' and said the 'location is totally wrong'. Moor Isles Energy Storage Ltd is seeking planning permission from Pendle Council for a battery storage facility and infrastructure on land west of Greenhead Lane at Reedley.