Regeneration of Northampton.
Market square project(Fact sheet):
Northampton is one of the largest towns in the UK and traditionally served as the place
where traders from surrounding towns and villages came to sell their goods. The 800-year-
old Market Square currently sits at the heart of the town where a market is held from
Tuesday to Saturday. Northampton Borough Council conceived an ambitious plan to reverse
the decline of the Market and try to encourage more people into town centre. A key
objective of the project was to bring people into Northampton and increase economic
activity.
Improvements included:
Reconfiguring of stalls to create a large rectangular events space on the south side of the
square
A lighting project illuminating buildings and help enhance events in the square
These works have now been completed and more information on Northampton events can
be found here.
The council secured a £900,000 grant from Northamptonshire Enterprise Ltd for the
redevelopment of the Market Square. For the lighting scheme, £354,000 was obtained from
West Northamptonshire Development Corporation with an additional £60,000 was received
from the Arts Council for a large lighting event which took place in early 2011.
The project as a whole has made an impressive impact on the town, encouraging more
people to visit the square throughout the day and into the evening.