Clitheroe high street closed off as £600k refurbishment works start

The main street running through Clitheroe town centre is now closed to traffic until the end of July for major refurbishment works.

Castle Street will be undergoing a £600,000 transformation during this time yet shops and businesses will remain open.

The council have made sure to include paths so that pedestrians can still access the street as well as having controlled access for deliveries.

An employee at Stansfields, a Castle Street deli, said: “The shop is still open for business and the works have left some paths open so people can access the building.

“Up to now, the works haven’t made much difference to the amount of customers but we haven't had much reply from the council regarding the works.”

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Work focusing on improvements to Castlegate, including the creation of a loading bay, started some weeks ago.

Now work on refurbishing the footway between Castlegate and Nettleton's Jewellers has started and Castle Street will be closed to traffic for the remainder of the scheme.

Work will be halted over the bank holiday weekend and restart next Tuesday (May 7) from Nettleton’s Jewellers onwards.

The refurbishment scheme is a collaboration between Lancashire County Council and Ribble Valley Borough Council, aimed at making Castle Street more accessible and attractive.

It features the widening of pavements, new paving and street furniture, along with some changes to parking.

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However, despite the scheme being welcomed by residents at a recent public drop in session, some businesses have expressed their frustrations.

A spokesperson for Cowman’s Famous Sausage Shop, a butcher’s located on the street, said: “We are still operating as normal and business has been okay so far but the works have definitely caused a disturbance.

“The backlog of traffic in Clitheroe isn’t great at the moment, we are down a few customers and it’s not as vibrant in the street.

 “It’s an annoyance because they haven’t communicated with everybody and they’ve just gone ahead and started the refurbishment.

“It needs doing so we are happy it’s being done but the fact nobody has come and told us what’s happening is a grievance.

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