FLINTSHIRE Council is aiming to increase footfall and create "more vibrant town centres" amid ongoing developments. 

Earlier this month, The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) called for "more support and innovative thinking" to help improve life for small firms on UK high streets.

Aid for pop-ups, well-maintained and accessible toilets, and community-specific online marketplaces were amongst its recommendations. 

The Leader posed the question to the local authority, asking what it was doing to help small businesses and what it had planned for developing town centres in Flintshire. 

Church Street, FlintChurch Street, Flint (Image: NQ)

The local authority is currently encouraging local people to help shape the future of four town centres across Flintshire: Connah’s Quay, Flint, Mold and Queensferry.

The consultation activity planned is part of a process to develop seven ‘Place Making Plans’ for town centres across Flintshire within the next two years.

The Place Making Plans will aim to set out a future vision for each town, outline actions that would help improve the overall vibrancy and attractiveness of the place and meet the needs of people who live, work and visit the towns and identify opportunities for a range of stakeholders to work more collaboratively to deliver improvements. 

In addition to the new plans, the council say that they are in the process of organising a "wide-ranging programme of activities" which is aimed to provide support to local businesses. 

Andrew Farrow, chief officer for planning, environment and economy, said: “The council’s regeneration team is co-ordinating a wide-ranging programme of activities which aims to provide support to businesses across seven town centres in Flintshire – Buckley, Connah’s Quay, Flint, Holywell, Mold, Queensferry and Shotton.

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“The work is being carried out with funds secured from UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund and Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns programme. Support currently on offer includes helping businesses to invest in their premises for the future to providing free access to business experts allowing traders on the high street to grow, diversify and become more profitable.

“We are also supporting the development and promotion of our market stall holders in Mold and Holywell, and providing grants to local businesses and organisations to develop and deliver their own activities to increase footfall and create more vibrant town centres.

"In addition to this, work is also going on to deliver projects which improve the overall aesthetic of our town centres by providing financial support to local businesses to improve their shop frontages.

“The next stage in our plans involves the development of a Place Making plan for each of the seven towns. This will provide a real opportunity to ensure meaningful collaboration among services within the council and external organisations who play a critical role in delivering a joined-up approach to support and improve our town centres for businesses, residents, visitors and investors.”