A UK seaside resort once dubbed a “social mobility coldspot” has been given a major boost after securing nearly £20m of government investment.
North Yorkshire Council said £19.5m had been allocated to Scarborough as part of the government’s Plan for Neighbourhoods scheme.
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The authority said it had previously devised a “10-year vision document” following public consultation, which named improving the town centre and bus services as priorities.
Council leader Carl Les said: “The chance to use such a significant amount of funding in Scarborough will bring wide-ranging benefits not just for communities in the town, but also far wider across the region.
“Scarborough is one of our biggest towns here in North Yorkshire, and there is real potential to bring a new era for what is among the country’s most popular seaside destinations.”
While the locals call it Scarbados, the Queen of the Coast – it has an ancient castle, spectacular cliffs, Tudor streets and two sandy beaches – there is a downside to living in Scarborough.
In 2017, the Office for National Statistics reported the town had the lowest average income in Britain while it has also been described as being a personal bankruptcy hotspot and a social mobility coldspot.
But in recent years the town has been fighting back.
Last month it was named as one of Britain’s best seaside towns by Conde Nasté Traveller while there has been something of a cultural renaissance too with the success of the 6,000-capacity Open Air Theatre.
The theatre was reopened by the Queen in 2010 and now claims to be Europe’s largest amphitheatre “since antiquity”.
Each year since its renovation it has attracted bigger names to its stage, which sits in the middle of a lake next to England’s bracing east coast.
Promoters Cuffe and Taylor (C&T) book the acts for the council-owned venue and secured the services of Britney Spears in 2018 and Noel Gallagher‘s High Flying Birds twice: in 2016 and 2018.
C&T’s Peter Taylor reportedly discovered that one of Spears’s representatives is originally from Leeds, and liked the idea of bringing the American superstar to the Yorkshire seaside.
This summer’s headliners include The Corrs, Gary Barlow, Pendulum and Shed Seven.
Another group of entrepreneurs, Scarborough Group International, also plans to transform the town’s Brunswick Centre into a “dynamic, leisure-led destination”, complete with a state-of-the-art cinema.
“Like so many traditional seaside destinations, Scarborough has faced stiff economic challenges, which need to be met with a concerted effort from the authorities and businesses invested in the town,” said Mark Jackson, who is leading the project and was born and raised in the town.
“Scarborough has great strengths and remains popular but, for the town centre to thrive, it must evolve to suit a much-changed world.”
Liz Colling, chair of the Scarborough and Whitby area committee, said: “Scarborough is such a wonderful place to live, work and visit, but like so many coastal areas, it does need investment.”
Additional public spaces and seating areas, as well as further development of the Scarborough Station area, were also named as potential projects in the earlier plan.
Key priorities for people who took part in the consultations included a cleaner, more attractive town centre in Scarborough and more frequent bus services, especially for teenagers and the elderly.
The programme has now been rebranded as the Plan for Neighbourhoods with an expanded remit to improve health and wellbeing along with work, productivity and skills.
It is also aimed at boosting cohesion and education along with opportunities for local communities.
The original ambitions of the national programme, which was previously known as the Long-Term Plan for Towns, also remain and include reviving town centres, regeneration, promoting heritage and culture and addressing safety and security concerns.
Improving transport and connectivity are also key considerations under the initiative.
More public consultation would be carried out before a new plan was submitted by the winter of this year, the council said.
Projects are set to be rolled out from spring 2026.
Councillor Les added: “The fact that the scope of the Plan for Neighbourhoods has been broadened to the previous incarnation of the scheme gives us an even greater chance to transform Scarborough for residents, businesses and visitors.”
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