Towns fighting to be a Portas Pilot

More than 300 towns are to fight it out to become one of 12 government funded 

Portas’ Pilots, where each town selected will receive a share of £1 million to revitalise their high street. However the overwhelming response has led the government to offer a series of workshops to provide advice on preparing bids.

These workshops, which are being run by the Association of Town Centre Management, will be held in towns including Solihull, Bristol, Bolton as well as in London and will aim to provide insight in Portas’ review completed earlier this year.

Martin Blackwell, CEO of the ATCM said: "This is a great opportunity not just to make sure that the best possible applications are submitted, but to use the occasion to meet others who are passionate about their High Street and learn from each other."

Local government minister Grant Shapps added: "I would like to thank the Association of Town Centre Management for agreeing to host these workshops, which I hope will help town teams across the country put pen to paper, and their ideas on film, and show me their ambitions for reinvigorating their areas."