Tewkesbury’s public realm

The varied façades of Tewkesbury’s historic town centre tell the stories of its people, past and present, and are its witness to the events of the last 500 or more years.

Protecting this irreplaceable story is as important for the future as it is now. The face of Tewkesbury is its passport to attracting investment and visitors, to enriching the lives of its citizens and it is truly special.

Following the Community Street Audit in summer 2022 a range of projects, based on feedback from the community, which will enhance the public spaces in Tewkesbury town centre were planned.  New riverside railings at St. Mary’s Road and Prior’s Court, a public drinking water fountain in Spring Gardens car park and repairs to the wall at the Back of Avon moorings have already been delivered.

Post Office Lane and Warder’s Alley were repaved over the spring/summer 2024 and Smith’s Lane was resurfaced.

An enhanced wayfinding and interpretation scheme was delivered across the town centre in Spring 2024. More information on the projects delivered during the HSHAZ is available in the HSHAZ end of project summary on the HSHAZ home page.

Tewkesbury Town Centre Masterplan

Work to develop a masterplan for the historic town centre is in progress. Following engagement with local people over several weeks in October 2024, a steering group made up of local businesses, residents, and Borough, County and Town Council members joined consultants LDA to draft the town centre masterplan. The many views and thoughts expressed by local people were taken into account in creating the draft document. This initial draft has since been reviewed by officers and the concepts worked up to meet planning policy requirements. The consultation draft is available to view and any comments can be made through the consultation pages of the Strategic and Local Plan (SLP) website as soon as the consultation period begins.

During the process new legislation was brought in by the Government, removing the original intention to create a supplementary planning document. It is expected, therefore, that the masterplan will be supporting evidence to the Strategic and Local Plan which is being drafted at present. This will give everyone with an interest in the future of Tewkesbury an opportunity to comment on its contents. It will also ensure that the town centre masterplan is robustly tested and can be used by potential developer to help as they consider new schemes for the town and by planners as they consider their response to new planning  applications.