Shotton, Buckley, and Holywell residents invited to shape their town centres’ future as consultation opens

Residents in Shotton will get the opportunity to help shape the future of the town centre as part of a public consultation led by the Flintshire County Council.

As well as Shotton, public consultations will also be taking place in Buckley and Holywell town centres.

The consultation is part of a larger initiative to develop “Place Making Plans” for seven town centres in the county over the next two years, with the first plans set to begin this month.

Consultation events for Connah’s Quay, Flint, Mold and Queensferry to follow within the next two years.

The initiative is closely aligned with the Welsh Government’s ‘Town Centre First’ approach, which was launched in 2020 and aims to locate services and buildings in town centres to revive them in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, falling retail sales, and changes in how town centres are used.

The goal of Place Making is to coordinate existing plans and identify issues that people and places are facing, such as public and green spaces, empty shops, accessibility, and commercial and housing needs.

“This will be done through a process of consultation, both online and in-person, and will also be informed by town-specific data and commercial analysis.” The council has said.

Each of Flintshire’s town centres has unique needs due to their different “environmental, economic, social, and cultural elements, and therefore, they have different opportunities for Place Making activity.”