Selby steps up efforts to offer warmer welcome (From York Press)

Selby steps up efforts to offer warmer welcome

8:56am Tuesday 21st February 2012 in Selby & Tadcaster By Dan Bean, Selby reporter

COMMUNITY groups, councillors and MPs have agreed on potential improvements to the entrances into Selby, with schemes that may include sculptures on local roundabouts.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty, said he had met Selby Chamber and other groups within the last week to discuss the plans, which he hoped to have under way as soon as possible.

Mr Adams said: “It has been a bugbear on my mind for quite a while, the appearance of the various gateways into Selby.

“I had a meeting last Friday to include them with the Heritage Lottery Fund, Selby District Council, North Yorkshire County Council and Ground Works who have a lot of experience in putting together heritage bids from the lottery fund and it was incredibly productive. Everyone seemed on board with the idea.”

Mr Adams said the plans would include a mixture of planting and items which would reflect the town’s history and heritage, such as representations of ship building, agriculture, or the birthplace of Henry I.

He also said the plans were not exclusively a political issue.

He said: “I’ve also spoken to private companies in the area who want to back the plan and will contribute significantly to it.

“Clearly, the chamber are very keen for something to happen. We want to make sure visitor experience of the town is enhanced as much as possible and encourage people to stay in the town. We have a huge amount of heritage in Selby, but we wouldn’t really know it.

“We want to build on the work David Lewis has done to promote the heritage of the town. We want it to be an educational as well as a cosmetic experience. It’s not just about cladding over roundabouts.”

Details about the suggestion come after it was announced the town would apply for a share in a £1million Government pot to become a Portas Pilot, with up to £85,000 to spend on improvements in Gowthorpe.