Our dedicated Maryport team have put together some amazing plans for the regeneration of this hidden coastal gem.

We have applied for both the Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) and Future Highstreets Fund which required detailed bid applications. Thanks to the hard work of many of our teams, we were awarded £1.2 million from our HAZ bid and our initial Future Highstreets bid has been accepted and we were awarded £11.5m from the government in May 2021. 

Check out what we plan to do with our funding. To see the full plan, please click here

Public Realm – Connecting the route from Maryport Railway Station through the high street to the harbour and promenade is a key focus for the public realm proposals. Key pedestrian junctions along Curzon Street are reviewed as part of the overall scheme as well as the parking strategy and requirements for the town centre. Connecting these spaces along the high street by using a cohesive visual style which is easily identifiable to Maryport is a key aspiration for the project.

Vacant units / residential conversions – The vision looks to address the number of vacant units especially at first floor level within the town centre. A repurpose grant fund is proposed, which works with local building owners to upgrade their first floor accommodation into high quality office or residential units. The aim is to draw new users to Maryport while increasing footfall and demand along the high street.

Empire Yard – Previous public consultation has identified a local aspiration for a market, and space to hold Maryport events. Empire Yard creates the space for these activities to take place, both during the day and at night. Alongside a flexible covered space which can be adapted to house a market, community cinema screening and small music events, it is surrounded by a number of commercial units of various sizes. These are typically focused on food and beverage units but can accommodate both start-up businesses and more established businesses.

The Carlton – A landmark property along the high street, it has been vacant for a number of years. Bringing this property back into active use is key to the vision for Maryport. The proposal relocates the theatre space from the Wave to The Carlton with the aspiration to drive more evening economy along Senhouse Street. It also houses accommodation for shared working and small private rentable workshops and or offices. Unlike the event space formed within Empire Yard which is focused on food and drink the rentable space and ground floor event space is focused toward the arts and crafts movement in support of the work by local artists and the Settlement. Demolition of the neighbouring property is proposed to form level access, a courtyard and new build to accommodate further theatre and event space requirements.

Christ Church – A landmark and well-loved property within Maryport, Christ Church has been vacant for some time. The proposal looks to bring this building back into public use by converting the church into a museum and gallery space. The proposal includes the introduction of a mezzanine floor to increase floor area and a viewing platform over the Solway Coast.

The Wave – A relatively modern building, The Wave is an underperforming leisure facility within the town. The proposal reconfigures the wave and removes the performance space which is then relocated to The Carlton. It introduces a new swimming pool in it’s place. Aspirations for a swimming pool have been widely voiced by the residents of Maryport and the proposal for The Wave looks to build on the existing infrastructure to bring this offer back to the town.