Today it was announced that Burges in Coventry has won in the High Streets category at the 2021 Future Cities Forum awards.
Burges, a medieval street, created in 1848 is one of only a few traditional high streets to remain in Coventry. It contains a terrace of listed, timber-framed buildings, which though altered in the eighteenth-century, has retained building fabric of medieval origin.
Due to lack of investment the area had declined, and the conservation area had been added to Historic England’s at-Risk Register.
This historic area has been restored as the national demonstrator project for Historic England’s High Street Heritage Action Zone programme. The project received Heritage Lottery funding as well as one of the first to benefit from the Future High Streets Fund.
The work undertaken by the entire project team to restore and regenerate this historic area has helped preserve one of the last traditional high streets in Coventry. The judges recognised that as well as restoring and upgrading the medieval streetscape, it has boosted the local economy and successfully engaged with the local community.
Congratulations to everyone involved in this truly unique project.
