Oswestry Town Council offers £5k grants to bring empty shops back into use
Oswestry's town council is offering grants of up to £5,000 to bring empty shop units in the town centre up to scratch.
Oswestry Town Council says it wants to hear from businesses and start-ups which want to bring empty retail premises back into use.
It says funding of up to £5,000 is up for grabs from the council’s Breathing New Life into Empty Properties fund, a scheme for businesses looking to set up in premises that have been vacant for more than six months in Oswestry town centre.
Grants can be used to refurbish and fit out premises as well as for decoration, signage and improving accessibility.
Previous successes of the scheme include Shrooma, a 'mushroom cafe' which opened in September 2024 in the former Dorothy Perkins on Cross Street, which had previously stood empty for three years.
The scheme mirrors a similar scheme currently in operation in Telford and Wrekin known as 'Pride in Our High Street', which has awarded just over £1.2m to businesses bringing empty shops back into use since 2018.
The Mayor of Oswestry, Councillor Rosie Radford, said: “We’re keen to continue to support businesses and start-ups at a very local level. As well as providing them with a welcome cash boost, the funding will help revitalise shops that have been empty for a while. It’s a win-win.
"Empty retail units and the condition of retail properties are seen as important indicators of the health of a high street and are a problem nationally. Whilst Oswestry has fewer empty retails premises than most towns, the council would like to see empty shops re-let."
The deadline for applications for the scheme is Sunday, August 31.
