Good Practice Archive

This Good Practice Archive features research and case studies from external organisations who, due to restructuring and changes in funding, are no longer able to host it.

Yorkshire Forward carried out valuable work with market towns over many years and at AMT we are pleased to provide a home for its market town case studies. Click on the links below to download the case studies as pdfs.

Dearne Renaissance Centre, Barnsley, South Yorkshire
A former primary school building has been refurbished to create the Dearne Renaissance Centre, benefiting businesses and community groups as diverse as the NHS and Dearne Youth Theatre.

Bedale, North Yorkshire
Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Town’s (RMT) programme has supported three distinct and significant projects in Bedale – Bedale Station and Craft Yard, 17 Market Place and a Heritage Partnership Scheme.

Chopsticks, Northallerton, North Yorkshire
A charity for people with learning disabilities has raised the funding needed for new premises, and now faces exciting new
challenges as it continues to grow. The funds came from a variety of sources, including Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme.

Distinctive Futures
A scoping study to identify how a distinctive Rural Capitals approach can be developed in Yorkshire and Humber

Fielden Wharf, Todmorden,West Yorkshire
Fielden Wharf had been a blot on the landscape for well over a decade, and attracted a lot of anti-social behaviour. Thanks to a much-needed facelift, the site has been transformed from a derelict site into high-quality public space.

Green Lane, Whitby, North Yorkshire
Green Lane Centre was formerly a play centre that had seen better days. Its transformation into the hi-tech hub of an entire community occurred when the remit for the building changed and, thanks to some substantial investment, including funding from Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme, so did the building itself.

Hambleton Managed Workspace Programme, North Yorkshire
The Evolution Business Centre in Northallerton and Leeming Bar Food Enterprise Centre support the local economy by offering new and young businesses specialist managed business space. The facilities on offer will help them to start-up, establish and grow, as well as providing access to on-site support.

Pedestrianisation scheme, Hebden Bridge,West Yorkshire
A pedestrianisation scheme was implemented in the heart of Hebden Bridge to create a safer and more attractive environment.

King Sturge Rural Business Space Final Report 2008

Kirkbymoorside Library, Learning and Customer Services Centre, North Yorkshire
A much needed resource facility bringing training, access to services and information under one roof for businesses, residents and visitors to Kirkbymoorside.

Low Carbon Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber
A Study to Develop Detailed Implementation Plan Options for Low Carbon Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber

Market Towns Car Parking Research 2007 – Executive Summary and Market Towns Car Parking Research 2007

Market Towns of the Future Executive Summary
This document summarises Yorkshire Forward’s research ‘Market Towns of the Future – Yorkshire and Humber’, published in 2007, which aims to identify the opportunities and threats facing market towns as a result of worldwide, national and regional challenges over the next 25 years.

Mytholmroyd Shared Space and Enterprise Centre, West Yorkshire
Mytholmroyd Shared Space is an innovative project which offers a flexible space for events and car parking. Together with the
Enterprise Centre, which provides small businesses access to facilities and advice; and the Erringden Room, a community hub,
the projects have provided Mytholmroyd with a popular new centre for the town.

North Yorkshire Moors Railway, North Yorkshire
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) Carriage Restoration Workshop and Learning Centre, supported by Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme, are fantastic facilities providing NYMR with much needed all year round restoration facilities and an important education and archive centre offering key learning opportunities for visitors.

Penistone Area Partnership Scheme and E-Learning Centre, South Yorkshire
The transformational Area Partnership Scheme and E Learning Centre projects in Penistone have helped improve the townscape and provide essential community facilities.

Richmond Heritage Partnership Scheme, North Yorkshire
Richmond is an ancient market town in North Yorkshire, with a population of around 8,750. It is located on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park and is popular with tourists due to its commanding position over the River Swale.

Renaissance Market Towns Programme – overview
The Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme was launched in July 2002. As one of our flagship programmes, the aim
of RMT is to make sure that the region’s rural capitals are places where people want, and are able, to live, work, invest and visit.

Renaissance Market Towns Programme Evaluation – Executive Summary – March 2010

Renaissance Market Towns Programme Evaluation – Final Report – March 2010

Renaissance Market Towns Markets Report 2010
A scoping study to examine how markets in rural capitals across Yorkshire and Humber can be better equipped for the 21st century.

Rural Capitals Programme 2009 – 2014
With a strong focus on enterprise and improving rural economies, the Rural Capitals programme will develop stronger, more diverse and resilient rural centres.

Rural Capitals Delegated Fund and Rural Target Fund
The Rural Capitals (previously Renaissance Market Towns) Delegated Fund was designed to improve the quality of place in our market towns. Managed and delivered by the relevant local authority, projects put forwards for delegated funds had to be included in the renaissance plans for the town and supported by the Town Team.

Settle Hydro and Riverside scheme, North Yorkshire
The improvements to the riverside walk provide benefits to both the local community who will use the route as an alternative to Settle College and Middle School, and for visitors who will be directed to the walk from the town’s market place.

Ted Hughes’ Birthplace, Mytholmroyd,West Yorkshire
Ted Hughes was the poet laureate from 1984 until his death in 1998. His substantial and critically acclaimed body of work – poetry, translations of the classics, libretti and children’s books – has assured his place in the pantheon of great British writers.

The Station, Richmond, North Yorkshire
The Station occupies an obsolete railway terminus, sympathetically restored by the Richmondshire Building Preservation Trust,
with support and funding from Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme.

Town Windows Project, Knaresborough, North Yorkshire
The idea was to commission trompe l’oeil paintings of windows on plywood panels, depicting people and objects. The completed
panels would then be fitted into the blind-window niches which are such a distinctive feature of the local architecture.

‘Ure Walks Through Time’, Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire
Yore Vision wanted to be able to embrace the smaller communities around Boroughbridge, and the ‘Ure Valley Walks’ project could do this by linking them in a visible, measurable way.

Wilderspin National School, Barton upon Humber, North Lincolnshire
A building of international significance due to its association with the early Victorian education pioneer Samuel Wilderspin has
been restored thanks to the dedication of the Queen Street School Preservation Trust and funding from Yorkshire Forward.