Shopfront Improvement Grants
Businesses across Tendring have had their shopfronts transformed after accessing grants of up to £20,000 from the Community Regeneration Partnership and UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Improvements include everything from new signs and improved access points to upgraded lighting and more.
Due to incredibly high take-up grants have been paused across the district everywhere but in Jaywick Sands businesses are welcome to apply, and we are able to support businesses through the process to give them the best chance of success.
Full guidance for the shopfront improvement grant scheme can be found here.
You can make an application here.
Below, business owners talk about the impact the scheme has had on their shopfronts.
Charnallies
Lisa Brumpton has owned the popular American/Italian restaurant Charnallies in Pier Avenue, Clacton, since 2004, and has used the scheme to have the eatery’s striking red shopfront repainted, and for new shutters.
She said: “First impressions are so important in hospitality and having a smart shopfront allows people to walk past and be reassured about our quality and high standards.
“Like all independent business owners, I want to invest as much as I can, and I am grateful for any support to enable that.
“The grant process went very smoothly, and I never felt like accessing the funding was going to be too difficult or out-of-reach.”
Harwich Canine Style
Nadia Nardino, owner of Harwich Canine Style in Wick Lane, Dovercourt, used her grant to install a new door.
“We needed to change the previous one – it was very old and only single glazed which meant it was cold in the winter.
“Having the new one put in has made it feel like a whole new shop – I am extremely happy with how it has turned out and feel much more secure.
“I found out through other local businesses that this support was available and am extremely grateful for it.
Clacton Art, Craft & Model Centre
The team at Clacton Art, Craft & Model Centre in Pier Avenue successfully applied for grants to support two separate projects to improve their shop from Tendring District Council.
The first saw them install two new lightboxes on the side of their premises, meaning that even when the nights draw in, customers still feel welcome, and passersby know they are open.
The second grant has funded improvements to the shop’s entrance, fitting a new door, making it more accessible for disabled visitors and enhancing insulation.
Janet Bosanquet-Bryant, business owner, said: “As a small town-centre shop, we face many challenges, so any helping hand is priceless.
“We would never have been able to complete these works without the grants, which we’re incredibly grateful for.
“Choosing two Clacton-based firms to carry out the work also meant we kept the money in the local economy.
“Thanks to the savings, I’ve been able to have the shop exterior repainted, upgrade the kitchen and bathroom, and hire two new part-time staff members.”
Latest News
Community Regeneration Partnership
The Community Regeneration Partnership (formerly the Levelling Up Partnership) was awarded £20million in funding from what is now the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
Projects were identified by civil servants as part of a deep-dive in January 2024, based on strategic planning such as the Love Clacton vision and Jaywick Place Plan.
The aim is to provide place-based regeneration in Clacton and Jaywick Sands.
A number of these projects are being led by Essex County Council.
