A TRADERS association says it’s considering the way forward after its bid for town centre improvements was rejected for the second time. 

Town Traders Projects Ltd in Liskeard applied for money from the Good Growth Fund to install wrought iron arches, a bandstand, a covered ‘galleria’ area in Fore Street, and hanging gardens. 

The Traders feel the installations would draw people into the town centre, and would build on the hard work sustained over several years by Liskeard in Bloom. 

But in its assessment of the funding bid, Cornwall Council has said that it had concerns about the project’s management and delivery, and was “unclear how it would align with other projects in Liskeard”. 

Julian Smith is chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, which had been working in partnership with the Traders to take the idea forward. 

He says that the Traders’ application was assessed against criteria which were absent from the guidelines provided by Cornwall Council. 

And he feels that the many documents provided by the Town Traders Projects were not fully taken into account by those judging the application. 

He said: “We were extremely disappointed with the rejection, particularly as the reasons given were new reasons not raised when our last application was rejected. 

“We are now considering the way forward, in consultation with local councillors and our MP. We firmly believe that these projects would give a lift to Liskeard town centre and assist in the objective of levelling up Cornish towns.” 

The Good Growth Fund is a £132-million fund, allocated to Cornwall and Isles of Scilly through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. 

Cornwall Council says it is using the fund to create opportunities for communities and businesses, as well as access to new jobs and training. 

Grants are available to support projects to make the economy more equal, more resilient and more prosperous – and the application process has been highly competitive, says the Council. 

Investment Priorities for the Fund are: Community and Place; Support for Local Business: and People and Skills.