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The Future High Streets Fund (FHSF) is a central government programme aimed at renewing and reshaping town centres and high streets in a way that drives growth, improves the experience for everyone visiting the town centre and ensures a sustainable future.
In 2021 Wiltshire Council was awarded £9,355,731 to develop a range of projects in Salisbury.
The funding has been split between three projects:
Salisbury Station Forecourt (£5.3 million) - redesigning the station forecourt making it more attractive and accessible for visitors and residents
Fisherton Gateway (£3.2 million)- improvements to the road network and public spaces along Fisherton Street
Heritage Living (£800,000) - redeveloping a vacant listed building and creating apartments in unoccupied spaces above shops
These projects aim to reinvigorate the city centre by ensuring a greater experience on the high street for residents and visitors to encourage them to keep coming back, supporting business growth and enhancing the city's reputation as a destination of choice for tourists.
Projects in Salisbury
The Future High Streets Funded projects seek to embrace Salisbury's classically original charm. From a sense of arrival at the proposed newly improved Station Forecourt to a sense of place at Fisherton Street with its diverse range of independent businesses and spirit, these projects are helping to shape the city for tomorrow.
The improvements aim to enhance the public realm and improve wayfinding to provide a welcoming arrival to visitors and residents and be more accessible, to encourage people to stay longer in the city centre and spend more of their money in our local shops, cafés and restaurants.
The works include enhancing the Station Forecourt area with extensive landscaping, featuring the planting of trees and shrubs, the installation of modern street furniture and implementation of intuitive wayfinding systems, along with more sustainable travel facilities. A blend of wall mounted and pole mounted lighting designed to ensure safe levels of lighting and security for all forecourt users will be installed.
The improvements aim to enhance the public realm and improve pedestrian areas making it easier, safer and more convenient to travel by foot into the city centre.
The completed works include new landscaping, lighting and wayfinding, widened footways, new street furniture and continuous footways at junctions providing a level crossing and giving pedestrians priority.
During the public consultation in 2022, views were sought on the following options to help shape the final design:
position of the pedestrian crossing at South Western Road
parking along South Western Road
position of bus stops on Fisherton Street
style of street furniture
The proposals include redeveloping a vacant listed building and creating apartments in unoccupied spaces above shops encouraging young people to live, work and socialise in the city.
This project is being developed in partnership with Salisbury City Council, and independently of the other two projects. The consultation does not deal with this project, but updates will be provided as the scheme develops.
Frequently asked questions
The decision to place the bus stops directly opposite each other on Fisherton Street was based on public feedback following a six-week consultation held between March and April 2022. This consultation sought feedback from the local community on various aspects of the Fisherton Gateway and Salisbury Station Forecourt projects, including the location of bus stops along Fisherton Street.
Three options were considered for the outbound bus stop; the inbound bus stop would remain in its current location opposite the Alms houses:
Option 3A: Move the outbound bus stop at Water Lane closer to the railway station, positioning it opposite the inbound stop. This option improves access to the station for passengers but could occasionally block the road when both stops are in use.
Option 3B: Keep the outbound bus stop in its current location at Water Lane but sacrifice the buildout, which is intended to enhance the urban realm environment, especially around the café area next to the canal.
Option 3C: Move the outbound bus stop next to the buildout, which could affect visibility and access to the adjacent car park when buses have stopped.
The Public Consultation Report published in August 2022 shows that 48% of respondents preferred Option 3A (placing the bus stops opposite each other), while 27% preferred Option 3B and 25% favoured Option 3C. The Public Consultation Report can be viewed at Future High Streets Fund Salisbury.
It is expected these bus stops will have minimal impact on traffic flow, as they are located where traffic already queues for the mini roundabout. In addition, the frequency of buses stopping at the same time is expected to be very low.
The improved junctions along Fisherton Street, including those at Malthouse Lane and Summerlock Approach, have been specifically designed to prioritise pedestrian safety and accessibility, in line with the new Highway Code. These junctions incorporate continuous footpaths, a design that reinforces pedestrian priority by providing a seamless path across the junction.
The raised crossings ensure that kerbs are flush with the road, allowing vehicles to overrun these areas if necessary, while still maintaining a pedestrian-friendly environment. This design carefully balances the needs of both pedestrians and drivers. In addition, the level surface of the continuous footpaths at these junctions significantly improves accessibility for wheelchair users and those using mobility scooters, making it easier to navigate the area safely.
Most of the loading activities along Fisherton Street are undertaken by motorists stopping on the existing double yellow lines. There are currently no plans to stop motorists from being able to do so. It should be noted that motorists are legally permitted to stop on double yellow lines (where no loading restrictions are not present) to load or unload a vehicle. However, motorists are only permitted to do so for as long as it takes to complete the loading activity and as long as they don't cause an obstruction of the highway.
The buildout along Fisherton Street is an important design feature aimed at enhancing the overall look and feel of the area. It provides space for additional planting and seating, creating a more welcoming environment for visitors and encouraging people to spend more time on the street.
The buildout is expected to have minimal effect on the flow of vehicles. Currently, loading activities on Fisherton Street often result in vehicles stopping on double yellow lines, temporarily reducing the road to a single lane. This naturally helps control vehicle speed but can cause brief delays. The buildout will function in a similar way to a parked vehicle, by slightly narrowing the road without causing significant disruptions.
The council will serve what is known as a Section 58 Notice. This notice prevents Fisherton Street being dug up within three years of the works being completed except for dealing with emergency situations such as gas or water leaks.
The new paving will have an unpolished slip resistance value of greater than 75, which means it has low potential for slips. The new paving slabs will therefore provide good skid resistance for people who use walking aids such as walking sticks.
Maintaining Fisherton Street as a two-way street was the preferred option as indicated by the public consultation phase. Fisherton Street serves as the main route into and out of the city centre from the west of Salisbury. It also serves as an important bus route. Making Fisherton Street one-way or a fully pedestrianised street would displace traffic onto other roads, reduce bus service frequency and diminish access to the city centre. The approach proposed by the council is aimed at improving the experience for pedestrians using Fisherton Street whilst avoiding the issues outlined.
The site office and compound for the Station Forecourt scheme is located at Churchfields depot.
The redevelopment of the station forecourt will result in the temporary loss of all standard pay and display parking on the forecourt for the duration of the works. The parking at the western end of the car park will remain open. Alternative parking will be temporarily available at Central Car Park, approximately a 7-minute walk away. Existing short-stay parking has been changed to long-stay parking to support rail customers, until the new station car park on Fisherton Street, next to the Royal Mail Salisbury Sorting Office is opened in March 2025.
The northern entrance is not part of the current proposals, as it did not form part of the original bid to the government and the grant must be spent in line with the approved business case. It will therefore not be reopened during the construction works.
The potential for a new northern entrance is part of the wider masterplan for the railway station. The northern entrance is for SWR to deliver, but the council will continue to encourage and support SWR where possible to take this opportunity forward.
This was a separate scheme, but it was the first stage of a range of improvements to the station and access routes to it with the aim of making Salisbury Railway Station a more welcoming place for visitors and residents alike. The shared path was funded by the council and SWR and completed in 2021.
Each project is at a different stage. The Fisherton Gateway scheme started in August 2023, and completed at the end of October 2024. The Salisbury Station Forecourt scheme commenced in June 2024 and will take around a year to complete. The bike hub was provided by South Western Railway (SWR) as a separate scheme and this work was completed in 2022, ahead of the main forecourt scheme.
The Future High Streets funding originally had to be spent by March 2024, the deadline was subsequently extended to the end of September 2024, although delivery can extend beyond, for example where there is co-funding.
Over the last 25 years or so significant investment has been made in improving the pedestrian environment in the heart of the city centre, with areas such as the High Street, Blue Boar Row, New Canal and the Market Square being enhanced. One area that has not been improved is Fisherton Street, which is one of the key shopping streets in Salisbury, and the area in its immediate vicinity. In addition to that, a significant number of visitors travel to and from Salisbury via train meaning that the first and last impression many visitors have of Salisbury is of the railway station and the route into the city centre along South Western Road and Fisherton Street. Improving the station and the aforementioned route into and out of the city centre will improve the visitor experience and encourage visitors to stay longer in Salisbury which will help to support the local economy.
Yes, we have carried out a gender equality assessment to assess the different design elements and how they would impact on women's safety or any other vulnerable group. This includes the lighting design and the placement of crossings to specifically assist women travelling alone at night.
Milestone are committed to achieving a 40% reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions (measured by intensity) by 2025, 60% by 2030 and net zero by 2040 from our 2019 baseline. They are achieving this by switching their fleet to HVO fuel, exploring and implementing the use of EV plant and fleet across the business, where design permits swapping out traditional materials for low carbon alternatives such as Cemfree, warm mix asphalts and cold lays, as well as importantly looking at value engineering to achieve carbon reductions by reducing earthworks and maximising the use of site won materials. Milestone have year on year managed to reduce carbon intensity on its projects.
Milestone are committed to providing community legacy and will, where possible, prioritise project spending on resources and materials that are locally sourced to the county. Milestone will measure social value using the government-endorsed Themes, Outcomes and Measures (TOMs) framework to calculate the economic value of SV initiatives. In addition to using local suppliers, this will also include engagement with local groups and linking with local charities.
Wiltshire Council is keen to support local businesses, and to share the process the ratepayers can follow to appeal against the rateable value. The rateable value is not set by the council but by the Valuation Office Agency who are part of HMRC. Remedial works are not an automatic reason for any reduction in rateable value, evidence will have to be submitted with an appeal to demonstrate how the works have impacted upon trade. It may take time to gather the evidence required by the Valuation Office Agency and typically appeals are often resolved many months after the remedial works have ended. Please refer to the Business rates section of the Wiltshire Council website to find out more as to what support may be available.
The projects funded through the Future High Streets Fund complement the wider plans for Salisbury and support the aspirations in the Salisbury Central Area Framework (CAF) which Wiltshire Council endorsed in August 2020. The CAF recommends initiatives and policies for the city centre to bring positive change to the city to make it an even more vibrant, attractive and sustainable place to live, work and visit.
The first phase of the Salisbury River Park scheme, another initiative outlined in the CAF, started on site in June 2022. This is a joint project being developed by the Environment Agency, Wiltshire Council and Salisbury City Council that will reduce flood risk within Salisbury whilst enhancing habitats and public enjoyment, improving fish passage, and encouraging growth and regeneration. It is anticipated that the majority of the scheme will be completed December 2024, although further works to the rock weirs in the main channel will need to be completed in May 2025 after the fish migration season.
No, the blue badge spaces remain unchanged.
The Salisbury Central Area Framework aims to improve open space and the environment. The Station Forecourt and Fisherton Gateway projects aim to enhance public realm which includes the planting of new shrubs and trees. This will complement the 600 new trees being planted as part of the Salisbury River Park project.
The council bid for £13.5 million but was only awarded £9.4 million. This means that certain elements of the proposals have had to be removed such as murals and architectural lighting. However, we are actively seeking to bring these back into scope with alternative funding or as a future phase of the project.
We worked closely with the City Hall / Cultural Quarter project team to ensure they were aware of the proposals and to ensure that the improvements carried out on Fisherton Street complemented their future scheme.
Updates from the construction period
Regular updates are being published during the construction period to provide you with the latest news on the Station Forecourt improvements. You can find these below.
The Fisherton Gateway scheme is now complete. Regular updates were being published during the construction period to provide the latest news on the Fisherton Gateway improvements. You can find all of these below:
In December 2021, we asked residents and businesses in the Fisherton Street area to complete a survey to help us understand how Fisherton Street was being used for access, deliveries, parking etc. The results of this survey helped inform the emerging design going forward.
During the six-week period 7 March to 19 April 2022, local people from the wider area were again invited to give their views on concept designs for two of the three projects, namely Fisherton Gateway and Station Forecourt.
The consultation leaflet gave an overview of each project and what we were proposing to do. Local people were encouraged to view the leaflet before providing their feedback.
During the consultation period, two live online public webinars were held to explain the proposals in more details. Recordings of the webinars can be accessed below, along with copies of the Questions and Answers documents that were prepared in response to the questions raised during the webinars:
Two public exhibitions were also held at the Guildhall and three public pop-up events were held in various locations throughout the city, so officers could answer any questions people had. Flyers were handed out at one of the weekly markets to promote awareness of the consultation. In addition, unstaffed display stands were placed in the reception area of Bourne Hill Council Offices, Five Rivers Health and Wellbeing Centre and the libraries at Amesbury, Downton, Durrington, Salisbury and Amesbury which comprised a pull-up banner and hard copies of the consultation leaflet and survey.
Finally, presentations were also given to Salisbury City Council, Salisbury Area Board and the Fisherton Street Traders.
