Wiltshire Towns Programme

Wiltshire Council allocated £1M a year between 2021-2025 (£4M in total) to support activity on the high street through the Wiltshire Towns Programme, providing meaningful and transformational support to grow businesses, support employment and transform Wiltshire's high streets to meet the needs of local communities.

The Council's business plan enshrines our commitment to creating and supporting vibrant town centres and well-connected communities. The Wiltshire Towns Programme seeks to create and sustain a thriving economy for high street businesses across the county, which will contribute to a resilient society that is driven and supported by empowered people.

Why the Wiltshire Towns Programme was established

Historically Wiltshire's town centres have been mostly retail provision and so have become vulnerable due to changing consumer habits, such as opportunities for online shopping and out of town retail. This vulnerability has been intensified by the economic shock of Covid-19.

Retail supports approximately 20,000 jobs in Wiltshire, this does not include services, leisure (including food and drink), or businesses which are located on the high street and are also affected.

Considering these challenges and recognising the contribution of high street businesses to Wiltshire's economy, a programme of funding and support was established in 2021 and will continue until 2025.

Explore Wiltshire Events Web App

In June 2024 Wiltshire Council launched Wiltshire Events (opens new window). This mobile device accessible website is funded through the Wiltshire Towns Programme and provides a free-to-use-ad free site for the marketing of events across Wiltshire.

The new web app aims to help both residents and visitors to Wiltshire find events and activities near them, all year round, and enables people to search for events based on location, category, date and available amenities. It is packed with events from around the county, to help people find everything from community celebrations and family-friendly concerts to fun-filled festivals and exciting exhibitions.

Explore Wiltshire Events was established to provide a free-to-access and ad-free single point of information to find attractions, events and activities across Wiltshire's arts, culture, leisure and tourism sectors. Listings are created by trusted partners and can be filtered by location, date and theme, allowing event organisers to reach a larger population, and helping residents and visitors plan their leisure time in Wiltshire. The web app is also a good way for organisers to attract stallholders and other vendors to events.

The web app is available on computers, smartphones and tablets. To find events near them, people should go to Wiltshire Events (opens new window).

To find out more about eligibility to become a trusted partner, please refer to the document Explore Wiltshire Events Content Guidance with Trusted Partner Criteria and Declaration found in the downloads section of this page, alternatively you can contact us via Wiltshiretownsprogramme@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window) to request the document, or to report any issues encountered using the Explore Wiltshire Events web app.

Heritage Trails App

The Heritage and Arts Team also provides information on free heritage trails around our town centres.

The aim of the app is to enable residents and visitors to Wiltshire the opportunity to explore the rich, diverse heritage of more of Wiltshire's market towns. The Salisbury Trails app is integrated into the new Explore Wiltshire Events app.

The app was created in collaboration with town and parish councils and is free and easy to use.

Eleven towns have been launched including Salisbury - Bradford on Avon, Chippenham, Cricklade, Devizes, Marlborough, Pewsey, Tisbury, Trowbridge, Warminster, and Wilton. With Melksham and Westbury to follow soon. It also links to the existing Explore Malmesbury webpage.

Once launched, the featured town and parish councils, and their local communities, will be able to add their own trails, with content being developed as more communities get involved.

How to download the app

Explore Wiltshire is available free for download to Apple and Android devices via the:

What content the app contains

The new app is location-aware and features information about historical landmarks, cultural sites, people and events that have helped to shape Wiltshire's heritage.

With interactive maps, walking trails, hunts and challenges; plus photographs, audio and visual clips, engravings and information from the archives of the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre.

Each town features an introduction from Wessex Archaeology and TV's Time Team Phil Harding.

More information about heritage projects

One of the roles of the Heritage Service is to support over 40 independent, voluntary and town council led museums across the county. The new app will provide opportunities for local museums and heritage organisations, and projects, to add new content and trails to exploit their collections, draw more footfall and link to their digital presence.

This follows the conclusion of a successful Data to Discovery pilot project with selected museums to open up their collections. See Museums in Wiltshire: Stories from the Stores (opens new window) for more details.

Explore Wiltshire Events Content Guidance and Trusted Partner Declaration forms for completion and submission, after reading the guidance document

Explore Wiltshire Events Guidance V1 May 2024 (PDF, 305 KB)(opens new window)

Explore Wiltshire Events Declaration V1 May 2024 (Word doc, 45 KB)(opens new window) to complete and submit or Explore Wiltshire Events Declaration V1 May 2024 (OpenDocument text format, 11 KB)(opens new window) to complete and submit

Delivery of the Wiltshire Towns Programme

Wiltshire Towns Programme Locations

Amesbury, Bradford on Avon, Calne, Chippenham, Corsham, Cricklade, Devizes, Downton, Ludgershall, Malmesbury, Marlborough, Melksham, Mere, Pewsey, Royal Wootton Bassett, Salisbury, Tidworth, Tisbury, Trowbridge, Warminster, Westbury and Wilton.

Activity Generation Grants

To facilitate the economic recovery of the High Streets in Wiltshire, the Activity Generation Programme is an offer available to 22 local councils in Wiltshire identified as eligible for funding and support. The aim of the programme is to create activity on Wiltshire's High Streets - by increasing capacity and encouraging people back to the High Street.

Business Energy Efficiency Services for Wiltshire town SMEs

Funded by Wiltshire Council as part of their Wiltshire Towns Programme, free energy efficiency surveys are being offered to small and micro businesses (up to 50 employees) operating in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors.

The energy survey report will identify a range of no-, low- and capital-cost measures to improve the energy efficiency of your business and open the opportunity for you to apply for 100% grant funding, up to a value of £6,000, for installation measures. The goal is to help decarbonise your business and save money on your energy bills.

The offer is open to businesses operating in these 22 towns: Amesbury, Bradford on Avon, Calne, Chippenham, Corsham, Cricklade, Devizes, Downton, Ludgershall, Malmesbury, Marlborough, Melksham, Mere, Pewsey, Royal Wootton Bassett, Salisbury, Tidworth, Tisbury, Trowbridge, Warminster, Westbury, Wilton.

Check your eligibility and find out how to apply at Severn Wye: Wiltshire towns small business energy efficiency (opens new window).

Culture and Arts development

Recognising the positive impact on the local economy, a strategic approach will be taken to maximise the opportunities arising from culture and arts development in the county.

Master-planning and pipeline development

This work seeks to work with Town Councils to develop shared town visions and prepare schemes for public funding applications, such as for example, suitable schemes identified in neighbourhood plans, town centre visions or masterplans.

Vibrant Wiltshire grants

Wiltshire Council created the Vibrant Wiltshire grants programme through the Wiltshire Towns Programme to improve the vibrancy of Wiltshire's town centres and high streets. The programme has been very successful and brought vacant commercial spaces in town centres throughout the county back into use.

Wiltshire Marque

The Wiltshire Marque will shine a spotlight on food and drink that really celebrates Wiltshire, showing our local community, and beyond the fantastic produce grown, bred, fished, brewed and baked in the county. We're helping Wiltshire's food and drink businesses by providing vital support to help them flourish, creating new routes to market with coverage in a free online directory, free promotion of news and events, and access to Wiltshire Council's wider business support programme. Our fabulous food and drink businesses will be able to display the Wiltshire Marque helping customers to find and buy truly local produce, reducing food miles and supporting small businesses. The Wiltshire Marque will be officially launched in October 2024 - in the meantime we're looking for:

producers: growers and processors creating and selling food and drink made with Wiltshire-originated ingredients
sellers: hotels, restaurants, pubs, cafes, coffee shops, caterers, farm shops, butchers, bakers and more that love local produce and sell a minimum of 5 products made in Wiltshire!

Does this sound like you? We'd love to have you on the scheme. To sign up, visit: Wiltshire Marque: Homepage (opens new window)

Email: hello@wiltshiremarque.co.uk (opens new window)

Address: Wiltshire Marque, The Old Fire Station Enterprise Centre, Salt Lane, Salisbury, SP1 1DU

Social media

Find us on social media:

Contacts

Wiltshire Towns Programme Enquiries: Wiltshiretownsprogramme@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window)

Explore Wiltshire App: Terry.Bracher@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window)

Business Energy Efficiency programme - web link to find out more and to apply: business@severnwye.org.uk (opens new window)

Festive period opening hours

Wiltshire Towns Programme

Why the Wiltshire Towns Programme was established