New Brighouse town centre plans with cabinet ‘next week’

Two weeks ago, Calderdale Council’s Reform administration announced the second of the works, which form part of Brighouse’s £19.1m Town Deal award, were being suspended pending review.

This left a question mark over the project, and was among questions raised at Calderdale Council’s first cabinet meeting of the new council year and the first since Reform UK won control.

In the public question time section of the meeting, Coun Ann Kingstone (Lab, Wainhouse) said Brighouse Town Deal had secured the funding following extensive consultation and works were already under way.

“The new administration has announced that the next phase will be paused and reviewed,” she said.

“What formal advice and risk assessments has cabinet received from council officers regarding the potential consequences of this decision, including additional costs or contractual penalties, prolonged disruption and uncertainty and uncertainty for Brighouse businesses, delays to completion, and the potential loss or repayment of Government funding, and will cabinet publish that advice and those risk assessments so residents and businesses can understand the implications of its decision?”

Responding, cabinet member for Highways and Transport, Coun Darren Commons (Reform UK, Brighouse) said new plans were expected and an existing delay in phase one of the scheme had allowed the opportunity to reassess.

“I’ve listened to concerns from businesses and residents from Brighouse, and seen the damage done to my local town of Elland with regeneration, the anti-car agenda that’s put in place on these.

“It would have been remiss of me not to take this into consideration,” he said.

Coun Commons said works had only been paused for a review to take place.

He said he would have the new plans next week and the phase of work to then start straight away after “month two.”

He did not reveal how the new plans would differ to the original ones, or whether they would need submitting to the Government to check they meet the funding criteria.

The delayed finish of phase 1 – now expected later in the summer – created the time to do this, said Coun Commons.

“The delay we inherited has actually given us a good chance to get this sorted out in time.

“We’ve now got things in phase and we should continue throughout, and there should be no clawback or penalties given,” he said.

The second phase of works in the east of the town centre, taking in Commercial Street between Park Street and Bradford Road, and Park Street, Park Row, King Street and Bradford Road, are scheduled to begin in late summer, taking until Christmas.

In all, three phases are planned with work originally scheduled to take around 18 months to take place – to around summer 2027.

Phase one of the works – taking in the west area of the town, including Commercial Street between Gooder Street and Park Street, Briggate between Thornton Square and Commercial Street, and Market Street, West Park Street and Ship Street – are due to be finished.

The third phase – concentrating on the Bethel Street area, including Bethel Street car park – is scheduled to be undertaken from winter 2026 to spring 2027.