Town Teams - Hebden Bridge - "Reinforcing the Heart of the Town"

Hebden Bridge is a market town that sits at the centre of the Upper Calder Valley. It grew up at the confluence of the River Calder and Hebden Water. Due to the narrowness of the Valley at this point, much of the town is built on the northern valley sides with dramatic terraces following the contours.

Background
Hebden Bridge grew up around a river crossing on the packhorse trail between Halifax and Burnley. With industrialisation, mills were built in the town and it became a centre for the production of corduroy, fustian and ready made clothing. It became known as 'Trouser Town'. With industrialisation came prosperity and beautiful civic and religious buildings.

The town's economy declined with the collapse of textile manufacturing in the Valley. However, during the late 1960s and 70s the town benefited from an influx of settlers who saw the opportunities offered by the town and the benefits of low house prices in a beautiful setting. These settlers brought new skills and helped the town to slowly regenerate itself as a centre for tourism, small craft businesses and creative industries. More recently the town has become a centre for alternative technology.

Currently the town is seeking to ensure that the vitality and diversity of its population is maintained, and to achieve a balance between its success as a tourist destination and its popularity as a place to settle as, due to rising prices, it becomes increasingly difficult for local people with low incomes to buy homes in the town and surrounding villages.

Hebden Bridge Town Centre
The town centre is dominated by vehicular traffic and has large areas of surface car parking. The market is not as successful as it could be and is located just outside the main shopping area.

Reinforcing the Heart of the Town
A new Marketplace could be created on St George's Square and Lees Yard. A 'golden carpet' of high quality public realm should be laid across the town centre in order to realise its full economic potential as a backdrop for an increasingly wide range of social, cultural and community activities.

The Station is Disconnected from the Town
The station is the busiest in the Valley and is used by many visitors and tourists, especially those visiting Hardcastle Crags. The station is difficult to access by foot. Pedestrians have to walk along the main road or through the park to reach it.

Linking the Station to the Town
The existing station car park should be enlarged and become a proper public transport interchange. The connections from the station should be improved by creating a safe and attractive new route through the park with new footbridges over the river and canal.

Walsden · Todmorden · Hebden Bridge · Mytholmroyd · Sowerby Bridge