Boost from Portaferry Public Realm scheme

Boost from Portaferry Public Realm scheme

31 July 2024

A LOCAL charity and primary schoolchildren have benefited from the Portaferry Public Realm Scheme.

The scheme has donated wood to the members of Portaferry Men’s Shed and provided educational visits for P6 pupils at St Mary’s Primary School.

As the scheme nears the completion of its third phase, the Men’s Shed received wooden crates that were used to transport materials to Portaferry.

The group created a variety of useful products with the crates, including artistic signage and a large train that has captured the imagination of local children – the P6 students of St Mary’s Primary School, Portaferry.

The children enjoyed an educational visit to Market Square that was hosted by the appointed contractors for the works, Northstone Ltd.

They gave the pupils an insight into the project before providing them with safety equipment ahead of some hands-on experience of laying cobbles and mixing up a batch of tarmac.

The scheme is funded under the Covid Recovery SSRP with additional funding from Ards and North Down Borough Council.

The SSRP is a collaborative approach, with contributions from the Department for Communities (DfC), Department for Infrastructure (DfI), and Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA.)

The scheme commenced in October 2023 and is ion schedule to be completed later this year, marking a significant £2 million investment in Portaferry.

Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd said: “This project is a great example of the excellent added social value that schemes such as the Covid Recovery SSRP can have in our local communities.

“I am delighted to hear that this donation to the local Men’s Shed has been put to good use and repurposed, and that local school children from St Mary’s Primary School have been able to play a small part in the progression of this important public realm scheme.”

The Minister for Communities, Gordon Lyons also said he was delighted to see the positive effect this project is having for the people of Portaferry.

“The scheme reinforces the need for improved social value across all projects, wherever possible,” he said.

“I am also pleased to see the excellent progress being made on the delivery of the Portaferry Public Realm Project itself – it will have a truly transformative impact on the town.”

DAERA Minister Andrew Muir said his department will continue to work with local governments to deliver partnership programmes to help regenerate rural villages and town centres.

The Mayor of Ards and North Down, Alistair Cathcart said: “The students from St Mary’s Primary Schooly were full of inquisitive enthusiasm and learned a lot from their education visit.”

The project will continue to deliver environmental improvements to the core of Portaferry and support the regeneration of the local area with upgrades across several areas including Market Square, Castle Street, Ferry Street, High Street and Meeting House Street. 

The works include the widening of footpaths, improved street lighting, better pedestrian connectivity and a redesign of the car park within Market Square to create a usable civic space. For more information, visit ardsandnorthdown.gov.uk/portaferrypublicrealm.