A KEY part of Worcester city centre has been given the green light for a £341,000 revamp – with ambitious plans to make it a magnet for shoppers.

The city council’s Labour leadership has approved an overhaul for Angel Place after saying it looks “tatty” and “tired”.

Rows of trees will be planted down the route to make it more appealing, and the current market stalls around the edges will be relocated to the centre of the street instead. New ‘roving’ stalls are also being placed down the route which rotate in different directions, so the markets can be in different locations day-to-day.

The project is aimed at restoring more pride into the route and making it a major draw.

Bosses want it to appear much more green and pleasant, with consultations suggesting both the public and traders are concerned about its current appearance.

Councillor Geoff Williams, deputy leader and cabinet member for economic prosperity, speaking during a cabinet meeting, said: “It’s a key gateway into the city and it’s looking rather tired and rundown. The current position of the market stalls isn’t the best to achieve a high circulation (of shoppers). We did consultations over this and one of the main comments was that the city should still continue to have an outdoor market, and that it should be in Angel Place.

“The flexible arrangements of the stalls will allow a much greater circulation.”

The work will start just after Christmas and is likely to be finished by the spring, but Coun Williams said there is still “considerable work to be done” to confirm that.

Councillor Roger Berry, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “I do think Angel Place is rather tatty. This will be a significant improvement for the whole area.”

The city council will invest £120,000 of the cash, and the work will be done with the Crown Estate, owners of the CrownGate shopping complex. As part of the consultations, market holders were asked what they thought of Angel Place – and said being able to move to different locations would be a major boost for them.

Work on the revamp was originally part of the previous Conservative administration’s plans, but it lost control of the council in May.