A BUSY thoroughfare in Worcester city centre is to get a £1.2 million upgrade in a boost for shoppers.

Worcester City Council is on the verge of finalising a significant facelift for The Shambles after years of concern about its tired appearance.

The historic street has fallen behind the rest of the city centre as record sums have been lavished on resurfacing works, particularly in the High Street.

But The Shambles will now get its own makeover with brand new resurfacing, litter bins, improved positioning for the seating areas and clearer linage between the pedestrian areas and loading bays.

The city council's Labour cabinet is meeting on Tuesday next week to agree to pump £400,000 towards it, using a Government fund called the New Homes Bonus.

Worcester News:

The remaining £800,000 has come from Tory-run Worcestershire County Council's £2 million kitty to upgrade town centres, which is being dished out three ways between Worcester, Malvern and Tenbury.

Shoppers in The Shambles called the plans "brilliant" yesterday, and said the route had been allowed to fall too far behind.

Lisa Johnson, 48, from St John's, said: "There's some decent shops down here but more people would use it if it looked more attractive.

"The rest of the city centre always seems to be in good condition or it's being improved, like the plaza (Cathedral Square), this street should have been improved years ago."

Ben Hamer, 19, a university student who lives off Lansdowne Road, said: "It sounds brilliant to me.

"Worcester has got some good shops, it's not perfect but it does pretty well - if you improve the streets then everything starts to look much better."

Councillor Geoff Williams, the city council's cabinet member for economic prosperity, said: "The Shambles is one of Worcester city centre's most popular retail areas.

"This proposed investment would help to ensure The Shambles increases in popularity in the future, a place where people regularly want to visit and socialise."

It comes as bosses at County Hall revealed final plans for the public realm improvements in Tenbury, focusing on Teme Street.

It will be the third phase of revamp work in Tenbury since 2015 and will start in September, finishing in mid-November, with new street furniture and footway facelifts.

Councillor Simon Geraghty, the county council's leader, has called Worcestershire's main shopping areas "the shop window to the economy".