Leiston Community Land Trust (CLT) is a non-profit organisation made up of local people with multiple business, management and architectural skills and backgrounds, brought together by a passionate desire to regenerate Leiston Town Centre. Leiston CLT was formed in 2019 following a Neighbourhood Plan and a Scoping Report commissioned by the Town Council and its partners. These reports recognised t
hat with an empty commercial property rate of 11% compared to an East Suffolk average of 7%, Leiston requires investment and would benefit significantly from town centre redevelopment. Focused particularly in and around the land between the High Street, Sizewell Road and Eastward Ho. The reports reinforced the need for a mix of uses (residential, retail and community) that could serve to draw more people into the town centre, therefore helping to revitalise it. The reports also identified that a Community Land Trust would be the most appropriate institutional structure to take the development forward to ensure that a comprehensive scheme is introduced. This Trust would ultimately own or have control over the non-privately owned parts of the scheme. We know that Leiston is a great place to live and work, with good amenities, but unfortunately we also all know that its local shops need more trade, its cafés and restaurants need more visitors, and its Community needs a green town centre that provides a greater sense of belonging, cohesion and pride. OUR VISION IS:-
* To create a well-planned and designed, sustainable and economically vibrant town centre to meet the current and future needs of Leiston and its people.
* To provide affordable homes for rent to Local people, initially for first time home owners or more elderly people wishing to downsize, alongside new Retail Space to create an attractive and vibrant accompaniment to the Town Centre amenities.
* To provide a Community Space that will contain a modern Library, Town Council offices, citizen’s advice centre plus flexible retail or craft space suitable for both established and start-up companies or individuals.
* To deliver an open space available for markets, concerts, displays etc. A Market Square that can be a central focus for the town, with shops and streets branching from it.
* To further engage the visitor experience and develop the pedestrian opportunity, we propose an additional development in the former Post Office Square. This will focus on the Heritage opportunities of the former Council Offices, the Long Shop Museum and the Leiston Work Railway. Providing a building telling the ‘town’ history in a heritage building with a café facility, opening out onto piazza style space for public recreation. As a coastal town Leiston can only draw on an 180deg catchment. To overcome this it is also necessary to exploit the tourism and visitor capital that the beach has to offer and bring to the town. Along with embracing marketing and promotional advantages of a digital town on the Smart Towns open WiFi scheme.
