Row of high street shops. The closest shop is boarded up.
Church Street, Stoke-on-Trent © Historic England
Church Street, Stoke-on-Trent © Historic England

Stoke-on-Trent Heritage Action Zones

Stoke-on-Trent has a rich and wonderful heritage connected to the production of ceramics.

Its world-famous Spode site sits within sight of the scheme, but there’s a lack of connectivity. This means that the high street is missing out on benefiting from Spode’s visitors and the creative community based at the Spode site.

The Association for Cultural Advancement through Visual Arts, in partnership with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, has already renovated two factory floors at the former Spode Works to create 43 artists’ studios, helping to bring life back to one of the Potteries’ defining legacies. There is also Staffordshire University’s campus in the city.

The aim of the scheme is to facilitate more connectivity between the different sites that together could help to revive the fortunes of the high street.