National funding will help provide new heritage signs on some of Bradford’s most historic streets, following an initiative pioneered by Bradford Civic Society. And they will be created by the foundry that produces the iconic City of Westminster street signs.
The new signs, which will be installed within the demise of Bradford’s Heritage Action Zone, are the latest phase of Bradford Council’s efforts to “restore civic pride” and smarten up some of the city’s oldest streets.
In 2023, the council worked with Bradford Civic Society and Keighley designer Jimmy Smith, of Smiths Workshop, to produce a new black ‘heritage’ design for the city’s street signs and boundary welcome posts.
To keep costs down, signs with the new civic crest design are only installed when an old one needs replacing .
But securing external funding has meant that all streets within the Heritage Action Zone area can be done at once. The city centre signs will also be manufactured to a high-quality, with the council’s in-house sign shop working closely with the foundry who also produce iconic street signs for the City of Westminster and Transport for London.
Si Cunningham, Chair of Bradford Civic Society said: “I’m delighted that we are beginning to put much more emphasis on the importance of quality design and craftsmanship in Bradford — it’s what our city was built on.
“The new-look heritage signs look fantastic, and really help promote the unique character and heritage of the city centre. “Other cities, like Liverpool and Leeds, have their own unique identities visible at every opportunity, so it’s only right that Bradford aims for that standard too.
“It promotes a much stronger sense of place for visitors, while boosting civic pride for residents too.”
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Regeneration, Planning, and Transport said: “Naturally when the opportunity came to replace old signs on some of our most impressive city centre streets using national funding, we jumped at the chance.
The new signs will be manufactured and installed over the coming weeks, with a focus on core streets like Market Street, Hustlergate, and Bank Street.
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