A NEW arthouse cinema could be coming to Prescot as part of a £3 million investment in the town’s heritage by Knowsley Council and Historic England.

The money will go towards a series of restoration works and community activities in the town, building on the £4 million Prescot Townscape Heritage Initiative that ended in 2018.

Among the projects in line to receive funding is the Prescot Community Church in Kemble Street.

The building, bought by the council in 2018, once housed the town’s first cinema and the local authority has suggested converting it into an arthouse cinema to “support the leisure and visitor economy of Prescot town centre”.

Other projects include the restoration of the former Prescot Museum in Church Street, a Grade II listed building that the council intends to repair and put back into use, and the creation of a masterplan for the vacant land in Sewell Street between the community church and the Cables Retail Park.

According to a council report, this land would be used for a mixed use redevelopment in support of the town’s evening and leisure economy and also to provide a “high quality, affordable town centre residential offer”.

There will also be grants available for private owners of historic buildings to restore their property, similar to the grants made under the townscape heritage initiative, and a range of public realm improvements and community events building up to Knowsley’s year as Borough of Culture in 2022.

Half of the funding for these investments will come from a £1.5 million grant from Historic England, while the council will provide another £1.5 million out of its own resources.

The money will be released over the next four years as part of Historic England’s national High Streets Heritage Action Zone programme, intended to help regenerate struggling high streets in historic towns.