Council spending on consultants for the regeneration of Churchgate in Hitchin ran almost £170,000 over budget last year, documents have revealed.

North Herts Council had allocated £36,000 for consultancy work, but ended up spending £205,000 in 2025/26.

The mixed-use regeneration is set to include development across several town centre sites, such as Churchgate shopping centre and the outdoor market, and hopes to bring a "revitalisation" of shopping facilities as well as new homes and improved public spaces.

A report from the authority said the main reason for the overspend on consultants had been the "need to produce a viable scheme to take to the market".

"The risk of getting the wrong answer initially would cost the council more in the long term, so it was important this pre-market work was conducted accurately and properly", the report said.

Surplus rent income and an earmarked Churchgate reserve were used to fund the overspend, with no money now left in the reserve.

The regeneration moved a step closer at a cabinet meeting last week (Tuesday, June 16) after members approved additional funding for the project, with the details not yet made public.

A final decision on the extra funding will be made at a full council meeting next month.

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Tamsin Thomas, cabinet member for enterprise, said work over the last 12 months has put the council in "a fundamentally stronger position", with a "stronger technical and financial evidence base" and "greater insight into market appetite and delivery expectations".

Consultants have been used to look at areas including car parking strategy, market requirements, and possible public realm improvements.

After considering a range of market possibilities, the "strongest commercial option" on the table is an indoor market and food hall, which a report said would provide "opportunities for flexible day-to-evening use".

Speaking about the regeneration as a whole, Cllr Thomas said: "The council is now seeking to appoint specialist regeneration expertise to work alongside the project team in refining a deliverable scheme and supporting the transition from a strategic ambition into detailed delivery planning and implementation.

"The ambition remains to deliver a viable, high-quality… regeneration scheme capable of supporting the long-term vitality, sustainability and future success of Hitchin town centre."

The aim is for a planning application to be submitted in 2027/28, ahead of construction work beginning.

The council took on the leasehold for Churchgate shopping centre in 2022, believing that the current set-up is "unlikely to provide a commercially sustainable long-term future".