North Hertfordshire District Council has moved to reassure residents that work on Hitchin's Churchgate regeneration project is continuing, following warnings that the scheme could be "terminally" impacted by a recent change in political leadership.

The comments come after the no-confidence vote at Full Council earlier this month, which resulted in Cllr Daniel Allen being removed as council leader. During the debate, concerns were raised by councillors about the potential impact of the leadership change on major capital projects — including Churchgate.

Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Tamsin Thomas, Cabinet Member for Enterprise, warned that significant regeneration schemes could be at risk.

She said that major capital projects could be "badly impacted" and, in a worst-case scenario, could be "terminally" affected.

In response, Cllr Val Bryant, Acting Leader of North Hertfordshire Council, has stressed that the authority remains stable and that work on Churchgate is ongoing.

She said: "North Herts Council remains stable and is continuing to progress important work for residents. Political leadership changes have not affected day-to-day operations or ongoing projects – business continues as usual. A Churchgate workshop took place on Monday and work continues at a pace on this project."

The council says this latest workshop forms part of the continuing development work on the long-running town centre regeneration scheme.

The Churchgate regeneration aims to transform the Churchgate Shopping Centre, surrounding public realm and market area into a mixed-use development, including homes, retail, leisure and community spaces. The project has been a major focus of town-centre regeneration plans and has been shaped by extensive public consultation through the Churchgate Conversation.

Councillors backed the development principles earlier this year, with further work ongoing to refine the scheme and move it towards delivery.

Following his removal, Cllr Daniel Allen said the council remained "stable, capable and focused on serving residents," while opposition councillors defended the no-confidence motion as necessary to improve governance and accountability.

Despite differing political views, council leaders are now keen to underline that day-to-day services and major projects, including Churchgate, are continuing.

Residents can keep up to date with the Churchgate project via the council's consultation hub and future updates will be reported as the scheme progresses.