'If you want something beautiful in your town, you've got to love it'

"I've got a lot of fond memories of walking through the market and the arcade with my grandma as a little girl. So it feels like a real 360 to be back here."

Standing in the doorway of her brand new unit in Dewsbury Arcade, Emily Parkinson is delighted with the recently-installed bell, which will alert her when customers cross the threshold.

Emily and the 15 other vendors are hoping to hear that sound on repeat, when the building opens on 5 September.

The Grade II listed Victorian structure has undergone a major restoration since 2024 as part of a 10-year, £80m town centre investment plan by Kirklees Council.

The local authority stepped in to buy the building in 2020, after it stood empty for four years.

With help from a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, the space has been transformed into what's been described as the UK's first community-run shopping arcade.

Many involved in the project also hope it will lead the charge in Dewsbury's regeneration.

"I saw the arcade get worse and worse and it just looked sad and unloved," arcade manager and lifelong town resident Jenny Holden-Stokes says.

"To bring it back into something which is truly beautiful, it's a really special thing and a privilege to be able to do it."

Run by community benefit society Arcade Group, the building will house independent, local businesses and start-ups only.

This decision is an integral part of the group's ethos, chair Jackie Ramsay explains.

"We sincerely hope that people see the beauty of this and that it starts to bring money back into Dewsbury," she says.

"We want to try and make sure this is the catalyst for some kind of change."

For Emily, the unit will be her first bricks-and-mortar shop, after the public voted her business, Personalised by Emily, as the winner of a competition to have her first year's rent fully covered.

Having a place that supports local trade is "what Dewsbury is missing", she says.

"I think when people do finally see the finished result, they'll feel the magic that we've been feeling all these weeks.

"Hopefully [in]10 years to come, we'll all still be sat here thinking, 'wow, look how far we've all come together'."

Several doors down, Wojciech is preparing to open his business Next Tech, a games store specialising in Pokémon.

Over the last 15 years, he's seen the arcade change from neglected to restored - and is hopeful that it's a sign of more to come.

"Most of the young people, whenever I had a word with anybody, seem to be a bit excited that something like this [is] opening in Dewsbury," he says of his shop.

"The people here are very helpful and supportive. We all try to stick together to make it happen."

Although the community has been largely receptive to the arcade opening, he thinks some people "are not giving it credit" for its ambition.

"For me, it's a great the arcade is rebuilding and it [is] going to push the use a bit further," he adds.

Dewsbury Arcade first opened in 1899 and many original architectural features have been restored to their former glory, including the glass roof and traditional signage.

The grand opening is scheduled to take place on the weekend of 5 September, with live performances and family activities planned.

According to Jenny, who has "lived and breathed" the project for the last eight months, it will be a "really proud" moment.

"It's a real destination, it's not just shops," she says.

"It's also somewhere to come and meet, to learn new things, to experience things, and if you want to put on your own event here you can."

If the arcade proves to be a success, Arcade Group would like to work on further restoration projects, Jackie says.

"Dewsbury is a beautiful town. If you look up beyond eye level, you will see that there are some amazing heritage buildings.

"And yes, it would be fantastic, wouldn't it, if we could save more?"

For now, those involved with the arcade are anticipating the first time the public can wander the covered walkway, with the hope that bells, and tills, will ring.

"We're hoping that the general population of Dewsbury will come down and have a look and support the businesses that are here," Jackie adds.

"It's really important that if you want something beautiful in your town, you've got to love it."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.