New pavements will attract shoppers to Barnes in future as one of the village’s main shopping streets gets a makeover.

Richmond Council will spend £400,000 on Church Road in the next five months, with new pavements to replace the current cracked and uneven surface, which people said created a rundown atmosphere.

Councillor Pamela Fleming, Richmond’s cabinet member for communities, business and cultur, said it was a real step toward supporting local shops.

She said: “We are improving Barnes, literally from the ground up, reviving the area and beginning to create a street where people will enjoy shopping in good local stores.

“Once the work is finished, I hope business owners will see a rise in trade and happier customers.”

Councillor Chris Harrison, Richmond’s cabinet member for highways and street scene, said: “We want our busiest roads to be places which are attractive and overall, safe, for people to visit.”

The improvement works, starting this month, are a result of comments made about the state of the pavements in the council’s All in One survey.

Work will be funded by £250,000 from phase one of Boris Johnson’s Outer London Fund, and £150,000 from Transport for London, to replace paving in front of shops at the Rocks Lane End, and to carry out re-surfacing within the road.