This image of Bedford's Garlick Brothers to feature in Historic England Archive

This iconic image of Bedford's Garlick Brothers is one of 19 from the East of England to be entered into the Historic England Archive.

You’ll recognise the old advert of the Bedford monumental masons from Prebend Street – but of course the business has now moved to Roff Avenue.

Since September 2022, people across England responded to an online national call to submit their photographs of the high street on Instagram under the hashtag #PicturingHighStreets.

And now, these winning photographs have entered the Historic England Archive – the nation’s archive for England’s historic buildings, archaeology and social history.

Picturing High Streets has been a partnership between Historic England and Photoworks, helping to build a contemporary picture of England’s high streets through mass public participation and community engagement.

Duncan Wilson, Historic England chief executive, said: “We were overwhelmed by the amazing responses from the public and artists to our call out for photographs of high streets across England. Through contemporary photography, people have captured what makes high streets such special places for social connection, revealed the histories hidden behind shopfronts and celebrated the communities that are keeping them alive today. This new national collection is a truly brilliant historic record of high streets today for generations to come.”