An official application has been lodged to give Barrow Royal Town status.
Simon Fell, MP for Barrow and Furness, has submitted the forms to the Cabinet Office for review by the King.
Mr Fell launched the campaign in 2023 and said that following Barrow’s celebration of 150 years of naval shipbuilding, it was more than time that it received the status.
The campaign has since garnered a lot of support.
Mr. Fell wrote to Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak and the Cabinet Secretary in December, asking for their support for the Royal Barrow campaign.
In his letter, he emphasised the town’s history and pivotal part it has played in the UK’s industrial and maritime achievements.
The Prime Minister attested to the town’s long and proud history of shipbuilding and its contribution to the continued protection of our shores and those of our allies.
Mr Fell said: “The support for this campaign from the public, and organisations from Barrow, across Furness, and far further afield too has been overwhelming.
“People recognise what a unique place Barrow is, and the role that it has played in the UK’s history, and have spoken passionately about why it deserves recognition.
“I am delighted to be able to put forward such a strong submission, backed by local people who are proud about the place they call home. Now that the formal submission for the Royal Barrow campaign has officially been put in, I wait with bated breath to hear the verdict.
“Barrow is on the precipice of something important, and on the back of Team Barrow and AUKUS, it is the right time to seek Royal Town status and get the recognition that Barrow deserves for the invaluable security it has provided to both the UK and our allies around the world.”
There are only a handful of Royal towns in the UK.
Tunbridge Wells received its royal appointment in 1909 from King Edward VII because of his mother Queen Victoria’s patronage of the spa in the town – Leamington had previously been conferred the title by Victoria in 1858.
Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire was the first town to be designated Royal in 100 years in March 2011. It received the accolade after residents had begun lining the streets over the preceding four years as a mark of respect for armed forces personnel who died in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The London Borough of Greenwich was awarded in royal title in 2012 in honour of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
