The announcement of a £3.6 billion Towns Fund to support towns across England to build prosperous futures through innovative regeneration has been welcomed by the Guild of Property Professionals.
Some 100 have been invited to develop proposals for a new generation of multi-million pound Town Deals, allowing communities, businesses and local leaders to join forces to draw up ambitious plans to transform their town’s economic growth prospects with a focus on improved transport, broadband connectivity, skills and culture.
A total of 42 places across the Northern Powerhouse and 33 places in the Midlands are among the 100 pioneers of new Town Deals, Local Government and Housing Secretary
Robert Jenrick has confirmed.
‘Ensuring that prosperity and opportunities are available to everyone in this country, not just those in London or our biggest cities, is at the heart of the mission of this government. We want to level up our great towns, raising living standards and ensuring they can thrive with transformative investment in transport, technology, skills and culture,’ he said.
The Government will soon publish a prospectus to guide towns through the process and set eligibility criteria for funding and once approved, new Town Deals will improve connectivity, provide vital social and cultural infrastructure and boost growth with communities having a say on how the money is spent. Decisions on funding any proposals will be made in due course.
‘This is a great opportunity for our Members in those areas to join forces with other local businesses and the community to come up with an ambitious plan to transform their town’s economic growth prospects,’ said Guild of Property Professionals, chief executive officer Iain McKenzie.
‘The injection of monetary resource from the government will help to improve infrastructure in those areas with a focus on aspects such as transport, broadband connectivity, skill and culture. The improvements will boost local business and will help attract more buyers to these areas,’ he added.
