Reassurance on £70 million Peterborough regeneration funds as Government eyes new growth plan
Cash already earmarked for Station Quarter development
Government plans for new partnerships to power regional growth are not expected to change the allocation of about £70 million of regeneration funds for Peterborough, say officials.
The reassurance comes after Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority Mayor Nik Johnson joined 11 other mayors to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer to discuss how local leaders will be empowered to deliver the changes for their communities.
The government says it is looking at using a new partnership approach to the creation of regional growth plans.
And the Combined Authority says it is ready to develop, jointly with partners, a Local Growth Plan for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
It says this will unlock the good growth needed to keep one of the only net-contributing local economies to the Exchequer sustainable.
But the new Government’s approach to encouraging development in the county is not expected to mean a loss of millions of pounds of Levelling Up funds and Towns Fund monies already allocated to Peterborough by the previous government.
A spokesperson for the Combined Authority said: “There is no suggestion of any change to approved funding allocations from the Government’s Towns Fund and Levelling Up Fund for Peterborough and Cambridgeshire.”
£48 million of Levelling Up funds was allocated to Peterborough for its proposed Station Quarter regeneration in January last year and a total of £22.9 million was earmarked under the Towns Fund initiative for eight projects to deliver economic growth in Peterborough.
These include the Centre of Green Technology at Peterborough College, the Lakeside Activity Centre and Olympic-grade Climbing Wall at Nene Park, the Vine cultural and community hub and a pedestrian bridge over the River Nene.
Mayor Dr Nik Johnson said: “The Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister are clearly determined to put power and resources where they can best enable economic growth, and as Mayors we are ready to rise to the challenge.”
Dr Johnson says he intends to continue to make the case to Government for the investments Cambridgeshire and Peterborough needs for sustainable growth.
Key areas of focus include supporting the region’s growing cities, its market towns and rural areas, sustaining agriculture, improving public transport, upskilling the workforce, advancing renewable energy, decarbonising homes, building homes, tackling inequalities, and improving public health.