£42m growth package awarded to Coventry & Warwickshire

Jonathan Browning, chairman, Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership

The Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership has been awarded £42.44m from the Government to top up its Local Growth Deal.

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid confirmed the award, which means the LEP has now secured more than £131m of funding to invest in projects that create jobs, support businesses and encourage growth.

The substantial investment is the third award of Growth Deal Funding for the area, and is on top of the £89.4m already awarded to the CWLEP, bringing total funding to £131.84m.

The new investment could see 7,500 jobs created, 3,500 homes built and attract £240m in extra investment over the next five years.

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The funding will be spent on programmes including:
•    Unlocking Growth Potential; enhancements to the area’s transport infrastructure to provide connectivity with UK Central (M42 growth corridor) and the East Midlands, in turn helping to unlock the potential of towns including Nuneaton, Bedworth and Rugby, as well as Coventry itself. The enhancements will bring underutilised land into use, creating new business space and investment.

•    Growing Talent; creation of facilities that will expand apprenticeship provision at multiple levels, targeting growth sectors within the local growth economy and addressing obstacles to business growth.

•    Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering; investment in facilities to enable further R&D and facilitate the development of new innovative products and technologies within the AME sector.

Jonathan Browning, chairman of the CWLEP, said: “We’re very pleased to have secured £42.44m from government to help make key projects in the region happen. At the same time we are under no illusions about how much more still needs to be done.

“This round of Growth Deals was extremely competitive, so to secure this level of funding and a total of £131.8m is a good result for Coventry and Warwickshire.

“We are, with our partners, stakeholders and government, working to unlock economic opportunities across the sub-region to stimulate economic growth and to allow the area to get close to achieving its potential.”

The funding would be vital in building further momentum within the area, he added.

Cllr Izzi Seccombe, leader of Warwickshire County Council, said: “Among other projects that will be earmarked, the funding will enable us to put in place a strategy to lever in private sector funding to regenerate Nuneaton town centre.  

“It will help to unlock the funding that we need to create an infrastructure in and around the town that will enhance it as an area not just for residents and visitors but also in which to do business, stimulating the local economy and creating jobs for local people.”

Among projects and programmes in Coventry and Warwickshire to be funded by the first two rounds of Growth Deal Funding are:
•    Major investment in road infrastructure improvements, particularly the A45, A46 and A5 corridors and rail infrastructure through improving Coventry station and development of a new railway station in Kenilworth. This has improved connections with other towns and cities and helped tackle congestion on the area’s roads.

•    The construction and opening of the new Trident Centre at Warwickshire College, which has already delivered more than 350 apprenticeship starts in Advanced Manufacturing & Engineering to help to meet employers’ demand for skills in this sector.

•    A new Skills Centre at Coventry City College providing support for 1,000 young and unemployed people in acquiring skills for employment, and for marginalised groups to acquire basic skills especially English and mathematics.

The emergence of the Midlands Engine as a brand for the wider region presents an opportunity for Coventry and Warwickshire to be more involved on the international stage, attracting inward investment from overseas and playing a central role in the economic growth of the Midlands.

Now is a great time for businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire. TheBusinessDesk.com, in association with City College Coventry and Band Hatton Button, will examine the opportunities and potential obstacles with a panel of experts at a breakfast event on April 26.

Sign up for the event here
 

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