Major development sites across the East Midlands could receive government backing through a new \u00a3700m fund designed to unlock stalled industrial and commercial schemes.<\/p>\n
The Strategic Sites Accelerator will target up to 10 major sites across the UK, with ministers hoping the programme will attract as much as \u00a32bn of private investment and support tens of thousands of jobs.<\/p>\n
East Midlands mayor Claire Ward has confirmed she intends to work with the Office for Investment to identify opportunities across the East Midlands Combined County Authority area.<\/p>\n
The programme will target commercially viable sites where there is investor demand but development is being held back by problems including infrastructure, planning, grid connections and access to finance.<\/p>\n
Support could include loans, equity investment, targeted grants and technical expertise.<\/p>\n
Ward said: \u201cSites with strong development potential need flexible support to bring them into productive use. As mayors, we are always looking for ways to deploy that support in a way that works for our business, places, and economies, and the Strategic Sites Accelerator meets that mark.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will help us to bring forward strategic sites, create jobs, and support a more resilient, green industrial future. I look forward to working with the Office for Investment to unlock opportunities across the EMCCA region.\u201d<\/p>\n
No specific East Midlands sites have yet been named for support.<\/p>\n
The Accelerator is already working on potential developments in Glasgow, Burgess Hill and Sheffield, while investment opportunities are also being explored in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, the West Midlands, South Yorkshire, Liverpool City Region, the North East, Glasgow City Region and Cardiff Capital Region.<\/p>\n
However, the government said the programme would be open to projects in every nation and region of the UK, ranging from science parks and manufacturing developments to innovation districts facing viability problems.<\/p>\n
The scheme brings together the Office for Investment and National Wealth Fund, with CBRE appointed as national delivery partner.<\/p>\n
It will focus on sites capable of supporting sectors identified by the government as growth priorities, including advanced manufacturing, digital and technology, defence and life sciences.<\/p>\n
Chancellor John Healey said: \u201cLocal leaders know their communities best. Only by trusting them with real power and resources will we see change.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis \u00a3700 million package is helping break down the barriers to local growth, so people can feel the benefits of a growing economy and love where they live.\u201d<\/p>\n
Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the programme was intended to tackle longstanding obstacles preventing major investment schemes from getting off the ground.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThese are barriers that hold back investment, block new jobs, and shackle our potential, and we need to do more to empower our local leaders and help drive the growth their communities deserve and expect.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis programme will get the ball rolling for up to 10 of the UK\u2019s most important potential sites, attract billions in investment, unlock tens of thousands of good-quality jobs in the years ahead, and bring good growth to every postcode.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Government funding could unlock stalled developments, jobs and investment across the region<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":2111969,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[127687],"coauthors":[95],"class_list":["post-2116826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regeneration","tag-derbyshire","tag-featured-story","tag-nottinghamshire"],"yoast_head":"\n