Fund fuels private sector investment boosting Yorkshire economy

YORKSHIRE’S Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) have used £60m of the Government’s Growing Places Fund to bring six times that amount in private sector investment – nearly £400m – as well as an extra £110m in public sector funds, according to figures released today.

The money is being used to fund 32 projects, build 10,000 houses and create 1.5 million sq m of commercial floorspace to attract new business and boost local jobs.

The latest figures show how targeted government public funds have been used to attract triple the amount of private sector investment, Communities Minister Kris Hopkins announced today, as he praised the role of local leaders in turning around local economies.

He used the latest figures from the government’s Growing Places Fund, which reveal that £650m of government funding has secured a further £2.6bn of extra investment with £1.8bn from private sector partners, to show the strides local economies are now making.

That investment is funding 305 local projects across the country which the partnerships believe will create up to 77,000 new homes, 5.3 million square metres of retail, industrial and office floor space, 217,000 jobs and 5,300 businesses.

The funding is being strategically targeted at projects that are transforming previously idle areas into prime economic sites bringing new businesses and jobs to local economies, as part of the government’s commitment to ensuring that Britain continues to attract the investment and companies that will keep it competitive on a world stage.

He pointed to Leeds City Region LEP as an example, which is using a loan of £2m from their Growing Places Fund to unlock £30m in private sector investment to support the Garnetts Mill project in Otley.

The project will include new and converted mill buildings, and a refurbished on-site hydro electric energy generation facility. The loan from the Growing Places Fund is providing upfront delivery costs associated with the demolition, remediation, and infrastructure required to get the development started. The scheme expects to generate 236 houses, 1,022 sq m of commercial floorspace and 37 jobs.

The project is currently underway and is expected to be completed in March 2019.

Mr Hopkins said: “I believe that local economies should be led locally, with a focus on bringing private sector investment right across the country. That’s why we gave local enterprise partnerships not just the money but the powers to end their dependency on Whitehall and drive their own economies.

“I am pleased to see them using this funding with energy and imagination to support businesses, create jobs, and make all regions of Britain a great place to do business.”

David Frost, chairman of the Local Enterprise Partnership Network, said: “The Growing Places Fund has been instrumental in unlocking key investment sites across England, ensuring that much needed local growth is brought forward.

“This unique nature of the revolving fund has enabled Local Enterprise Partnerships to focus on key local projects.”