We have been awarded one of the largest pots of money in the country from the government’s ‘UK Shared Prosperity Fund’ after successfully putting forward schemes to help regeneration, climate change and culture. The money has come from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
In April 2022, the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) published the UK Shared Prosperity Fund: prospectus - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
The UKSPF across the UK provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment until March 2025.
The total allocation to Stafford Borough Council was £4,673,295 which covers a three year period to 2025 and focuses on two key investment themes:
- community and place
- supporting local business
An investment plan was created and approved by Cabinet, this was then submitted to government. In December 2022 the government approved our investment plan, setting out how we propose to spend the funding in our communities over the period up to March 2025.
Our plan covers 5 key themes:
- £1.5 million towards the Stafford town centre transformation programme
- Around £1m to drive the visitor economy
- £250,000 on climate change projects
- £500,000 for grants to help local businesses grow
- £1m to support business innovation
We are currently delivering our third and final year of funding, where business projects being delivered include: