Agenda item

UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Decision:

RESOLVED

KEY DECISION

That the Executive:

a) Approved Core UKSPF interventions and allocations set out in Section 4 and Appendix A of the report, and delegated authority to the Executive Member for Growth & Regeneration in consultation with the Executive Member for Housing, Communities & Levelling Up and the Executive Director of Place & Economy to agree further details of delivery and related initiatives, including any contracts, funding agreements and/or variations to allocations

b) Delegated authority to the Executive Member for Growth & Regeneration in consultation with the Executive Member for Rural Communities & Localism, and Executive Director of Place & Economy to submit the Rural England Prosperity Fund addendum.

c) Delegated authority to the Executive Member for Growth & Regeneration in consultation with the Executive Members for Rural Communities & Localism; and Housing, Communities & Levelling-Up in consultation with the Executive Director of Place and Economy to consider and agree the Rural Addendum with priority interventions for submission by 30^th November 2022.

Reasons for Recommendations:

· To enable projects to commence delivery and enable Year 1 spend by 31^st March 2023

· To facilitate preparation work to commence on Year 2 and Year 3 interventions and related initiatives

· To ensure that the Rural addendum, with priority interventions, is submitted before the deadline of 30^th November to enable North Northamptonshire to secure its allocated funding

Alternative Options Considered:

· The Council did not submit an Investment Plan or does not submit a Rural addendum, meaning that the area is not able to access its allocation resulting in the loss of significant funds and related outcomes and benefits

Minutes:

The Chair welcomed Cllr John McGhee to the meeting and invited him to address the Executive. Cllr McGhee queried whether the Council had yet received the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) award from the Government and whether the full amount could still be expected given the national financial crisis. Cllr McGhee raised concerns regarding the decision-making process as to where the money would be spent and requested access to the minutes of UKSPF Panel meetings where decisions had been made. Cllr McGhee concluded by stating that he believed the funding was not being utilised sufficiently in “left-behind” areas.

The Chair thanked Cllr McGhee for his comments and invited Cllr Anne Lee to address the meeting. Cllr Lee registered her disappointment at the plans for the funding and the lack of support for the levelling-up agenda and stated that she would be requesting a breakdown of where the funding had been spent.

The Chair then invited Cllr Mark Pengelly to address the Executive. Cllr Pengelly stated that the Shared Prosperity Fund was a central pillar of the levelling-up agenda and asked the Executive to make a commitment to circulate more information to members regarding the use of the funding award.

Cllr Lyn Buckingham was then invited to speak to the meeting. Cllr Buckingham welcomed the proposals in the report for “rural-proofing” noting that rural areas of North Northamptonshire had pockets of deprivation. Cllr Buckingham also queried why no funding had been allocated to the People and Skills area for the first two years and whether utilising funding on the Greenway was correct given the current financial climate. Cllr Buckingham concluded by querying the level of funding that had been allocated to undertake feasibility studies in relation to Communities and Place projects.

The Chair thanked all the speakers for their involvement before inviting Cllr David Brackenbury, Executive Member for Growth and Regeneration to introduce a report that set out the progress made to date towards unlocking the allocated UK Shared Prosperity Fund through the submission of Investment Plans and sought approval of further detailed plans and initiatives as well as approval to submit the Rural England Prosperity Fund addendum to secure allocated funding.

Cllr Brackenbury thanked the speakers for their input and clarified a number of points raised, noting that the allocated funding level had not altered despite national financial pressures. It was noted that the funding award was comprised of three funding streams:

· The Core UKSPF Investment Plan allocation of £4,835,332

· The Rural England Prosperity Fund allocation of £1,161,812 to support both local rural communities and businesses in rural areas.

· The Multiply Investment Plan allocation of £1,909,635 ringfenced to support adult numeracy programmes.

Cllr Brackenbury noted that careful consideration had been given as to how the funding could be spent to attract footfall and investment to North Northamptonshire. The use of funding towards the creation of a DiscoverNN Tourist Information Unit at Rushden Lakes would be beneficial in promoting everything the Council had to offer, whilst funding relating to the Greenway would bolster one the largest active travel programmes in the country. At the same time, areas of deprivation had not been forgotten and would also receive support.

In regard to the People and Skills element not receiving funding for the initial two years, it was heard that this area was currently funded from EU funding streams which would come to an end in 2024 at which point UKSPF funding would commence.

Cllr Brackenbury concluded by stating that a wide-ranging engagement exercise had been undertaken with stakeholders regarding use of the funding, with a UKSPF Panel convened comprised of five Executive members to develop and submit the necessary investment plan required for the funding to be accessed. The panel had tried to provide a balanced, well-coordinated use of the funding, with a view to developing alternative sources of funding to deliver other projects pump primed by the UKSPF.

Cllr Helen Howell spoke to note that a significant number of projects had come forward for possible funding in various stages of development, however only projects that were ready to go could be submitted due to funding deadlines involved. There was nothing to prevent suggested projects from further work to become viable in future. Cllr Howell spoke positively of the Greenway, noting the potential for improving accessibility to employment and leisure opportunities while reducing vehicle reliance.

Cllr Matt Binley spoke to note that as “levelling-up” formed part of his portfolio, he had made a number of comments in regard to the distribution of funding that had been included in the final plans. Cllr Binley stated that while a levelling-up theme ran through the plans, investing in the whole of North Northamptonshire would have a wider impact on revenue generation for the whole area.

Cllr Helen Harrison spoke to note that should projects not be immediately ready to go, access to future funding streams would not be available. The Multiply Investment Fund was considered to be an innovative and imaginative proposal that would assist with the levelling-up agenda by getting to the root of adult numeracy issues that many people in North Northamptonshire struggled with.

Cllr Harriet Pentland spoke to note the importance of the Greenway project in encouraging more people to cycle and walk to work.

Cllr David Howes welcomed the positive nature of the report and referenced the funding for Rural Areas, noting that there were a number of businesses within the rural community that needed the support this funding could offer.

Cllr Graham Lawman spoke in support of the DiscoverNN Tourist Information Unit given the number of visitors attracted to Rushden Lakes annually. In addition, support for the Greenway was of great importance to allow the Council to meet its commitments for carbon neutrality.