Council approves plans for £4.2 million UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF)
- UKSPF focusses on three priority areas of Community and Place, Supporting Local Business and People and Skills
- Final approval will now be sought from the Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities to spend £4.2 million to deliver a series of key initiatives until March 2025
- In addition, Council aims to secure £441,630 through the Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF)
Following a meeting of the Full Council on 19 July, West Lancashire Borough Council has voted to support the proposed UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) investment plan to deliver a series of key initiatives until March 2025.
UKSPF has been created to replace the previous European Structural Funds and aims to empower local lead authorities to identity opportunities to build pride in place, improve the places in which people live and supporting individuals and businesses to thrive.
Each area of the UK has received an allocation from the fund and West Lancashire Borough Council has been allocated £4.2 million of funding to be invested until March 2025. The funding can be used for a mixture of capital and revenue projects.
The Council's approved UKSPF investment plan outlines how much will be spent, subject to final approval from the Department of Levelling Up Housing (DLUHC), to deliver against the three priority areas set by Government of:
- Community and Place
- Supporting Local Business
- People and Skills
Under each priority are a set of pre-defined interventions which the Council have taken account of whilst also reflecting local needs and opportunities.
In addition to UKSPF, West Lancashire Borough Council, subject to further approval, aims to secure £441,630 under the Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF). This fund was available to eligible local authorities across England and succeeds European Union funding from LEADER and the Growth Programme, which were part of the Rural Development Programme for England.
Following the decision, Economic Regeneration and Finance Portfolio Holder, Councillor Rob Molloy said: "I am delighted to be able to approve the Council's UKSPF investment plan. There is a great mix of projects from across the whole of the Borough which will improve the sense of pride in place, build on our strengths but, most importantly, has our residents, businesses, and partners at centre".
"This funding will have a huge positive impact on our local communities and enable us to deliver a variety of projects to support our borough to build resilience, improve the health of our neighbourhoods, support our businesses, and help to attract new jobs and investment. We look forward to sharing the type of projects we will be supporting in more detail as they come through to fruition."
Further information regarding the UKSPF and REPF can be found here:
