Mansfield has been selected by the government as one of 55 towns to be given £20m endowment-style funds each over ten years to invest in local people’s priorities.
The Prime Minister said the new long-term vision for towns, backed by £1 billion of investment, was about putting “funding in the hands of local people” to improve their communities.
The announcement made on Saturday (30 September) will see 55 towns, including five across Nottinghamshire (Clifton, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Mansfield, Newark and Worksop), given a £20 million endowment-style fund – each to be spent over the course of a decade.
Mansfield has been a succesful recipient in a range of governement funds recently including: £12.3m from the Towns Fund to progress six projects, £20m from the Levelling Up fund to create Mansfield Connect and £20m in the emerging Levelling Up Partnership.
The new funding is set to be used on local priorities such as reviving high streets, tackling anti-social behaviour, improving transport, boosting visitor numbers and growing the local economy.
Executive Mayor of Mansfield Andy Abrahams said: “I am pleased to see Mansfield in line again for more investment into the district to help with our continuing regeneration work already taking place. We are progressing well with our multi-million-pound regeneration projects including the £20m Levelling Up fund for Mansfield Connect as well as making positive steps forward in the £20m Levelling Up Partnership announced earlier in the summer.
“This additional £20m pot of money from government demonstrates that they recognise the long-term challenges facing Mansfield, and it brings much-welcomed flexibilities in managing and spending resources.
“It also further validates the council’s commitment to delivering the Town Centre Masterplan and looks to complement the ongoing work to take Mansfield forward.
“Since the announcement has been made, we have been exploring the finer details with the government on the next steps and look forward to taking any proposals forward.
“Mansfield is well positioned with partners through our Place Board to set out what priorities we would see focused on in the district, our businesses, and our communities.”
Under the new approach, local people, not Whitehall-based politicians, will be put in charge, and given the tools to change their town’s long-term future. They will:
- Receive a ten-year £20 million endowment-style fund to be spent on local people’s priorities, like regenerating local high streets and town centres or securing public safety.
- Set up a Town Board to bring together community leaders, employers, local authorities, and the local MP, to deliver the Long-Term Plan for their town and put it to local people for consultation.
- Use a suite of regeneration powers to unlock more private sector investment by auctioning empty high street shops, reforming licensing rules on shops and restaurants, and supporting more housing in town centres.
This plan builds on the government’s central mission to level up the UK by putting more power and money in the hands of people who know their areas best to build a brighter future for their community, creating bespoke initiatives that will spark the regeneration needed.
Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, said: "Towns are the place most of us call home and where most of us go to work. But politicians have always taken towns for granted and focused on cities.
"The result is the half-empty high streets, run-down shopping centres and anti-social behaviour that undermine many towns’ prosperity and hold back people’s opportunity – and without a new approach, these problems will only get worse.
"That changes today. Our Long-Term Plan for Towns puts funding in the hands of local people themselves to invest in line with their priorities, over the long-term. That is how we level up."
The Long-Term Plan for Towns will require town boards to develop their own long-term plan for their town, with funding over 10 years and aligned to the issues that research shows people want the most, including:
- Improving transport and connections to make travel easier for residents and increase visitor numbers in centres to boost opportunities for small businesses and create jobs
- Tackling crime and anti social behaviour to keep residents safe and encourage visitors through better security measures and hotspot policing
- Enhancing town centres to make high streets more attractive and accessible, including repurposing empty shops for new housing, creating more green spaces, cleaning up streets or running market days
Levelling Up Secretary, Michael Gove added: "We know that in our towns the values of hard work and solidarity, common sense and common purpose, endeavour and quiet patriotism have endured across generations. But for too long, too many of our great British towns have been overlooked and undervalued.
"We are putting this right through our Long-Term Plan for Towns backed by over £1 billion of levelling up funding.
"This will empower communities in every part of the UK to take back control of their future, taking long term decisions in the interests of local people. It will mean more jobs, more opportunities and a brighter future for our towns and the people who live and work in them."
Press release from The Department of Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities