WARRINGTON has been offered a Town Deal worth up to £22 million to boost regeneration.

Communities secretary Robert Jenrick announced the funding offer is being made through the Government’s Towns Fund to boost the local economy, get more homes built and support businesses.

Warrington is one of the first seven towns across the country to have a funding offer made as part of a landmark £3.6 billion Government scheme aimed at ‘levelling up’ local economies and creating jobs by investing in transport, infrastructure and skills.

The Town Deal for Warrington will support the council in its ambition to improve the town and make the area more attractive for residents, businesses and visitors.

The plans include helping to revitalise ‘unloved and underused’ buildings, such as those that are vacant, by transforming them into new office space and community hubs.

This would include locations where residents would have the opportunity to learn new skills and meet new people.

The council and local businesses will use some of the funding to invest in more environmentally friendly public transport, such as an all-electric bus fleet depot as well as updates to pedestrian areas and green spaces.

Taken together, these improvements would help to boost footfall to Warrington town centre, giving local businesses such as retail and hospitality the chance to grow and thrive – creating new jobs for people who live locally.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) says work is now under way to confirm the final funding amount and get deals in place so much-needed regeneration projects can begin.

Warrington’s town investment plan sought funding for seven key projects that would help to 'unleash the town centre’s potential'.

Warrington Guardian:

Warrington town centre

These included a health and social care academy, a health and wellbeing hub in the town centre, an advanced construction training centre, a new bus depot, a comprehensive active travel programme, a digital enterprise hub and a remastered cultural hub at the Pyramid.

The Towns Fund aims to play a fundamental role in the local recovery of areas from the pandemic.

The Government says this is in addition to its unprecedented package of coronavirus support, including £15.51 million for Warrington.

Ministers will remain in conversation with local leaders in Warrington over the local Covid-19 alert level, which moved to ‘very high’ today.

Luke Hall, minister for regional growth and local government, said: “I am pleased to confirm Warrington will be given a Town Deal worth up to £22m from the Government’s Towns Fund to revitalise the town centre.

“We need to make sure our towns are able to adapt to our changing habits, and Warrington is no different. This funding will make the town centre a better place to live, work and play, in turn helping local business to thrive.

“We are making sure every area of the country benefits from our shared prosperity, so we can unlock jobs and opportunity for local people in all of our regions.”

Conservative Warrington South MP Andy Carter has hailed the announcement.

He said: "The bid submitted by the Town Deal Board was really excellent, it ticked so many boxes and having spent the last few weeks pushing ministers hard to support Warrington, this is fantastic news.

"This funding will help us boost footfall in the town centre, giving local businesses such as retail and hospitality the chance to grow and thrive – creating new jobs for people who live locally.

"I sat down with the secretary of state in Westminster only last week to press the urgent need for this funding.

"Coronavirus has unfortunately presented us with some brutal realities, so we must do everything we can to create an environment that is attractive to both residents and businesses.

"I made a pledge to fight hard for Warrington when I was elected last year, this funding will really allow us to power ahead with the plans to bring new life to the town centre."

All 101 towns selected to work towards a Town Deal were given a funding allocation with proposals being submitted to the MHCLG.

The first cohort of towns submitted proposals in July, before being reviewed by officials and a final decision made by ministers. Further Town Deals are due to be announced during November.

Town Deals build directly on the Government’s commitment to decentralising funding and decisions away from Whitehall and investing in the growth of local economies and devolving powers through ambitious city and growth deals, providing more than £9 billion of funding to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and introducing eight metro mayors in England.

The Government says it is working with Warrington Borough Council and the Cheshire and Warrington LEP to create better transport links, more connectivity and world-class education opportunities.

Chair of Warrington’s Town Deal Board and MD of Muse Developments, Matt Crompton, said: “To receive such positive news in the current circumstances is validation that the investment proposal we put forward was the right plan for Warrington.

“I’m pleased to see our collective hard work pay off and I’m excited about what this positive funding news means for the future of our town centre.”

Council leader Cllr Russ Bowden said: “I am delighted to see that we have been successful in securing this level of funding for our town centre, which will help us to deliver a string of truly transformative projects.

“Whilst the sum awarded is a little less than the £26 million we initially bid for, we are happy with this funding award, especially in the current climate. It’s great news for Warrington and will give our economy a real shot in the arm at a crucial time.

"I’d like to thank Matt Crompton, as well as the council officers and leisure, education and business leaders who also formed this group and who showed such an ambitious, collective vision for our town. I am pleased to see the work of our Town Deal board pay off and it’s good to see that our vision for Warrington has been recognised."

The Government is expected to sign the heads of terms over the next three to five weeks. It will pave the way for the next stage, which is to develop detailed business cases for each project.

For more information about Warrington’s Town Deal visit warrington.gov.uk/my-town