SENIOR councillors and volunteer groups in Newport hope post-Brexit funding for local authorities will continue in future, after the city received more than £32 million towards various projects.
The UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund was one of the so-called “levelling-up” initiatives which Westminster set up to replace European Union structural funds after leaving the bloc.
It was due to end in 2025, however, but will continue until next spring in what the current UK Government has called a transition year while new funding arrangements are finalised.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Monday, Cllr James Clarke, the cabinet member for regeneration, said the fund had paid for projects including upgrades to the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, the new splash pad in Tredegar Park, hundreds of sessions at “warm hubs”, homelessness support, and events such as last year’s Music Trail.
He said that spending had made a “positive difference to our residents and communities”.
Cllr Laura Lacey, the cabinet member for social services, added that many of the projects for young people had been a “game-changer” for them.
A new council report shows the funding has been similarly welcomed by community groups.
“Please continue the support for local community groups who have really benefited from this funding, [which has] directly impacted the people in the communities,” one said.
Cllr Dimitri Batrouni, the council leader, welcomed the fund’s “amazing impact”, adding: “Long may it continue.”
Cllr Yvonne Forsey said the fund had allowed “long-term” investment in the city’s historic canal.
“Can we have some more please?” she asked.
Succession plans for the nationwide fund are ongoing, and councils are currently in the dark about what those arrangements will look like.
The UK Government’s spending review later this week could provide some clarity – the ministry for housing, communities and local government said previously ministers would consider the approach to local growth funding as part of that process.
Ahead of that spending review, a spokesperson for the WLGA (Welsh Local Government Association), said the fund has been “a big help to councils in Wales, supporting local projects that boost the economy, improve town centres, help people into work and back local businesses”.
The spokesperson noted some “challenges” around the speed with which the funding had to be used, but said councils in Wales had “made the most of it”
“Now that the current fund is in a transition year, which ends on March 31 next year, the WLGA is keen to work with the UK and Welsh Governments plans to agree a new long-term approach,” they added. “It’s really important that councils in Wales are involved in shaping what comes next, so the funding works well for local areas and fits with priorities in Wales.
“Councils also need clear information and enough time to plan properly. We’d like to see a new version of the fund that continues to give councils a say and provides longer-term certainty, enabling a sensible balance of national, regional and local interventions.”
