Frustration grows over lack of guidance for £20m regeneration fund

Nicholas Thomas, Local Democracy Reporter

Uncertainty remains over how £20 million of regeneration funding can be spent across a county borough.

The UK Government announced in September that Caerphilly County Borough would receive the sum of Pride in Place Fund cash over a ten-year period.

But there is concern that, since that announcement, no further details have been forthcoming.

A council report notes, “no guidance has been received regarding the Pride in Place Fund… in relation to criteria for using and administering the funds”.

And at a scrutiny committee meeting this week, acting council leader Cllr Jamie Pritchard said he was “frustrated” by the lack of clarity.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he reiterated his dissatisfaction with the lack of progress.

“We are frustrated with the lack of clarity over the Pride in Place £20 million funding over ten years – we really should have had all the guidance criteria many weeks ago,” he said.

At this week’s committee meeting, Cllr Colin Mann asked whether the government money could be put towards saving a series of at-risk libraries across the borough.

The council currently plans to shut down ten of its smaller libraries in a cost-cutting exercise, while retaining seven other sites as multi-service ‘hubs’.

But Cllr Pritchard could not give a direct answer because the authority had “not received the official guidance” on the Pride in Place funding, meaning there was “no way” the money could be committed to a specific project.

“When we receive all the guidance it will go out into the public realm and then we know what we can spend it on, and what we can’t,” he added.

Paul Hudson, the council’s business enterprise and renewal manager, noted around 75% of the Pride in Place Fund was expected to be for capital funding, however.

As well as the expected £20 million, Caerphilly will also receive an initial one-off £1.5 million payment from a UK Government Pride in Place ‘Impact Fund’.

That £1.5 million can be spent in three areas; creating or improving community spaces; enhancing public spaces; revitalising high streets and town centres.

Cabinet members are expected to approve new powers next week, allowing a Regeneration Project Board to oversee both funding streams.

“In terms of what we know in relation to the Pride In Place Impact Fund, we want to see community groups come forward with their projects, in line with the specific criteria set out by the UK Government,” said Cllr Pritchard. “This is why we are ensuring there is political oversight via the Regeneration Board.”

The Pride in Place Fund is one of the successor schemes to the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which delivered £28.3 million of investment to Caerphilly over three years.

Projects supported in its final year included public realm improvements, cost of living support, enhancements at Ffos Caerffili and town-centre events in Blackwood and Ystrad Mynach.

A Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson said: “Our Pride in Place Programme will deliver up to £5 billion to revitalise places like Caerphilly and rebuild thriving communities across Britain.

“We’re putting power into the hands of local communities to decide where this money is spent, and we will set out further details for Caerphilly in due course.”