The South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership – Boston Borough, East Lindsey District and South Holland District Councils – has welcomed the news that Lincolnshire County Council has been awarded over £19.5m through the Government’s Levelling Up Fund for improvements to the A16 corridor, and West Lindsey District Council has been awarded £10 million.
The Councils are delighted to see the bid supported by Government, recognising the positive impact the works will have on the sub-region’s vibrant and valuable food sector. The A16 corridor is a key route for the Agri-food sector, which is a prominent economic asset for South Lincolnshire, and will include improvements in both Spalding and Boston.
Councillor Paul Skinner, Leader of Boston Borough Council and Lincolnshire County Councillor, said: “The success of this bid further builds upon the Town Deal projects to enable Boston to maximise the levelling up agenda, ensuring that our economic growth for the whole of our community continues to proceed at pace. It is great to see that both Boston and Spalding communities will benefit and further cement the rationale for creating the South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership.”
Councillor Nick Worth, Deputy Leader of South Holland District Council, added: “This news will deliver a valuable message to the food sector and support their continued growth and expansion, both preserving existing jobs and enabling further growth. By improving these pinch points on the A16 it will enable the food logistics sector to be even more efficient and competitive, which is something they have repeatedly requested.”
The Councils also shared their disappointment in seeing that the ambitious £20m Levelling Up Bids submitted for Boston and East Lindsey had not been successful on this occasion and affirmed their commitment to seeking feedback in order that they could be adapted for future rounds of the Fund.
Boston and East Lindsey recently secured more than £70m from the Government’s Towns Fund to deliver a number of transformational projects for each area, which will provide a huge economic boost – helping to support local skills growth, ensuring that local communities are healthy and thriving, and developing a strong and sustainable local economy.
Earlier this year, West Lindsey District Council submitted a bid to be awarded a share of the £4.8 billion Central Government fund, in order to help fund exciting plans to create a “thriving Gainsborough 2024.” The national scheme was created to support town centre and high street regeneration, local transport projects, and cultural and heritage assets.
It is hoped that this funding can fund local Gainsborough projects including improving Whitton’s Gardens, creating a new park at the Baltic Mill, building a new cinema, refurbishing the bus station, bringing an extension to our heritage led regeneration, creating new homes in the town centre above shops, and improving the Market Place as the centre piece of town where people can enjoy outdoor dining, visit our traditional twice weekly street market and meet with friends and family.
Leader of the Council, Cllr Owen Bierley, has expressed his delight at the latest Government announcement.
He said: “We are aware of how competitive this funding was, and how many local authorities had submitted proposals, so needless to say we are absolutely delighted that we have been awarded the full allocation of our bid. This amount of money can have a real benefit to our community, and I want to thank all the officers involved for putting together and submitting such a robust, strong plan.”
Sir Edward Leigh MP – who supported the bid and personally spoke to ministers to assist with the bid – added: “This project will have an incredible impact on Gainsborough, offering a chance for the town to get investment that will really make people sit up and take notice. This town deserves it, and I am absolutely delighted and cannot wait to see the work taking place.”
Liberal Democrats Leader of the Opposition group, Cllr Trevor Young, said: “We supported the authority in making this bid and we are committed to assisting as much as possible with the redevelopment of the town centre. We look forward to helping and seeing the plans now come to fruition.”
Chief Executive of West Lindsey District Council, Ian Knowles said: “This announcement is testament to the hard work of officers across the council. With the support of our members, particularly those serving in Gainsborough, we will look to immediately use this funding to bring to life the projects we have carefully planned for. I want to thank everybody again for their hard work.”
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