Four authorities share £624m housing infrastructure boost
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Three councils and the Greater London Authority have each been awarded funding ranging from £80m to £318m to deliver infrastructure projects in support of new homes.
Chancellor Sajid Javid said the allocation of £624m from the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund would aid the provision of 50,000 new homes in Essex, Bedfordshire and parts of London by providing vital transport connections and school places.
Essex County Council is the biggest beneficiary of the latest approved bids for support from the HIF capital grant programme.
It will receive £218 million for the proposed Beaulieu Station and bypass project near Chelmsford and a further £99.9m for a road and rapid-transit system needed for the development of thousands of new homes near Colchester.
The London Borough of Enfield has been awarded £156m for its new Meridian Water regeneration scheme, which will pay for rail works, road infrastructure, land remediation, flood alleviation and utilities at the brownfield site.
2nd Housing & Regeneration Finance Summit
October 31, 2019, County Hall, London
Transport for London, overseen by the Greater London Authority, has been awarded £80.8m to support new housing near a section of the capital’s East London line, while Central Bedfordshire Council’s £69.6m grant relates to a new secondary school and transport infrastructure in Biggleswade.
Essex CC leader David Finch said his authority had spent £2m working up its successful bids, in conjunction with its district councils, MPs and other local groups.
But he said the investment would have wider benefits than aiding the delivery of the combined 21,500 new homes the projects are expected to underpin.
“The announcement is truly reflective of just how key road, rail and public transport networks are for Essex’s growth, helping create the conditions for our economy and communities to grow in a sustainable way,” he said.
Essex said the new Beaulieu Station would relieve crowding at Chelmsford Station, the country’s busiest two-platform station, while the Chelmsford North East Bypass would mitigate local congestion and be a new strategic link for the region.
The second tranche of funding will support the new Tendring Colchester Borders “garden community”.
Enfield Council leader Nesil Caliskan said her authority’s HIF allocation would fund the construction of an east-west boulevard transporting pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles from the Meridian Water Station through the middle of the site into the Lee Valley Park and beyond.
She added that it would also cover the creation of two new parks and cycle lanes as well as new rail infrastructure to enable eight trains an hour to stop at the station.“Well-connected places improve life chances,” she said.
“The improved connectivity that comes with this enhanced infrastructure will help local people take advantage of services, jobs and opportunities right across London.”
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the TfL allocation was “great news for Londoners” and would support housing growth in Canada Water, New Bermondsey and Deptford.
The government said TfL’s £80.8m would aid the delivery of up to 14,000 homes.
Central Bedfordshire said its bid would not only fund a new secondary school but also new power infrastructure to support 3,000 additional homes and new road and rail infrastructure.
Planning and regeneration lead Kevin Collins said Central Bedfordshire had received its full bid request, and had answered a further 200 questions from the government since its original submission was made in March this year.
“Securing this advance funding for vital services and infrastructure demonstrates our commitment to planning for, and delivering, sustainable growth,” he said.
“During the local plan consultations, we heard loud and clear from the public that they want to have the right schools, facilities, health services and transport links in place ahead of the houses: that’s exactly what we’ve done here, and why we’ve worked so hard to secure this money.”
Chancellor Sajid Javid said the five allocations – whittled down from 65 bids – meant that £1.3bn had been allocated from the HIF, estimated to underpin the delivery of 76,500 new homes.
Javid introduced the fund when he was secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, a post he held from July 2016 to April last year.
In June, Woking Borough Council and Truro City Council were allocated a combined £142m from the fund.
