Spalding Town Board members have praised the news that the initiative which saw it set up to spend £20m over 10 years to improve the town will go ahead.
With the new government formed following this year’s election there had been concerns the project would be ditched.
But in this week’s budget it was stated: “the Long-Term Plan for towns will be retained and reformed into a new regeneration programme’.
It was initially announced as £20m for 10 years for ‘left behind towns’.
Robin Hancox, chair of Spalding Town Board said: “This is excellent news, and I look forward to finding out more about the criteria and the next steps, and what this means for Spalding.
“The Spalding Town Board was set up following the announcement of the Long Term Plan for Towns funding last year and we are fully committed to working with and for the community.
“Our first priority as a board has been to understand what matters to local people, and this summer we carried out community consultation which revealed people’s views and ideas for Spalding.
“Over the last few months, the board has been focused on listening to people’s feedback and preparing a draft long term plan for Spalding to meet the needs of the town. We have also continued to meet regularly to work together for Spalding.
“One of the first decisions we have made has been to use some of the early government funding provided to invest in new Christmas lights.
“Funding the Christmas lights is just one small but significant way in which we can add to the town centre’s appeal, and ensure that everyone coming into Spalding during this festive season, and for many more years to come, has an even better experience.
“The board has also been considering how we can take action to support the safety of the town, reflecting the feedback that was shared with us through the consultation.
“As the details of the funding emerge, the feedback from the public – and findings from any future engagement – will play a pivotal role in shaping how investment coming into the town can be spent.
“It is also great to see additional funding announced in the budget that can benefit our area around business support, heritage, and skills.
“We will provide an update as we know more.”
Councillor Nick Worth, leader at South Holland District Council, said: “It’s great news that the funding for Spalding has been retained.
“We are obviously keen to move forward as quickly as possible, but that is dependent on receiving the detail from the government on the criteria, which may take some time.
“In the meantime we will continue to prepare however we can, and will be ready to go as soon as they give us the green light.”
