09 Mar Harlow Council leader welcomes minister to the town as approach to town centre regeneration commended
The Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon MP, visited Harlow yesterday to see the work the council is doing to regenerate the town centre as he launched the Government’s Neighbourhood Plan.
He was given a tour of the town centre by Council Leader, Councillor Dan Swords, and accompanied by local MP, Chris Vince. As part of the Neighbourhood Plan, Harlow is set to receive £20 million over ten years, that was previously earmarked through the Long-Term Plan for Towns. However, the new criteria will give the council more flexibility over the funding.
The Minister commended Harlow Council for its work to regenerate the town centre and was highly impressed by the comprehensive approach to rebuild the whole town centre to boost economic growth, which the funding is intended to further enable.
Funding is expected to be released from April 2025 with delivery investment starting in 2026. A neighbourhood board will be setup to identify specific projects.
Commenting on the visit, the Leader of the Council, Councillor Dan Swords said: “I would like to thank the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon MP, for taking the time to come to Harlow and find out more about what is happening in our town and what we are delivering to renew our neighbourhoods, rebuild our town and secure investment for Harlow’s future. In recent years, the council has successfully secured over £70m in government funding and much more in private sector investment which is enabling us to deliver our missions for the town.
“We welcome the additional £20m in government funding through the Plan for Neighbourhoods which has now been confirmed. This means we can do ever more to transform our town. We look forward to working with the government and our partners to target this funding at the right places and projects to further restore pride in Harlow and improve people’s lives.
“I am very pleased that the Minister was impressed with the work we as a council are doing to transform our town for a generation.”
