A raft of projects in Stafford Borough will benefit from more than £4.5m of funding.

Stafford Borough Council has been awarded one of the largest pots of money in the country from the government’s ‘UK Shared Prosperity Fund’ after successfully putting forward schemes to help regeneration, climate change and culture.

The council has drawn up a string of projects that the money could back - including the new Crown Wharf Theatre and scout building in Stone, the History Centre, town centre regeneration, supporting businesses through new grants schemes and creating an enterprise centre to encourage investment in rural businesses.

The money has come from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and is part of the UK government’s Levelling Up agenda.

Councillor Frances Beatty, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Planning, said: “This allocation of money was one of the highest that any district council was awarded and is further demonstration of the confidence the government has in us to deliver for our community.

“There are so many exciting things planned, starting up or ongoing, in the borough and we have drawn up a list of ways we can assist a number of projects using this money and I am confident this will support different sectors of the borough - such as the rural and visitor economy.”

The total allocation to Stafford Borough Council was £4,673,295. It covers a three-year period to 2025 and is aimed at boosting communities, supporting local businesses and improving skills as part of the government’s ‘Levelling Up’ fund.

Along with helping to kit out the auditorium at the theatre in Stone, finishing the refurbishment of the town’s scout building and supporting the £7m History Centre development in Eastgate Street, other areas the funding will be spent on include:

£1.5 million towards the Stafford town centre transformation programme 

Around £1m to drive the visitor economy 

£250,000 on climate change projects 

£500,000 for grants to help local businesses grow and 

£1m to support business innovation 

And the council is also hoping to receive confirmation from Government for another £500,000 to support businesses and communities specifically in the rural areas of the borough. 

This latest funding is on top of significant investment that the borough has attracted recently for major projects including the ‘Future High Street Fund’, the proposed Meecebrook Garden community, the Stafford Station Gateway scheme and the Stafford Western Access Road in partnership with the County Council. 

Work is well underway on the new £28 million skills and innovation centre for Stafford College - with a planning application recently submitted for their £13 Institute of Technology.

Press Release No 5982