The ‘Pride in Place’ funding will be spent using a “community-first approach”, reports James Cracknell
Residents living in two parts of Barking and Dagenham borough are set to benefit from a major new cash injection from the Labour government.
Mayesbrook Park and Rippleside (within Mayesbrook and Eastbury wards in Barking), plus Central Park and Frizlands Lane (within Heath ward in Dagenham), will each receive £20million spread over a decade. It means £2m will be available for these communities every year between now and 2036.
It had been announced last year that Barking and Dagenham would benefit from £1.5m of ‘Pride in Place’ government funding to spend on improving public spaces, but this figure has been eclipsed by the latest announcement, which forms part of the government’s ‘Plan for Neighbourhoods’ – itself part of the wider Pride in Place Impact Fund.
The two local areas are among 40 around the country to be granted money as part of this latest scheme, with Barking and Dagenham being one of three London boroughs to have two different areas chosen for the cash injection.
This new funding will be delivered through a “community-led approach” with decisions on how the funding is allocated shaped by local residents and community groups, instead of being allocated centrally.
Two local Labour MPs have welcomed the news.
Dagenham and Rainham MP Margaret Mullane said she had been lobbying ministers and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government since the first tranche of Pride in Place funding was allocated last year, urging the government to invest more in her constituency.
Reacting to the government announcement on Friday (20th) she said: “This is remarkable! This transformational investment will see power put back into the hands of the community. This is the difference a Labour government makes.
“The new phase of our Pride in Place project will see local people given the power to revitalise their neglected high streets, create new spaces for young people, seize boarded up shops through new compulsory purchase powers, save libraries and much more.
“The Heath ward area has one of the highest rates of deprivation in the borough and in my constituency, but it also holds a lot of promise. From the Fiddlers and Central Park, through the Heath Park Estate, and down to Oxlow Lane, this funding will breathe new life into the community.
“Amazing news.”
New neighbourhood boards will be responsible for overseeing how the funding is spent and for developing a Pride in Place plan, with “a clear duty to engage meaningfully with the community so that local people are at the heart of decision-making”.
Barking MP Nesil Caliskan added: “I was pleased with the government’s initial announcement of £1.5m in funding for Barking and Dagenham’s high streets, but local people deserved more to make a tangible impact in our local communities.
“I’ve been campaigning for an uplift on the £1.5m Pride in Place, speaking to ministers and urging them to invest in Barking and Dagenham. People should feel pride in the places they live and enjoy the opportunities that emerge from revitalised community centres. That’s why I’m pleased that Barking and Dagenham will now receive £20m which will make a real difference to our local area and economy.”
Over the coming months Barking and Dagenham Council will work alongside the two local MPs to establish neighbourhood panels, made up of community groups, local organisations and social clubs, who will consult with the wider community and decide how the money is used over the next ten years.
Council leader Dominic Twomey said: “This is a fantastic investment into our borough, I can’t wait for us to start working with our communities to get this funding into the places most in need of it.
“Both of the chosen neighbourhoods include significant parkland, community facilities, public realm and local retail parades which would all benefit from investment and that will be communities to decide.”
“Over the two areas in Barking and Dagenham we’ll be able to invest up to £40million over ten years, this is a transformational amount and one we’re very excited about.
“Key to it all will be working with residents and giving them real power to breathe new life into the places they call home. We want everyone to be able to have a say in making their neighbourhoods places to be really proud of. It starts here.”
For more information on Pride in Place:
Visit gov.uk/government/publications/pride-in-place-programme
