Homes England, the Government’s housing and regeneration agency, Legal & General and national regeneration business, Muse Developments, have reconfirmed their commitment to their long-standing partnership, The English Cities Fund (ECF), for a further ten years to December 2036.
This will enable it to continue to deliver against its mission to transform deprived, urban areas and create exceptional new places across England, tripling its development potential to date.
This commitment will allow for an additional 6,600 homes to be built and enable it to reinvest its capital into new, long-term urban regeneration schemes that will support the Levelling Up of towns and cities, creating places where businesses want to invest, and people want to live and socialise.
This includes a major £2.5bn, 240-acre scheme that ECF has secured at Salford Crescent in partnership with Salford City Council and the University of Salford, which will bring over 3,000 homes, alongside up to 1m sq ft of space to innovate and collaborate, 1m sq ft of offices, retail, leisure and a new multi-modal transport hub with active travel at its heart to the city, all set within swathes of green space. A catalytic infrastructure and public-realm project, Salford Rise, which received £13.17m from the first lot of Levelling Up Funding, will deliver a green boulevard in the sky that stretches over Fredrick Road to connect communities across the city to the opportunities the regeneration will create.
Another example is the once-in-a-generation, borough-wide transformation of St Helens, starting in the town centres of Earlestown and St Helens itself. ECF has partnered with St Helens Borough Council to bring forward opportunities to sustainably repurpose and regenerate areas across the borough, such as delivering a new market hall, grade-A office space, high-quality, town-centre homes, active transport infrastructure, along with extensive public realm improvements. This vision was bought one step closer to reality in February 2022, when the council’s cabinet signed off on the Masterplan Development Frameworks, prior to a planning application later this year.
Together, the regeneration of these two key Levelling Up areas will deliver more than 4,000 of the 6,600 new homes.
Housing Minister, Rt Hon. Stuart Andrew said: “Regenerating urban areas and transforming brownfield sites into thriving communities is integral to levelling up the country.
“Through the English Cities Fund, the public and private sector are working hand in hand to create high-quality new homes and jobs in areas that need them most.
“I welcome the extension of the Fund as we continue our work across government to spread prosperity and opportunity.”
Sir Michael Lyons, chair of ECF, said: “Our towns and cities are the engine rooms of our economy. By bringing together the investment and regeneration skills of Homes England, Legal & General and Muse Developments, we are uniquely equipped to help in reshaping and strengthening local economies. Our ability to work at pace but with focus on long-term impact makes us an outstanding partner for ambitious communities.
“We are enthusiastic about the prospects ahead, as we harness the combined potential of public and private sectors to unlock value where it is needed to benefit local people.”
Peter Denton, Chief Executive Officer at Homes England, said: “The English Cities Fund has a track record of successfully taking on challenging schemes that the private sector alone has not been able to deliver. Bringing together the best of the public and private sector, it has set the benchmark for what good regeneration looks like.
“Reconfirming our commitment to ECF marks a significant step forward as we mobilise our resources to deliver against the government’s Levelling Up agenda, creating vibrant new places, jobs, homes and opportunities across the country.”
