Following lobbying by Helen Godwin, the mayor of the West of England, the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority (WEMCA) has secured investment from the Brownfield Housing Fund
The Brownfield Housing Fund has allocated £45m to Helen Godwin and the WEMCA, aimed at unlocking 8,000 new homes.
This will include affordable homes, with the money being spread out appropriately between local councils.
“A proper voice at the table”
The money has been secured to combat the rising costs that many brownfield developments face in redeveloping the land, and boosting the viability of schemes.
Helen Godwin, mayor of the West of England, said: “The last week has been huge for devolution and for our region. The West of England now has a proper voice at the table, so we are securing unprecedented investment in housing and transport. In this new chapter, we are banging the drum for our region and can now look forward to building more homes and creating more jobs for local people.
“We are building strong relationships with government ministers, working closely with Steve Reed and his team to get more of the investment that the West needs to help deliver the priorities in our Growth Strategy and Child Poverty Action Plan. This new funding – worth £45m for our region – will prove enormously important as we work together to step up efforts to tackle the housing crisis by building the right homes in the right places, with the right services and infrastructure for people to live well and get around.”
Mayoral authorities are playing a key role in housebuilding
Announced in December, a mayoral funding package was allocated to six regions to cover housebuilding and high street regeneration with up to £200m per year over 30 years.
The six areas receiving a new mayor and access to the funding are:
- Cheshire and Warrington Combined Authority: £21.7m per year
- Cumbria Combined Authority: £11.1m per year
- Greater Essex Combined County Authority: £41.5m per year
- Hampshire and the Solent Combined County Authority: £44.6m per year
- Norfolk and Suffolk Combined County Authority: £37.4m per year
- Sussex and Brighton Combined County Authority: £38m per year
Minister for devolution, faith and communities, Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, said: “This money will help transform communities for the better as part of our Plan for Change.
“It will help new mayors achieve what their areas’ want most, from building more of the 1.5m homes this government has promised to improving the green spaces that locals love – this is how devolution improves lives across the country.”
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