Up to £20 million of government funding is 'transformational money' for the town, says Redditch MP
The Greenlands and Woodrow area is set to receive up to £20 million over the next decade to build up communities and revive public spaces as part of the government's Pride in Place programme
Funding from the government to areas of Redditch will be a 'long-term benefit' says Redditch's MP Chris Bloore.
Government announced last Thursday (25 September) funding of up to £5 billion was to be made available to revive high streets, parks and public spaces, with some places to receive up to £20 million across the next 10 years.
The investment aims to support people across 339 neighbourhoods to lead the renewal in their local areas as part of the Government's new Pride in Place programme.
As part of the fund, 169 areas will receive £2 million every year for a decade to give them certainty when planning for the future, totalling £3.5 billion, on top of an existing commitment to 75 areas, costing £1.5 billion.
Included in the £20 million allocation was the Greenlands and Woodrow area of Redditch, something MP Bloore says the places will really benefit from.
"I'm just so excited to see what the members of the community are going to put forward to spend this money on, because this is transformational money," he said.
"I'll be honest, we've got some real health inequalities, income inequalities and skills gaps in Woodrow and Greenlands, we've got some really poor life expectancy levels and this money is about bringing these communities back up.
"It'll make a real difference and we talk about the loss of youth services, rising mental health problems, antisocial behaviour that we've had recently in Woodrow, we can use that money to tackle and take on some of those challenges."
As part of the programme the government say communities will also gain new powers to seize boarded-up shops, block 'nuisance' businesses, and buy 'beloved' local assets before they close.
Other areas in the region included in the funding were Warndon West in Worcester, Birchen Coppice in the Wyre Forest and Hereford south west in Herefordshire.