Labour sets out £1.5 billion investment in British neighbourhoods

Labour have announced their plans to “restore pride” and “boost local growth” in Britains “left behind” areas through a £1.5 billion investment plan.

As part of their Plan for Change, 75 towns will receive £20 million each over the next decade to invest in local services like education, healthcare and policing. Funding is set to begin in April 2025.

The plans are similar to the previous Conservative government’s Long-Term Plan for Towns and focus on the same areas.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has claimed that the scheme is “in contrast to unfunded pledges from the previous government” with Deputy PM Angela Rayner saying that local communities will have more control over what the money is spent on and “what issues they want to tackle”.

She continues: “For years, too many neighbourhoods have been starved of investment, despite their potential to thrive and grow. Communities across the UK have so much to offer – rich cultural capital, unique heritage but most of all, an understanding of their own neighbourhood.”

The areas selected span across the four nations with 58 in England, two in Northern Ireland, five in Wales and ten in Scotland. The MHCLG said that neighbourhoods were selected after considering “key factors” such as deprivation rates and life expectancy.

Minister for Local Growth and Building Safety, Alex Norris, explained that: “In each area, the government will help set up a new ‘Neighbourhood Board’, bringing together residents, local businesses, and grassroots campaigners to draw up and implement a new vision for their neighbourhood. Mayors will have a formal role in town boards allowing local people to take advantage of the powers devolved from Westminster

“Each board will decide how to spend up to £20 million – they can choose from options ranging from repairs to pavements and high streets, to setting up community grocers providing low-cost alternatives when shopping for essentials, as well as co-operatives or even neighbourhood watches.”

Labour has previously accused the Conservatives of leaving a £22 billion “black hole” in public finances and had dropped the previous government’s “levelling up” name from the ministry. However, the MHCLG has confirmed that this new Plan for Neighbourhoods “delivers on the commitments made to these deprived communities from the previous administration’s Long-Term Plan for Towns” which was retained by Labour after the 2024 Autumn budget.

The Conservative’s Long-Term Plan for Towns followed a similar process, with towns set to receive the same amount of £20 million from a £1.5 billion pot over a ten year period to spend on regenerating local communities. Similarly, the Conservative’s planned to set up a “town board to bring together community leaders, employers, local authorities, and the local MP” to consult the local population and deliver their plans. All of the 75 towns selected by the Conservatives have been carried forward by Labour under the new plans.