Sandwell’s bids to the Government’s Towns Fund have been granted in the Budget, with the borough on course to secure £67.5 million of investment - the largest amount to any local authority area.

The announcement means Rowley Regis is set to be allocated £19 million, Smethwick £23.5 million and West Bromwich £25 million. The investment, which is subject to submission and approval of final business cases, will fund a wide range of projects.

The three areas – Rowley Regis (including parts of Oldbury), Smethwick and West Bromwich were specifically selected by the Government to bid for funding. Work has already begun on £2.25 million worth of projects in these areas following a successful bid to the Accelerated Towns Fund programme last year. Deputy Council Leader Councillor Maria Crompton said:

“We are delighted that Sandwell will be allocated this money under the Towns Fund programme to provide a much-needed, long-term boost to our town centres. We now need to review the details of this offer from Government.

“I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in preparing the bids and everyone who had their say when we consulted on our proposals for the town investment plans last year.

“We can now move forward to develop our final business cases for the projects.”

The objective of the Towns Fund is to drive the economic regeneration in towns to deliver long-term economic and productive growth through urban regeneration, planning and land use, skills and enterprise infrastructure and connectivity. Councillor Danny Millard, cabinet member for inclusive economic growth, said:

“This is fantastic news and will really make a massive difference to what we can deliver in our towns. The projects we have planned in our towns are wide-ranging but they are all about improving the area for local people and businesses, working closely with the community.

“It’s important to say also that our team of council officers who have worked so hard on this project on behalf of our communities really do deserve enormous credit and thanks.”

Visit sandwell.gov.uk/townsfund for details of specific projects being proposed for the Towns Fund programme in Sandwell.