Council claims £3.2m fund will fill empty shops, create jobs and help businesses - but how?

LACK OF SPECIFICS AS AUTHORITY SAYS MONEY IS AN ECONOMIC SHOT IN ARM

- By ZENA HAWLEY

FILLING empty shops, creating jobs for unemployed young people and improving public spaces are a priority for Derby City Council as it plans how to spend £3.2 million it has been given by the Government via the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA).

The city council says it will be used to build on the success of previous funding that brought £53 million of investment to the local economy and created hundreds of jobs but the authority is sketchy on the details.

The council has until March 2026 to spend its share of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), with the amount given based on a formula which measures levels of deprivation in the city.

It says the money will be used to fund new projects including a scheme to enable entrepreneurs to launch and expand their businesses into empty city centre units, along with initiatives to revitalise public spaces and enhance employability and skills for residents.

Despite being asked, the council did not give specific details of what projects could be brought forward.

Information on how exactly the money will be used was vague.

The council says that UKSPF money, which was first given to authorities under the then Conservative government and was a post-Brexit replacement for EU structural funding, previously supported more than 25 projects across the city, providing grants and one-on-one advice to 168 local businesses.

An employment and skills hub also helped 125 people find jobs or become self-employed and enabled 300 others to gain qualifications but full details on the projects was not available from the city council.