• 69 high streets in England will be revitalised by a £95 million cash injection
• This is the biggest ever single investment by Government in the UK’s built heritage
• Projects across the country will transform disused historic buildings into shops, houses and community centres
• Funding will help traditional businesses adapt to better compete with online outlets

Increasing competition from online outlets is putting high streets across the country under growing pressure. As part of the Government’s drive to help high streets adapt to changing consumer habits, the £95 million funding will provide a welcome boost that will breathe new life into historic buildings and areas in our towns and cities.

The initiative will be funded by combining £40 million from the Department for Digital, Culture Media and Sport’s Heritage High Street Fund with £52 million from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Future High Street Fund. £3 million will be provided by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support a cultural programme to engage people in the life and history of their high streets.

The investment builds on the successful Heritage Action Zones programme, run by Historic England, and will turn empty and underused buildings into creative spaces, offices, retail outlets and housing to support wider regeneration in the 69 successful areas by attracting future commercial investment.

Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan said:

Our nation’s heritage is one of our great calling cards to the world, attracting millions of visitors to beautiful historic buildings that sit at the heart of our communities.

It is right that we ensure these buildings are preserved for future generations but it is important that we make them work for the modern world.

This £95 million will help breathe new life into high streets all over England, benefiting businesses, supporting our much-loved buildings and helping to make our communities more attractive places to live, work and visit.

The funding will be used for a variety of projects, including:

• To complete essential repair works in historic buildings and reveal hidden and forgotten features of buildings by restoring shop-fronts and facades

• Stimulate commercial investment in high streets by demonstrating how historic sites can be successfully repurposed.

• Develop education projects and bespoke events to help reposition historic buildings as community hubs at the heart of local towns and villages.

• Help address the UK wide skills shortage of heritage professionals in expert fields like stonemasonry and conservation by providing local property owners, residents and businesses with the opportunity to train in these areas.

Communities Secretary of State Robert Jenrick said:

I want to make sure the nation’s high streets continue to be at the heart of local communities. Today’s funding, part of the £3.6 billion we have committed to helping towns across the country, will revitalise much-loved historic buildings, helping to reverse the decline of our town centres. Ensuring that prosperity and opportunities are available to everyone in this country, not just those in our biggest cities, is a priority of this Government in our mission to ‘level up’ the regions.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid, said:

We are doubling funding to nearly £100 million to revitalise our heritage high streets, ensuring they remain at the heart of our communities for years to come. This will help places across the country – from South Norwood to Scarborough – protect their treasured historic buildings and support local economies to thrive.

Historic England’s Chief Executive, Duncan Wilson said:

Our high streets are the beating hearts of our communities. Many have roots that go back hundreds of years. Their historic buildings and distinctive character tell the story of how our towns and cities have changed over time. They are places where people come together to socialise, shop, run businesses and be part of their local community, but now they face an uncertain future.

Through physical improvements and cultural activities, we will work with partners to find new ways to regenerate our high streets. It is a challenge, but with our experience and track record, as well as the knowledge and passion of local councils, businesses and community groups our historic high streets can be thriving social hubs once more.

ENDS

£92 million will be provided by the Government and overseen by Historic England to create 69 new High Street Heritage Action Zones.

£3 million will be provided by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support a cultural programme to engage people in the life and history of their high streets.

Indicative allocation by region:

London and the South East: £14.3 million

South West: £13.7 million

East of England: £7 million

Midlands: £21.1 million

North East and Yorkshire: £17.2 million

North West: £18.7 million

View the successful 69 locations via Historic England’s Google Map

Successful projects include:

• In Tottenham £2 million will be used to restore historic shop-fronts and facades in the commercial heart of the High Road with the aim of increasing economic vitality to boost regeneration in the area.
• In Bedford up to £2 million of funding will be used to reveal the historic features of buildings across the high street, reducing traffic and bringing the wider community back into the area. *Coventry has been awarded £2 million for a project in The Burges, the city’s ancient shopping street. One of the few remaining areas in the city to survive the bombing in the Second World War and the resulting post-war developments. The funding will be used to acquire, restore and regenerate Coventry’s historic buildings to help create a sustainable future for each building.
• Plymouth has bid for £1.99 million funding for regeneration works, education projects and community events to help boost the local high street’s heritage buildings.
• Up to £2 million will be given to Stoke-on-Trent to redevelop vacant buildings within the conservation area with a focus on creating residential spaces above shops within the heritage area.
• Wigan will use up to £1.27 million to restore vacant historic buildings to help support the creation of jobs and increasing footfall in the area.
• Scarborough will make key repair works to buildings as well as providing local property owners, residents and trade people with the opportunity to gain practical heritage skills with up to £2 million from the Heritage High Streets fund.

O embaixador britânico Vijay Rangarajan participou nesta sexta-feira (13) de reunião com o Consórcio Interestadual Amazônia Legal, na embaixada da Noruega. Os embaixadores Georg Witschel, da Alemanha, e Nils Gunneng, da Noruega, receberam os governadores.

“A caminho da COP-26, temos um princípio para a parceria com o Brasil: promover o crescimento sustentável de baixo carbono e o livre comércio. Em complemento aos nossos diálogos com o Governo Federal e o Poder Legislativo, a conversa com os governadores da região amazônica traz importantes elementos para compreender a realidade local”, afirmou o embaixador.

Durante o encontro, o embaixador apontou aos governadores os principais projetos de desenvolvimento sustentável e preservação ambiental, frutos da parceria com o Reino Unido, como o Partnerships for Forests (P4F) e o REDD para Pioneiros. De acordo com o embaixador, eles representam oportunidades para o crescimento das atividades de baixo carbono, com maior produtividade em áreas mais reduzidas.

Ele destacou, ainda, o compromisso dos governadores para combater o desmatamento ilegal e os incêndios na Amazônia, além do trabalho conjunto para ampliar investimentos, promover o comércio e o desenvolvimento sustentável. “Vamos continuar trabalhando com o Consórcio. Juntamente com os colegas embaixadores da Noruega e Alemanha, já agendamos um próximo encontro com os governadores”, adiantou o embaixador britânico.

Contato para a imprensa: press.brasilia@fco.gov.uk

The delegation met the President of Congress, Alvaro Arzu on 10 September to discuss the Agreement and the importance of Guatemala ratifying the Association Agreement before the UK leaves the European Union on 31 October.

The treaty replicates the existing European Union – Central America Association Agreement, and will ensure uninterrupted continuity of the trading relationship between the UK and Central America when the UK ceases to be a member of the EU.

The document arrived in Congress on 12 September sent by the Executive, after the completion of all legal requirements and consultations amongst Ministries to determine its feasibility and compliance with internal Guatemalan law.

Norman Laxton, President of the British Chamber of Commerce (BritCham), said:

The Agreement means foreign investment in Guatemala, it means jobs in Central America, it means guaranteeing trade of the merchandise produced in the United Kingdom, and the seamless continuity of Guatemalan exports to Britain.

In 2018, the UK exported goods and services to Guatemala worth £22 million, and imported £86 million in fruits, vegetables, coffee, and sugar, amongst others. The Agreement also provides a framework for cooperation and development through political dialogue, increased economic ties and our work on important issues like the environment and human rights.

Barbara Amono-Oceng, Chargé d’Affairs at the British Embassy in Guatemala City, said:

We look forward to the approval of the Agreement, as it will help to build our political and economic ties with exporters and consumers having the certainty they need to continue trading freely and with confidence.

The Queen has been pleased to approve that Chris Skidmore MP, a Minister of State at the Department for Education and at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, be sworn of Her Majesty’s most Honourable Privy Council.

Published 13 September 2019

In a speech in Rotherham today, the Prime Minister set out his intention to allow Northern communities to take more control over their services.

This means local people will have more power over how their trains are run, including the frequency and fares, as well as allowing them to hold local providers to account.

This is another step in delivering the Prime Minister’s pledge to level up the whole country so that people can achieve more and have equal, fairer opportunities.

“Today I am announcing my intention to give the railways of the north back to the people of the north. Back to the places where they were born. Back to Stockton and to Darlington. Back to Liverpool and Manchester,” the Prime Minister said.

“On local lines in metropolitan areas, we will give greater control over fares, service patterns, rolling stock and stations.

“And outside the combined authority areas, I want communities to take control too.

“That might be through county councils taking on similar roles, in their areas, for stations or branch lines. Or it might be by transferring local branch line and rural services to community rail partnerships, owned by local people.

“And as you have asked, we will give you far greater control over your budgets.”

The Prime Minister said that many of the North’s best services, including Merseyrail, the Manchester Metrolink, and the Nexus Tyne & Wear Metro, are already run by, or on behalf of, locally elected politicians. “They’re always going to care more about their trains and trams than someone in Whitehall,” he said.

The Prime Minister also said that “in this birthplace of the railways, we can do so much better. Today – coming from London on the train, it took me just over an hour and a half to get to Doncaster. But if, for example, you travelled from Liverpool to Rotherham – less than half the distance – you might have had to leave an hour earlier than me, and change as many as three times.”

He lamented that fact that many Northern cities still have “to put up with old diesel trains, running once or twice an hour, from stations where the only form of welcome on the platform is a bus shelter.”

However, drawing on his experience as Mayor of London, the Prime Minister warned that “as well as taking power, you will have to take responsibility. That means alongside taking the credit, you will be taking the heat.”

He also made clear that the North’s railways must remain part of a national network, which is what passengers want.

The move to hand down more control, in partnership with the railways, is one of the recommendations from the Williams Rail Review, led by independent chair Keith Williams.

The Government is currently delivering the biggest rail investment since the Victorian era – spending a record £48 billion improving our railways to deliver better journeys.

In the North specifically, Northern has invested £500m on 101 new trains – the first of which entered service in July, and the first of the old Pacers being withdrawn in August.

£100m is being spent on the refurbishment of every other Northern train, whilst TransPennine Express have started introducing 44 brand new intercity trains connecting the cities of the north of England and Scotland.