The Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal is a ten year £452 million investment programme that includes £350 million of funding from the UK and Scottish Governments. The Borderlands area covers:
- Cumberland
- Dumfries and Galloway
- Northumberland
- Scottish Borders
- Westmorland and Furness
The Borderlands Place Programme
The Borderlands Place Programme is one element of the Inclusive Growth Deal and will provide up to £30 million in England to support towns to make the most of what they have to offer and to become vibrant and sustainable economic and social centres.
The deal recognises that small market towns and their centres are vital to the economic success, resilience and social sustainability of rural communities. As well as being home to a local population, they also serve as important education, health and shopping hubs for a wide surrounding area. These towns are a key part of what defines the Borderlands area and its appeal to the people and businesses who live, work, visit and invest in the area.
The Place Programme has identified 21 towns able to benefit from the Place Programme, in Cumberland these towns are:
- Egremont
- Longtown
- Wigton
The Place Programme’s ambition is for all towns to become:
- economically vibrant and resilient to change
- places where people of working age choose to live
- places that are attractive for enterprise and business
- places that appeal to visitors as a destination
- places that are recognised for their quality
To secure a share of the funding each town must develop a Place Plan which identifies a range of projects which would benefit the town and contribute to the ambitions.
Each town can then apply for up to £3 million to deliver key projects from their Place Plan that will have an economic impact on the town.