Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has unveiled a second tranche of investment from the city-region’s GM Good Growth Fund.
First announced last year, the £1 billion fund was launched with commitments to back a number of high-impact development projects across the city-region with an initial £400 million of investment. Stockport received the largest share of the initial investment of any borough besides Manchester, and was awarded £56.3 million to support two major town centre housing schemes.
The fund is now also being backed by at least £500 million from a new National Wealth Fund, as well as a £314 million transport funding boost, and £175 million from government, taking the fund’s total to £2 billion.
Andy Haldane, the President of the British Chambers of Commerce, praised the Good Growth Fund as “a fantastically innovative way of solving a really deep-rooted longstanding problem in the UK, which is that far too little money is flowing outside of the South East.”
The former Chief Economist for the Bank of England said he hopes Greater Manchester’s approach can be replicated across the UK “to make good on the holy grail that is national growth.”
Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham said:
“We’re serious about making sure every part of Greater Manchester benefits from our approach to good growth. By almost doubling our Good Growth Fund, thanks to a landmark partnership with the National Wealth Fund and new investment from Government, we can invest in bringing even more homes, jobs and opportunities to our communities.”
To ensure the impact of money invested, projects backed by the GM Good Growth Fund will be required to sign up to a series of commitments under new Good Growth Contracts; these include:
- creating new apprenticeships and T Level placements,
- becoming members of the Good Employer and Good Landlord Charters,
- including local suppliers in the delivery of projects,
- building developments to the highest low-carbon and environmental standards.
A new charitable vehicle, the Good Futures Fund, has also launched to work alongside the Good Growth Fund to support initiatives that improve the life chances of young people, drawing on contributions from fund recipients and partners to give a multi-million-pound boost to projects across Greater Manchester.
Among the schemes being supported by the latest round of funding including a £90 million investment in a new Energy Campus in Trafford, bringing together an existing cluster of green energy businesses around the existing Carrington Power Station, and a liquid air energy storage plant currently under construction by Highview Power. Plans are set to unlock 50,000 sqm of employment space and up to 5,300 new jobs.
Further funding will also go to support development of an advanced manufacturing cluster within the Atom Valley Mayoral Development Zone in the North of the city-region. Up to £15 million will support a new Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre to anchor the cluster and deliver 11,686 sq ft of employment space. £52.1 million will also support transport connections to the Northern Gateway area in Bury and Rochdale to unlock around 3,000 new homes, 1,200,000 sqm employment space and 20,000 operational jobs.
In Stockport, a £1.6 million Small Loans Fund allocation will deliver 16 rental apartments, re-purposing the vacant upper floors of Graylaw House in Stockport.
Commenting on the GM Good Growth Fund’s additional funding and latest allocations, Cllr Mark Roberts, Leader of Stockport Council, said:
“This is a huge vote of confidence in Stockport and the partnership-led approach that is transforming our town centre. The Good Growth Fund is turbocharging the next phase of regeneration in our town centre, helping us transform underused land into sustainable, thriving neighbourhoods with high-quality homes and places for people to come together.
“Stockport is already one of Greater Manchester’s success stories, and this investment ensures we continue to lead the way in regeneration and go even further and faster. This boost not only means new homes but new opportunities for everyone across our borough, with new jobs in construction, growth for businesses, better connectivity and ensuring our town centre continues to flourish for everyone.”
Alongside the GM Good Growth Fund, Mayor Andy Burnham also announced plans to bring the Ryder Cup to the city-region in 2035, and is planning to submit a bid with Peel Retail & Leisure. The Mayor is supporting plans to bring the tournament to a new world-class, purpose-built golf course planned at Hulton Park, Bolton, returning the tournament to England for the first time in 30 years.
To support the bid, expected to bring a major economic boost through the estimated 350,000 expected attendees, the city-region has committed £69.8 million to deliver a significant package of transport improvements to the area. Investment will support the first phase of a new M61-M6 link road, active travel routes and new bus routes to the Ryder Cup site.
Andy Burnham commented:
“The success of the BRIT Awards in Manchester shows that we can we attract and deliver international events to a brilliant standard. Culture and sport will be major drivers of our good growth, and that’s why we’re bidding to host the biggest ever Ryder Cup in Bolton in 2035.
“We’ve had promising conversations with organisers about bringing the tournament to a bespoke, world-class course at Hulton Park. But it will only be possible with the right infrastructure. We’re doing our bit to make it happen. We’re committing up to £70 million to deliver a transport package to not only help spectators get to the site but deliver major benefits for the people living in the surrounding areas.
“As well as the new jobs and tourist spend the Ryder Cup would deliver, there’s also a chance to deliver a lasting legacy. We want to work with Government to align transport investment to the tournament – delivering more frequent and modern trains on the Atherton line, investing in better rail stations and speeding up work to connect the area to the Metrolink network.”
