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Projects Map

Our Delivery

Capital Investment

Secured a total of

£ 579 m

investment for 108 potential Local Growth Fund projects

108 LGF Projects

have been awarded funding by SELEP Accountability Board

£ 472 m

Local Growth Fund spend to date

24,800

Jobs delivered to date

25,200

Homes delivered to date

53

Local Growth Fund (LGF) project completions

Growth Deal

Growth Deals are a £12 billion national long-term programme to revitalise local economies. They provided funds to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), partnerships between local authorities and businesses for projects that benefit the local area and economy.

Through Growth Deals, Local Enterprise Partnerships could seek freedoms, flexibilities and influence over resources from Government, and a share of the Local Growth Fund to target their identified growth priorities. This includes putting forward activity and projects led by partners as part of a package bid.

There are have been three rounds of Local Growth Funds between 2014 and 2017, which fund projects that will deliver up to 2021.

Growth Deals 1, 2 and 3

Our first Growth Deal with Government was announced in July 2014. This was extended in January 2015. Government announced a further round of Growth Deals with LEPs at the Budget in March 2016, Growth Deal 2. Our third Growth Deal was announced in February 2017.

Local Growth Fund

£579m of investment to East Sussex, Essex, Kent, Medway, Southend and Thurrock

In total the SELEP Growth Deal with Government has brought nearly £600m of investment to East Sussex, Essex, Kent, Medway, Southend and Thurrock and over the lifetime of the Deal (2015-2021) we have aimed to deliver 78,000 jobs and 29,000 homes.

The deal and brings new responsibilities and flexibilities and was expected to attract a further £960 million extra investment into the South East.

Local Growth Deal 1

In July 2014 the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) secured £442.1m from the Government’s Local Growth Fund (Round 1) to support economic growth in the area. The Growth Deal brings together local, national and private funding, and new freedoms and flexibilities, to focus on four key priority areas identified in SELEP’s Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) helping to renew the physical and intellectual capital of the South East:

  • Enhancing transport connectivity
  • Increasing business support and productivity
  • Raising local skill levels
  • Supporting housing and development
Local Growth Deal 2

In January 2015 the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) agreed an expansion to its Growth Deal with the Government adding an extra £46.1m to its allocation. This is in addition to the £442.2m of funding committed by the Government on 7 July 2014.

Local Growth Deal 3

In February 2017 Government confirmed an allocation of investment into the South East LEP (SELEP) area of £102.65 million, Round 3 of the Growth Deal Programme. The allocation of Local Growth Fund Round 3 will help deliver projects identified by SELEP Federated Boards as priorities for investment, projects that will help create jobs, support businesses and create new growth opportunities.

How we award funding

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Project Prioritisation

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Independent Technical Evaluation

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Growing Places Fund

The Growing Places Fund was established by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department for Transport in 2011 to unlock economic growth, create jobs and build houses and help ‘kick start’ development at stalled sites. The fund works as a recycled capital loan scheme, with funds being regenerated through repayment of approved Growing Places Fund loans. A total of £49.2m of Growing Places Fund capital funding was made available to SELEP for spend as a capital loan.  The recyclable nature of the funding has enabled a total of £54.4m to be invested across 21 projects to date.

Recycled loan scheme

GPF works as a recycled loan scheme regenerating funds based on the repayment schedules agreed for projects already financed. GPF loan repayments have started to be made from these initial Round 1 GPF loan investments which has enabled eight projects to be identified for further loan investment. These projects were identified by SELEP Federated Boards as meeting the GPF eligibility criteria aligning with the following five themes:
 
  • Employment and Skills
  • Job creation and Enterprise Zones
  • Homes, Communities and Culture
  • Strategic Connectivity
  • SELEP Sector Group Activities including Transport & Strategic Infrastructure, Coastal Communities, Creative, Growth Hub, Housing, Rural, Skills (Further Education and Higher Education) and Tourism.

Re-investment of £9.3m GPF until 2019/20

In November 2017, the SELEP Strategic Board agreed to prioritise the re-investment of £9.3 million GPF until 2019/20 in eight new GPF projects. These eight GPF Round 2 projects are now underway as the funding becomes available through the repayment of existing GPF loans. For all GPF Round 2 projects, final approval of the GPF loan award is required by SELEP Accountability Board following the Independent Technical Evaluator review of the Project Business Case.

Independent Technical Review process

Further information about the Independent Technical Review process is available here. The Business Case has been published for each GPF Round 2 project which has been considered by the Accountability Board to date.  

Growing Places Fund – Round 1

Through Growing Places Fund – Round 1 funding was invested in 13 capital projects across the SELEP area.  These projects were identified by SELEP Federated Boards as meeting the Growing Places Fund eligibility criteria and were aligned with the following five themes:

  • Employment and Skills;
  • Job creation and Enterprise Zones;
  • Homes, Communities and Culture;
  • Strategic Connectivity;
  • SELEP Sector Group Activities, including Transport & Strategic Infrastructure, Coastal Communities, Creative, Growth Hub, Housing, Rural, Skills and Tourism.

The majority of these projects have been successfully delivered and receipt of initial Growing Places Fund loan repayments created the opportunity for reinvestment of the funding through Growing Places Fund – Round 2.

Growing Places Fund – Round 2

Initial Growing Places Fund Round 1 loan repayments created the opportunity for reinvestment of £9.3m through Growing Places Fund – Round 2. In March 2017 the SELEP Strategic Board agreed the approach for reinvestment of the Growing Places Fund funding. The criteria for investment remained the same as outlined for Round 1 of the funding. In November 2017, following the completion of the agreed process, the SELEP Strategic Board agreed to prioritise the reinvestment of the £9.3m of Growing Places Fund funding in eight new capital projects. These projects are progressing well, with some initial loan repayments due to be made in 2019/20.

Growing Places Fund – Round 3

In June 2019 the SELEP Strategic Board agreed that a further round of Growing Places Fund funding should be brought forward in 2019/20.  Round 3 of the Growing Places Fund will allow reinvestment of up to £20.724m which is due to be received in loan repayments by the end of 2020/21.  Following this decision, a process for the prioritisation of new Growing Places Fund projects was developed and was considered by SELEP Strategic Board in October 2019. SELEP has now issued an open call for potential Growing Places Fund projects.  All projects should be aligned with SELEP’s strategic objectives as set out in SELEP’s Economic Strategy Statement, Smarter-Faster-Together.  The Economic Strategy Statement sets out five main priorities:

  • Priority 1 – Creating ideas and enterprise
  • Priority 2 – Developing tomorrow’s workforce
  • Priority 3 – Accelerating infrastructure
  • Priority 4 – Creating places
  • Priority 5 – Working together

Project proposals will be evaluated through a three-stage process:

  • Stage 1 – Federated Area assessment, sifting and prioritisation of projects based on Strategic Fit
  • Stage 2 – Independent Technical Evaluator assessment and scheme prioritisation by SELEP Investment Panel
  • Stage 3 – SELEP Accountability Board funding decision

Stage 1 of the application process requires the completion of an Expression of Interest form for each proposed project. The deadline for submission of Expression of Interest forms is 1st November 2019. Further details of the Growing Places Fund eligibility criteria, agreed prioritisation process and timescales can be found here.

SELEP Growing Places Fund Prioritisation Report and Appendices
Download the report