Details

Created: 16 May 2024

Erewash Borough council is stepping up its mission to ensure £25million of government Town Deal cash gets spent in Long Eaton, a new report reveals.

The authority is pulling out all the stops after it emerged most such Town Deal projects across the UK are falling behind schedule.

In a report to the Long Eaton Town Deal Board the council concedes it has not been immune to the kind of challenges faced elsewhere in the UK – where barely a fifth of towns fund initiatives have been meeting their own deadlines.

Reasons include labour shortages and the impact of rampant inflation on costs. In Erewash a new business hub being created next to Long Eaton Town Hall was hit by the contractor going bust. The town’s West Park was due to get new lighting – but flooding from winter storms caused a delay.

Both these projects are now resuming. Lampposts are being installed to illuminate the park, while new builders have been found to continue converting what is known as the old Stable Block.

The biggest chunk of the £25million will be spent refurbishing Long Eaton’s town centre. Plans have advanced to a detailed design stage while consultations take place with residents and businesses. Work is scheduled to start in the New Year.

The five key Long Eaton projects include building iconic new bridges, paths and cycle routes – and compulsory purchasing the derelict Galaxy cinema.

The report stresses how most of the progress so far in terms of meeting delivery timescales is “in common with other Town Deals across the country”.

All risks are being “actively managed” as feverish work goes on behind the scenes. The report says of a March 2026 deadline for money being spent: “The council believes this target can be met.”

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said earlier this year that the completion rate for Town Deal projects “is entirely consistent with the delivery timeframes we have set out”.

It added: “All of the money which was allocated from the towns fund is on track to be spent by March 2026 as planned.”