Decision details

A decision has been taken to spend up to £249,999 of the Goldthorpe Towns Fund which has been paid upfront to the Council to fund prepatory Capital spend prior to the formal approval of the Project Summaries by BMBC Cabinet and DLUHC (formerly MHCLG). 

To support with project delivery MHCLG (now DLUHC) paid Barnsley Council £1.155m of the overall Town Fund monies of £23.1m in September 2021.

To enable projects to carry out preparatory works so that they can move quickly into delivery once a Cabinet Report has been approved, enabling final submission of the Project Summaries to DLUHC by 22 March 22 for approval.

The projects that will spend using these funds have already been endorsed by the Goldthorpe Towns Fund Board for inclusion to the Cabinet Report being prepared for Cabinet on 9^th March 22 and for submission to DLUHC by 22 March 22. DLUHC (formerly MHCLG) is represented on the Towns Fund Board so they are fully aware of the direction of travel for each of the projects being taken forward.

Information from MHCLG (now DLUHC) shows that there is no intention to claw back the 5% early draw down if a project is not proven viable, the risk would be that this would be spent within the £23.1m envelope and may not be replaced.

Waiting for Cabinet approval and/or DLUHC approval has been considered. However this would cause delays to the projects being able to quickly mobilise and move projects into delivery phase once the approval from DLUHC is received.

Business cases are being developed with timeframes to deliver the ambitious projects and Plan for the area; and to achieve these timescales there is a significant amount of planning and action required to enable this to happen. Using the early CDEL payment will ensure we have a much needed continuation of project delivery works in advance of formal cabinet report approval for the Town Investment Plan.

The Council has already been paid the £1.155m. The payment has been made to support with project delivery for projects stated in the Heads of Terms Grant letter BMBC has received.

Also, an additional accelerated funding opportunity has already been utilised to begin local key works. In particular this enabled the purchase and demolition of the former Horse and Groom Public House in Goldthorpe Town Centre, providing a redevelopment site as part of the main Towns Fund projects. Due to this demolition now having taken place and the Consultation exercises on the Towns Investment for the community to Have their say, there is also benefit to keeping momentum on the projects and activity visible to reassure of the positive impact to the area of carruing out eaxch of the works.

Alternative approaches for the individual projects are also contained within the full businesses cases and do minimum options have been assessed as part of the economic case within the full business case. Given there are no other comprehensive major government funding streams currently available to assist local authorities and their partners co-ordinate community led wide scale economic regeneration activity to the extent of the Towns Fund. Not moving forward the principles of the full business cases, would impede the submission of the Project summaries to DLUHC and jeopardise securing the DLUHC Towns Investment. This would be a missed opportunity to secure significant funding that will act as catalyst for major regeneration and lever for other investment in Goldthorpe and the wider Dearne Villages.