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Local growth minister signs £190m Tees Valley growth deal


Local growth minister Penny Mordaunt has signed a deal under which the UK government and a local enterprise partnership have committed £190 million towards infrastructure and housing development in the Tees Valley.

England's 39 local enterprise partnerships (LEPs), partnerships between local authorities and businesses to decide on priorities for investment in their areas, each agreed deals with the government in July to receive a share of £2 billion towards specific projects in 2015/16. Additional funding was confirmed in some areas towards long-term projects starting in 2016 and beyond.

The Tees Valley growth deal, between the government and LEP Tees Valley Unlimited, is expected to help facilitate 1,500 new homes, provide up to 1,000 new jobs and strengthen transport links in the region, which includes Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton.

Under the agreement the government will provide £23m for 2015/16 and £67m for 2016 and beyond and Tees Valley Unlimited has agreed to secure a further £100m in private investment.

The funding will be put towards specific projects including highway improvements around locations such as Durham Tees Valley Airport and the Central Park enterprise zone and investment in the Teesside Advanced Manufacturing Park in Middlesbrough and the Tees Valley Business Growth Hub in Darlington.  

"This package is part of our long-term economic plan to boost businesses in the North and provide more security for hard-working families," said Mordaunt in a statement. "This deal will deliver real benefits to local firms and is great news for the Tees Valley."

Stephen Catchpole, managing director of Tees Valley Unlimited, said: "The signing of the Tees Valley growth deal is important to the area as it will support the creation of hundreds of new jobs, provide state of the art research and innovation centres as well as training opportunities for young people, who are our economic future, enable the building of new homes and improve transport links across Tees Valley, all of which will help benefit businesses and residents."

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