Decision details

Proposed Decision

As Leader of the Council, I agree that Kent County Council shall:

·           Agree the submission to Government of one shortlist of UK Community Renewal Fund bids per district.

·           Act as the accountable body for projects within Kent’s geographical boundaries that are selected by the Government to receive UK Community Renewal Fund

·           Delegate the authority to the Director of Growth and Communities, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to sign on KCC’s behalf a grant offer letter or equivalent, where this is required to draw down funds following the award of funding by the UK Government.

·           Delegate the authority to the Director of Growth and Communities, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to approve the transfer of funding to third-party project promoters, whose bids are successfully awarded funding by the UK Government.

Reason for the decision:

The decision is required to enable bids to be submitted to Government, so that funding may be secured from the new UK Community Renewal Fund.

Background

The UK Community Renewal Fund (UK CRF): Overview

The Chancellor announced the creation of a new Fund, called the UK Community Renewal Fund, in his budget statement in early March 2021.

The UK Community Renewal Fund, which will run in 21/22 only, is a UK Government (MHCLG) programme worth £220m. This new fund aims to support people and communities most in need across the UK to pilot programmes and new approaches to prepare for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

By 18 June 2021, the Government is seeking project proposals from any legally constituted organisation (be they from the public, private, voluntary or community sector) that will:

• Invest in skills
• Invest in local businesses
• Invest in communities and place, and/or
• Support people into employment.

Projects should also contribute towards the Government’s net-zero carbon objectives, and demonstrate that they are innovative pilot projects that will help shape, mould, and influence the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which is expected to be rolled-out from 2022 onwards, and will replace EU funding streams.

The UK Government has included the four districts of Canterbury, Gravesham, Swale and Thanet within its 100 priority places for the deployment of this Fund across the UK – yet the Fund’s prospectus makes clear that bids could be accepted from every single district within the UK, and that multi-district bids are also eligible to apply. However, it will be more difficult for projects predominantly operating in districts not on the priority list, to secure funding when the Government assesses the projects and makes its final funding award decision.

Full details about the fund are available at:

• https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-community-renewal-fund-prospectus and
• www.kent.gov.uk/ukcommunityrenewalfund

Kent County Council’s role

The Government has designated County Councils (such as KCC) and Unitary Authorities as the lead authorities for administering the call for UK CRF projects on its behalf.

The UK Government has instructed lead authorities to undertake these tasks:

·           Invite bids from a range of Project Applicants, including but not limited to universities, voluntary and community sector organisations, and umbrella business groups. 

·           Undertake constructive engagement with local partners, including but not limited to lower tier local authorities and elected representatives, and other public, private and third sector organisations.

·           Collaborate with other Lead Authorities or partners across the UK where relevant – for example to promote cross-border project opportunities that address needs in common or achieve efficient delivery scale.

·           Appraise and prioritise a shortlist of projects up to a maximum of £3m per place (i.e. per district).

·           Submit a shortlist to UK Government (by no later than 18 June) who will assess the proposals and select projects based on the criteria set out in the UK Community Fund Prospectus.

·           Enter into a funding agreement with UK Government to deliver any successful bids.

·           Issue agreements to successful bidders once funding has been agreed by the UK Government, and then undertake monitoring and assurance activity.

Options

The options available to Kent County Council are:

·         Do nothing, or

·               To advertise the fund, invite applications, shortlist the bids by district, and submit these shortlists to the Government for their consideration.

The ‘do nothing’ option was discarded, as the prospective investment of UK Government funding would benefit for Kent’s communities, business and residents.

How the proposed decision meets the objectives of Setting the Course: the Interim Strategic Plan

The potential outcome of submitting the shortlist of bids to Government is that the Government will choose to fund the bids that focus on investment in skills, business, communities and place and supporting people into employment, and support the decarbonisation agenda. This investment, if awarded, will help KCC to address the following challenges which are listed in Setting the Course:

·   The economic challenge: this activity attracts investment to support growth

·   The partnership challenge: through collating the bids from partners, this Fund presents important opportunities to build on strengthened relationships.

·   The environmental challenge: project bids will demonstrate a contribution to the net-zero carbon objectives or wider environmental considerations.

As Leader of Kent County Council, I agree :

- to finalise and submit to the Government one shortlist of UK Community Renewal Fund bids per district.

- that KCC will act as the accountable body for projects within Kent’s geographical boundaries that are selected by the Government to receive UK Community Renewal Fund

- Delegate the authority to the Director of Growth and Communities, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to sign on KCC’s behalf a grant offer letter or equivalent, where this is required to draw down funds following the award of funding by the UK Government.

- Delegate the authority to the Director of Growth and Communities, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to approve the transfer of funding to third-party project promoters, whose bids are successfully awarded funding by the UK Government.