4A.7A - Infrastructure Investment
Infrastructure investment (high speed rail, airport development) in order to maintain growth and improve accessibility to regenerate regions. (P: national governments facilitate regeneration, often in partnership with charities and developers)
Regeneration is a local process because only small areas are regenerated.
However, much of the funding comes from national government (and the EU) in the form of grants. (The future of EU regeneration funding is unclear because of Brexit)
Local regeneration needs to be understood in the context of national policy.
Regeneration Policy since 1950
1950-80
- Regional Policy and New Towns
- Grants were directed at depressed regions, supported by new road development and the movement of government jobs out of London into the regions. New towns were built as inner city slums were cleared.
- Urban Development Corporations (UDCs) and Single Reneration Budget (SRB)
- Focus on inner-city regeneration in deindustrialised areas in northern cities and London, led by quangos which were free from local council control and many normal planning regulations.
- A quango (quasi-autonomous governmental organisation) is an organisation given the power to do a task that might be expected to be done by the government. They are government funded, but act independently.
- Focus on inner-city regeneration in deindustrialised areas in northern cities and London, led by quangos which were free from local council control and many normal planning regulations.
- Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs)
- A much more local policy, focused on regeneration and job creation in specific small areas. There were about 40 LEPs in England in 2015.
A feature of the UK since the 1950s has been a distinct North-South divide. Regeneration has attempted to reduce this.
National Infrastructure Investment
This has tried to reduce the divide by improving transport accessibility in order to improve economic growth.
- The UK motorway network, begun in the 1950s, has attempted to reduce road travel times between regions.
- The proposed High Speed Rail network between London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds is a planned attempt to connect the poorer regions to the economic core in London and the South East.
- Since the 1960s, there has been considerable investment in regional ariports like Newcastle, Manchester and Glasgow.
Local regeneration takes place within the context of these national developments.