With Co-Chair Miriam Cates MP and Cllr Julie Grocutt, Sheffield City Council
Miriam Cates MP and Cllr Julie Grocutt have both been key members of the Stocksbridge Town Deal Board since Stocksbridge was first announced in 2019 as one of the 101 UK towns invited to bid for a share of the £3.6 bn Government funding. Miriam is Co-Chair and Project Champion of the Hopper Bus Project and Julie is Project Champion for the Oxley Park Improvement Project and the Tracks and Activities Project. Here's their update on the key questions - what is happening next in the delivery of this game changing investment in Stocksbridge and where the money is going to be spent.
Q: Why hasn’t work started yet on the town centre projects?
Cllr Julie Grocutt: We are really pleased to have seen work start this autumn on the Oxley Park Improvement Project but we do know that everyone is keen to see the major improvements which are coming to the town centre – as are all the Board members. The town centre projects are going to create jobs and really transform the Manchester Road area, but these are complex and, in some cases, commercially sensitive projects which involve working with some existing businesses and property owners and purchasing land and properties. So, whilst it may seem that progress is slow, please be assured that a great deal of work is happening in the background. This is a once in a generation opportunity for the town and we want to get this right and create a real catalyst for further investment and development.
Q: When will we see construction start in the town centre?
Miriam Cates MP: The largest investment on Manchester Road is the new Library and Community Hub building – the working title for the new building is Stocksbridge 519 and the planning application for the new building is ready to be submitted. We’re hopeful work could then start in late spring 2024 on the ground. There are a lot of moving parts in delivering the new building but it’s going to be a great catalyst to creating new jobs and opportunities. Not only will it house a new modern library but also managed workspace and a learning and skills hub as well as flexible community space where we can house facilities including pop up banking services.
Q: What does the Town Deal Board see at the priorities for the town:
Cllr Julie Grocutt: The town centre projects, regenerating Manchester Road, came out as a huge priority when we held our public consultation sessions, and that’s certainly reflected in the conversations with local people that I have through my role as a local councillor on Sheffield City Council and Stocksbridge Town Council. We have been fortunate in Stocksbridge to have received private investment in recent years through the Fox Valley development, but we want to see a town centre that is fit for purpose and can also attract businesses and customers. Town centres are changing and evolving and that’s really accelerated through the pandemic in lots of ways. But people still want to connect and collaborate, and we want to create the right environment to future proof our town centre. We want to encourage traditional markets and attractive landscaping and outdoor areas, but also create the right environment for businesses to establish and grow. As well as the town centre we know how important the Hopper Bus project is to the community in Stocksbridge, Deepcar and Bolsterstone and that will be moving ahead at pace as soon as we have the final piece of funding confirmed by South Yorkshire’s Mayor.
Q: What have been the biggest challenges for the Board?
Miriam Cates MP: Rising inflation and the cost of living is hitting the Town Deal budget hard. We were given the opportunity to bid for investment through the Towns Fund and awarded £24.1m which was confirmed by the Government early in 2023. It’s a fantastic amount of money for our community - but construction and material costs have increased to a level we couldn’t have imagined when we set out on this journey. Even with additional funding from SYMCA (South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority) we have had to really scrutinise the impact of each project and the benefits they will unlock for the wider community and prioritise what we can deliver. We want to focus on and secure those key projects which are going to make the biggest difference to our community and developing a high street that everyone from Stocksbridge can be proud of is mission critical. This means there will be some tough decisions ahead and some projects will be delayed until we can fully understand the costs across the high street projects. Colleagues working on Town Deal projects across the country are facing similar challenges and are having to reprioritise their projects.
Q: Will all ten projects be delivered?
Cllr Julie Grocutt: All our projects started out as concepts which had indicative costs attached to them. Once they were approved, they have had to be worked up from concept into detailed, deliverable projects. Detailed surveys and design work and engagement has obviously resulted in us making changes to all these projects to some degree. But the inflationary pressures is the factor that has had the biggest impact and constrained us and as a result we have had to look hard at our priorities. We now also have to phase projects so we can ensure that our priorities are secured and delivered first. We still have the ambition to deliver the programme, but we need to contract the works and secure the town centre projects along with the Hopper Bus first. We will then review where we are, and if budgets allow, deliver the remainder of the programme although we do know that due to inflation some of the projects will need to be further modified and can’t proceed in their current form. This is difficult and disappointing for everyone involved but is a fact-of-life and consequence of inflation. Our budgets were set in 2019, and 2019 money doesn’t buy things at 2024’s prices – I think we are all experiencing this in our personal and household finances and this is exactly the same for the Towns Fund. It is a hard problem we are trying to square. It will leave certain groups of people disappointed, and it is disappointing for us all, but is a fact-of-life and is where we are. We of course know that some local groups and lobbyists have been frustrated that the Board has made certain decisions to invest in certain project, but under the conditions we face, we must make the best decisions for Stocksbridge that delivers on our communities’ priorities. We can’t get more funding, and the funding isn’t linked to inflation therefore the simple fact is the funding doesn’t go as far as we would all wish! Having said all this, we are totally focussed on what is best for the town and what will deliver more, and better, jobs and opportunities for our community, our businesses, and future generations. I am really confident that the high street scheme we have settled on, which will be shared with everyone very shortly, will excite everyone and gives us all a high street offer we will be proud of.
How can people find out more or get in touch with the Town Deal Board?
We have a dedicated Town Deal website which can be found at www.welcometostocksbridge.co.uk as well as social media accounts on facebook and X (Twitter) and you can also sign up for an e-newsletter. We are planning some drop in sessions for local businesses in the coming weeks from the Town Deal office at Stocksbridge Library so please look out for further details in Look Local and on our website.