Preston seeks delivery partners for £5m Levelling Up fund

Preston City Council is seeking delivery partners for its £5.2m allocation from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF).

The funds, part of the wider Levelling Up programme, are to be invested in projects that will benefit the city’s businesses, residents and communities by building pride of place and increasing life chances.

The council has now launched a competitive commissioning round to identify partners to deliver key elements of its investment plan.

This first commissioning round covers five priorities identified in Preston’s investment plan which share a focus on business innovation and the transition to a low carbon economy. These priorities are:

• Research and innovation support for local businesses.
• Support for local businesses to decarbonise and invest in low carbon technologies.
• Support to grow the democratic business sector in Preston.
• International trade support for local businesses.
• Support for community measures to reduce the cost of living by improving household energy efficiency.

The commissioning round has now gone live and will close at 5:00pm on Friday 30 June. Projects are expected to commence in July 2023 and run to end March 2025.

Coun Matthew Brown, leader of Preston City Council, said: "The projects included in Preston’s first UKSPF commissioning round will grow our local economy in ways that future-proof employment and create a more inclusive economy which is resilient to the impacts of climate change. We are looking for delivery partners who share our ambition for inclusive and resilient growth in Preston.”

UKSPF priorities in the commissioning round include business and community innovation, support for international trade, business transition to net zero, community energy efficiency, and support for the social economy.