Disappointment as Glossop misses out on Levelling Up funding

Published on 19 January 2023

High Peak Borough Council's bid for Levelling Up funding to provide new leisure and wellbeing and enhanced cultural facilities for Glossop has been unsuccessful.

The news was announced by the Government last night, with just one in five bids being successful, leading to disappointment amongst Borough Leaders and community groups.

Council Leader, Councillor Anthony Mckeown, said: "We submitted a strong bid which had the support of a wide range of partners and stakeholders so it is bitterly disappointing that there is no funding for Glossop as part of the Levelling Up agenda.

"The schemes we proposed would have made a big impact on the wellbeing and health of our communities and further enhanced the multi-million pound investment the Council is making in Glossop Halls to regenerate the town centre and to return Victoria Hall to full use as a cultural venue.

"Instead, Glossop has been excluded from realising these wider benefits and we will need to look again at alternative ways of providing the modern health and leisure and arts and cultural amenities that we know the residents and businesses in Glossop want to see."

The Council's bid package focused on two schemes within the town - a new leisure centre and wellbeing hub, and investment to boost and speed up plans to fully re-open Victoria Hall as a live performance venue and community hub.

Deputy Leader and Executive Councillor for Regeneration, Tourism and Leisure, Councillor Damien Greenhalgh, said: "We were hopeful that the proposals we put forward, which were developed with the support of local partners and stakeholders including the local MP, would have attracted this investment so we're all, understandably, a little disheartened today.

"But our commitment to providing the modern facilities the High Peak and our communities deserve is undimmed. We have a fantastic group of volunteers at Victoria Hall who want to see investment in the building as much as we do and we'll continue to pursue all options to make sure that happens.

"We'll also need to re-consider how we can improve the leisure and wellbeing offer in Glossop so that people living and working here have access to the sort of amenities that other communities enjoy."

Proposals for a new train station in Gamesley were not taken forward to bid submission stage following advice from the relevant transport authorities.

Councillor Mckeown added: "As the Borough Council is not a transport authority we sought the advice of those authorities that are responsible, and they advised that they would not seek to make a bid to the Levelling Up fund for a station in Gamesley.

"We have, however, subsequently funded a study with our partners to try and resolve the issues with a view to making a possible future bid."