Lincolnshire County Council wishlist for first batch of devolution funding

A report will be brought before Lincolnshire County Council’s Budget Executive on Tuesday, February 6 — outlining six key projects in Lincolnshire that the council is prioritising for capital funding as part of the Greater Lincolnshire devolution deal.

The projects are:

• Sleaford Moor Enterprise Park in North Kesteven
• Old Roman Bank in East Lindsey
• Improvements to the Trans Midlands Trade Corridor in the Lincoln area
• The Grantham Streetworks Programme in South Kesteven
• Flood prevention schemes in Market Rasen (West Lindsey) and Kirkby on Bain (East Lindsey)
• The UK Food Valley Grant Programme (countywide)

These will be made possible by a proposed £28.4 million of capital funding from the government, with £8.4 million going towards brownfield land remediation work, and the remaining £20 million going toward development of the listed projects.

The £8.4 million of land remediation has been “ring fenced” to North and North East Lincolnshire councils, due to both having schemes that are ready for immediate delivery.

According to the report, these projects were chosen as they “meet a clear local need” and deliver “strategic priorities” set out in the devolution deal.

Once business cases are submitted, should this be approved, it is expected the projects will start to be delivered from April 1 — following due diligence checks by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC).

Below is a breakdown and brief overview of each of the five projects, and the funding Lincolnshire County Council has proposed for each.

Old Roman Bank, Sandilands — £9 million

The project earning the most funding from these proposals would be a complete reconstruction of the Old Roman Bank in Skegness, described as an “important access route” for the coastal areas of Lincolnshire.

LCC’s report describes the current roadway as “sub-standard” and “a significant barrier to accessing the environment,” calling for a fresh road surface and the construction of a separate footway/cycleway.

Old Roman Bank is just off Roman Bank, which underwent a 19-month long £4.8 million transformation, completed in April 2022 after many delays and setbacks for the council.

Lincoln Area — Improvements to Trans Midlands Trade Corridor — £3.3 million

Improvement works to key commuter and resident routes in and around Lincoln have also been shortlisted in the key projects, with some £3.3 million predicted for the Trans Midlands Trade Corridor.

This includes Nettleham Roundabout, called a “significant constraint” on the A46 route from Humber ports to the West Midlands, as well as for people in the local area.

Further improvements to surfacing on Carholme Road, Newland and Freeman Road will also “improve transport movements in the city centre” according to the report, linking four elements together into one project to “achieve a greater impact.”

Sleaford Moor Enterprise Park — £2.2 million

North Kesteven District Council would be given a grant for this programme of works to expand its low-carbon industrial estate development, Sleaford Moor Enterprise Park.

The £56 million project was given the green light back in 2020, and in November 2023 the first phase of the build was finalised with up to 15 units now fully let to businesses.

LCC’s report points at “significant barriers” affecting phase two’s viability, namely archaeology, but the majority of these problems could be tackled with the awarding of this government grant.

UK Food Valley Grant Programme — £2 million

This is a programme administered by Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership, focused on providing grants to raise skill levels and productivity in Lincolnshire’s proud food manufacturing sector.

18% of jobs in the Greater Lincolnshire area — around 75,000 — are in the food sector, and an area like South Holland records figures much higher than this, with some 42% of the local workforce in this district being in the food production industry.

The £2 million is “likely” but “not exclusively so” to be strongest in the Boston and South Holland area as a result of these statistics, given the clearly vital role the sector plays in these communities.

Grantham Streetworks Programme — £2 million

Some £2 million of funding can go towards the Grantham Transport Strategy’s vision for improved streetworks in the South Kesteven town — specifically focused on improving “the public realm and streetscapes” in the town centre.

Improvements to Dysart Road, Great Gonerby and Alma Park would lever funding for areas outside St Peter’s Hill in Grantham, the report states, and work to better the walking route between the train station and town centre are also being explored.

Grantham’s east to west links have been outlined as a limitation to the town’s prosperity, and this round of funding is a bid to reduce pressure on such journeys by making the town centre more accessible.

Flood Prevention Schemes — £1.5 million

Lincolnshire dealt with unprecedented weather pressures from Storm Babet at the end of 2023, and had barely recovered by the time Storm Henk hit at the start of January — with hundreds of properties damaged by flooding, and multiple roads closed for prolonged periods of time due to standing water and burst riverbanks.

While described as “small scale” in the report, the £1.5 million of funding bookmarked for this business case seeks to create an environment that will “lever further long-term investment from other partners” — namely the Environment Agency and Anglian Water.

There will be “some short term benefits” but this particular project has been described as a “valuable tactical use of capital funding” due to its clear commitment for a new Water Resources Partnership with the aforementioned agencies.