Levelling up our towns and places

At the end of last year, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced the Towns Fund, investing £3.6 billion into over 100 towns.

Today, we’re proud to announce that MHCLG has appointed FutureGov, as part of a multidisciplinary consortium of organisations led by Arup and including The Nichols Group, Grant Thornton UK LLP and Copper Consultancy, to help local authorities across England engage with their communities, public and private partners and investors to access the Towns Fund and create sustainable change for their places.

The towns across our country face their own unique challenges and needs. As part of the government’s plan to help level up our regions, the Towns Fund will support the regeneration of places that have not benefited equally from UK growth. Working alongside the dedicated people, the places, the history, the community and, above all, the imagination of these towns, the consortium will help build on their economic, social and environmental success, to strengthen responsive governance structures and more inclusive decision-making.

For FutureGov, supporting the Towns Fund means delivering on our mission to support organisations and communities build places fit for the internet and climate era. These towns are our clients, our communities and our neighbours. Focusing on collaboration and working together in uncertainty, we’ll harness the passion of the public and support the 100 towns to create better links, build a long-term, collective vision for sustainable change and better shape the future of their places.

This work comes at a pivotal moment as we move out of the immediate COVID-19 crisis response and begin reimagining for recovery. It’s our role as town partners and critical friends to help develop capabilities and capacity to drive better outcomes and improve the lives of people and residents. From leadership development at a local level to shared vision, responsive governance and decision-making, the Towns Fund is a momentous shift in supporting communities and towns to do what they do best: to forge a compelling narrative for change, building on the past and looking forward to even stronger futures.