Councils to 'work closely' as funding pot devolved

The leader of Warwickshire County Council has said the body will "work closely" with other authorities when it takes over the spending of a £10m funding pot.

Council officers are set to take control of the the county's UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) after a deal was agreed with the government, moving the authority a step closer to devolution.

Last week, officials announced that a level two devolution deal had been agreed with the council.

While the deal does not provide any additional funding, it has given the council more power over how it spends part of its budget.

As part of the arrangement, the council will take over responsibility for the area's UKSPF pot, which is currently organised by the five district and borough councils in Warwickshire.

The fund was set up by a previous government after Brexit, in a bid to support its levelling up agenda.

Council leader Izzi Seccombe OBE told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that meetings between the different bodies had been taking place for the "best part of a year".

She said: “We will work closely with our districts and boroughs on the value [the fund] has been giving, outcome based, ensuring that we don’t lose the good but gain the better.

“The contracts currently in place now won’t change so it gives us plenty of time to talk through their thinking behind those contracts, what they are getting out of it and for us to shape things, potentially with them or to put forward alternative ideas should they be more productive.”

The council will take control of the fund from April 2025.

Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.