Levelling up: Joy and disappointment at funding announcement

Projects in the East Midlands have been awarded millions from the government but Nottingham's half-demolished Broadmarsh site has missed out.

Successful Levelling Up Fund (LUF) bids include £20m to build a theatre in Derby and £20m to transform a Mansfield department store into office space.

But Nottingham City Council leader David Mellen said the announcement was a "big disappointment".

The government says the investment will spread opportunity to overlooked areas.

Here's how the money has been allocated across the region.

The city council has been awarded £20m towards a theatre at the site of the fire-hit Assembly Rooms.

The project is a joint venture with the University of Derby and Derby Theatre.

Council leader Chris Poulter told BBC Radio Derby the money would finally allow the demolition of the Assembly Rooms, which has been closed since a major fire in 2014, and help to kickstart the redevelopment of the Market Place.

He said: "We've got the money in the bank ready to be able to afford to demolish the place and then start again with this new learning theatre and other development space in the area which we hope private developers will come along and engage in."

The government is also providing £13.3m for the Ashbourne Reborn project, which will see parts of the town centre refurbished and a new community hub created.

Nottingham submitted three bids to be considered for central government funding but none were successful. They were:

Mr Mellen said the Labour-run authority would "explore alternative public and private funding options" for the full Broad Marsh plan.

"All three Nottingham bids were very strong and clearly aligned to what the Levelling Up Fund is meant to be about," he said.

"So it's clearly a big disappointment that all of them have been turned down for levelling up funding, which Nottingham so clearly needs."

The outcome was also condemned by two of the city's Labour MPs Alex Norris and Nadia Whittome, with the latter describing the fund as a "ridiculous charade of favouritism".

There was better news for Nottinghamshire, with £20m secured to transform the disused Mansfield department store Beales into office space and a civic hub.

In Sutton-In-Ashfield, £3.1m will help transform a Victorian underground reservoir into a science discovery centre and planetarium.

Almost £18m has been allocated to Worksop to create a new leisure facility with ten-pin bowling and soft play. The work will also create a new towpath link along Chesterfield canal.

And £16.5m has been awarded for town centre improvements in Kimberley and creating step-free access to Bennerley Viaduct - which crosses from Awsworth to Ilkeston in Derbyshire - along with upgrades to the cycle path network in the region.

But a bid from Labour-run Gedling Borough Council for £20m to revamp Arnold's town centre was unsuccessful.

Conservative MP for Gedling, Tom Randall, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he would be seeking an urgent meeting with the government to find out why.

The Levelling Up Fund has awarded £22m for a new outdoor food market and event space in Melton and the updating of the Rutland County Museum to create a digital visitor experience.

The cash will also help fund a new medical research and innovation space in the county and pay for planned improvements for public transport.

The investment was welcomed by Alicia Kearns, Conservative MP for Rutland and Melton.

"I am absolutely delighted that Rutland and Melton's joint levelling up bid has been successful," she said.

"This is the most fantastic news and will change the future of so many of our communities.

"I look forward to seeing our plans become a reality."

By Tony Roe, BBC East Midlands Today political editor

Melton Mowbray is among the winners, with its allocation to be used to invest in part of the Cattle Market complex centred on showcasing locally-produced gourmet food.

They want to make the town a regional and national destination. The local MP Alicia Kearns says they want to make it the Borough Market of the Midlands.

Oakham will benefit too. Its share will be invested in what's called Medi-Tech, a medical science facility focused on the older population. There's money for community transport too and investment in the museum.

A levelling up minister, Lee Rowley, came to the market town to formally announce the deal. But are Melton and Rutland - seen as some of the most prosperous parts of the East Midlands - really in need of levelling up… when bids from places with more obvious needs like Bulwell in Nottingham and Ilkeston have lost out?

He says decisions have been taken which will help maximise growth across the whole East Midlands and those who missed out this time can apply again in the next round.

Labour accuse the government of political favouritism in its decision-making. Nottingham East MP Nadia Whittome says the city is the 11th most deprived district out of 317 in England, "yet not one of our three levelling up bids were successful".

The Local Government Association says why not give money back to local councils to make the decisions about where it's best to invest, rather than have an annual competition preparing costly bids?

Speaking in Nottingham, Becky Cook, from Edwalton, said she believed the problem might have been with the bid prepared by the city council.

"It's disappointing but not surprising," she said.

"Each place has its reasons why it got the funding and there must be a reason why Nottingham missed out."

Jessica Bradshaw, from Sheffield, said: "I went to university here [in Nottingham] when the Broad Marsh was being done up. I'm 28 now and it's still not coming together.

"Nottingham has so much potential. It's a shame.

"I live in Sheffield now but if it was nicer I'd move back here."

And Rosemary Kaur, from West Bridgford, said: "The whole thing is really unfair. It feels like Nottingham has nothing now."

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: "Through greater investment in local areas, we can grow the economy, create good jobs and spread opportunity everywhere."

The government said it planned to launch an interactive map online so people could see which projects in their area were receiving funding.

Michael Gove, the levelling up secretary, defended how cash had been allocated across the country following claims of favouritism towards south-east England.

Mr Gove said the north of England and Wales would receive more per head of population.

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