Young people to have say in £20m regeneration spend

Residents including young people must be key decision-makers in a new £20m neighbourhood regeneration programme and how it should be spent, councillors say.

Digmoor in Skelmersale, Lancashire, has been selected for £20m Pride In Place cash from the government, phased over 10 years, with the aim of improving people's health, skills and job prospects, and enhancing streets, playgrounds and social amenities.

Local community champions and businesses are needed for a new Digmoor board to decide how money is spent, and the government recently released £150,000 to the council to get things started.

West Lancashire councillors said they would get £2m each year and would look at how it should be spent.

Melissa Parlour, a West Lancashire councillor representing Skelmersdale North, and lead member for economic regeneration and green growth, put forward recommendations to establish the Pride in Place scheme.

She said: "We are seeking approval from councillors for details including the governance structure, accountability and establishing a board.

"This is the first step which will allow officers to start taking action for residents in Digmoor, who will be at the heart of decision-making."

West Lancashire councillor Neil Furey, representing Old Skelmersdale, said: "I think all of us welcomed this programme when it was announced by the government.

"What we did not have was an understanding of how it will be delivered."

Under government rules, only a few councillors will sit on the Digmoor board and West Lancashire MP Ashley Dalton will be involved too, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Mark Anderson, another West Lancashire councillor with a leading finance remit, said: "I'm delighted this new board will include young people.

"So often we are making decisions about things down the line but young people don't get a say."

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