High street regeneration among £25m investments

Claire Ward said people want to see tangible improvements in their area

Improvements to a housing estate and a high street regeneration scheme are among the projects set to get a share of a multi-million-pound investment.

A total of £25m has been made available by the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) in the latest round of its Investment Fund.

On Monday, the EMCCA board agreed to earmark some of that money for four projects in Nottinghamshire - in Stapleford, Giltbrook, Newark, and Ollerton.

The mayor of the East Midlands, Labour's Claire Ward, said the projects would support local jobs and "strengthen" communities.

The previous round of funding had supported projects including the demolition and redevelopment of the former Broadmarsh shopping centre in Nottingham.

Ward said the current round had prioritised shorter-term initiatives which were already in progress by local authorities, but needed extra support.

Plans for Ollerton include a new cinema, cinema, and residential spaces

This included the regeneration of part of Ollerton, which will add new business units, homes, and a cinema.

"If you live in Ollerton, you've seen a steady decline of the high streets where there's very little on there, there's very few places for people to meet," Ward said.

"This will be transformational for that high street... it creates a greater sense of pride in that community and also brings new jobs."

Another project receiving money is the Stapleford Pencil Works, which involves the construction of a new business centre in the town.

The funding will also go towards nine "new-starter business units" in Giltbrook, and the redevelopment of the Yorke Drive housing estate in Newark.

It is unknown exactly how much money will go towards each of the four projects because of "commercial sensitivities".

However, public documents show Stapleford Pencil Works is expected to receive £320,000 from the EMCCA.

Ward added: "We just need to do a final business case on them [to confirm the funding], but they would not have got to this point if we didn't think that they were really good options."

More projects will also be considered for the Investment Fund in January 2026.