Darwen Town Deal: £25m grant is 'start of something really exciting'

Plans include new shops and residential developments in the town centre

The securing of £25m of government funding to help redevelop a town "is a fantastic way to be ending the year", the team behind the bid has said.

Darwen Town Deal Board said the bid was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" and the money would help fund new shops, offices and residential developments.

It was "the start of something really exciting", chairman Wayne Wild said.

Local MP Jake Berry said the grant was "probably the single largest public investment in Darwen's history".

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said the funding would unlock other investment from Blackburn and Darwen Council and private firms and lead to a £90m investment in the town over the next five years.

'Making a difference'

The scheme includes refurbishing Darwen's heritage buildings, such as the Market Hall and The Library Theatre, creating cultural and environmental projects in the town centre and building a new East Lancashire Sports Village to serve Darwen Cricket Club and AFC Darwen.

The proposals also include the creation of trails between Darwen and the West Pennine Moors and a plan for faster broadband in more than 10,000 homes.

A new manufacturing research centre, which formed a key part of the town's bid, will also be adopted as part of the University of Sheffield.

Mr Wild said the board "were determined to secure as much of the £25m as possible and are ecstatic to be awarded the full amount".

"We've said from the very beginning this was an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the town and it does feel like we're at the start of something really exciting."

Mr Berry, the Conservative MP for Rossendale and Darwen, said Town Deal funding was "already making a difference to Darwen through the ongoing renovation works at Darwen Tower".

"The next steps are to get on and deliver the projects that will create hundreds of new jobs, attract millions of new visitors and ensure we continue to deliver the government's Levelling Up agenda," he added.

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]