Seven market towns on the Norfolk-Suffolk border are being given the chance to bid for substantial grants to boost the economy in the Waveney Valley.
Groups in Beccles, Bungay, Diss, Eye, Harleston, Halesworth and Loddon are all being asked to submit ideas that would benefit the economies of the towns and the wider Waveney Valley, with each town able to bid for a minimum of £40,000 funding to make their ideas a reality.
The ‘Market Towns Initiative’ is being launched tomorrow (Tuesday, 23 February) by the Waveney Valley Local Action Group, a partnership of local entrepreneurs and professionals representing interests in farming, rural businesses, community and tourism. Representatives from each of the towns have been invited to South Norfolk District Council today where the initiative and bidding process will be explained. They will then have until the end of June to submit proposals for ‘round one’ grants under £50,000 - with a further round running later in the year - and until December to submit bids for grants of more than £50,000.
Although each town is invited to decide what measures would benefit their local economy the most, it is intended that any bids should include ideas that:
• Support basic services for the economy and rural population
• Encourage tourism activities
• Prioritise conservation and upgrading of rural heritage.
In February last year, the Waveney Valley Local Action Group received £3.3 million as part of a successful bid for European funding by the Rural Enterprise Hub at Easton College and Norfolk County Council. There are a number of projects currently progressing through the application process; creating new micro-enterprises and supporting farmers to diversify out of agriculture, but this new initiative is aimed specifically at Market Towns.
Bonnie Robinson, Programme Manager said: “Funding has been secured for the whole of the Waveney Valley area but this new initiative will ensure the businesses and people of the Market Towns specifically benefit from the programme”
Patricia Holtom, Chair of the Local Action Group said: "The abundance of small, unspoilt, working market towns with their historic centres has been identified as being of considerable importance to the economy of the Waveney Valley. This programme creates an opportunity for them to identify a particular aspect of their town that could benefit from the grants available or to work together to develop some interesting projects that would benefit the area as a whole. It should prove to be an exciting and rewarding challenge."
The Waveney Valley is home to one of the most concentrated collections of traditional market towns in England. These towns form the lifeline to their rural hinterlands and as such are critical to the development and prosperity of the people who live and work throughout the Waveney Valley.
Norman Hart, Vice Chair of the LAG and Director of Harleston Information Plus said “The market towns of the Waveney Valley play a key role as bustling hives of economic and social activity, extending their influence far into surrounding communities. The impact of their role is remarkable; exceeding geographic and economic perceptions many times over. If the Waveney Valley were a precious necklace the market towns would be its pearls.”
In parallel to the Market Towns Initiative, individual applications for funding can be made to the programme. Funding is available for agribusiness development and diversification, sustainable rural tourism, local food and rural business development.
A minimum of £40k of RDPE funding is ring fenced for each of the market towns of Loddon, Eye, Diss, Harleston, Halesworth, Bungay and Beccles until February 2011. We are looking for each of these towns to submit a collaborative application to help improve the economic performance of the town and the Waveney Valley.
