The Hampshire Market Towns Project Anne Harrison Market Towns Project Manager 18 th April 2012

The Hampshire Market Towns Project How it has operated Results and achievements Legacy Looking forward

The Hampshire Market Towns Project 2001-Market Towns Manager and three Project Officers funded by HCC and project supported by SEEDA Small Rural Towns Fund until 2011 £1.1M allocated to Hampshire towns from SRT 32 towns eligible for grants Working through Partnerships

My role as County Co-ordinator to co-ordinate the SEEDA funding programme Meet partners and community groups, facilitate town partnership development Promote the programme and assist with the Market Town Healthcheck and Action planning Assist with project selection and development, applications to the SRT fund Appraise other counties’ projects Report to SEEDA

Some Hampshire Facts and Figures Reported SEEDA Outputs in 7 Hampshire towns allocated Small Rural Towns Programme grants (as at ) Number Hants SE FT jobs created or safeguarded Seasonal jobs created0.6 People assisted to get a job3 Business start-ups20 Businesses attracted to the region3 Businesses assisted in improving their performance157 Businesses helped into a business network61 Businesses assisted with management skills2 Businesses using support services eg Business Link24 Businesses assisted to use ICT more effectively4 Regeneration funds levered in – public and private£2,21M £11.6M People assisted in skills development20 People undertaking workbased training16 New community facilities (infrastructure)6 23 Improved community facilities (infrastructure)30 59

First phase of SEEDA grants allocated Alton (£50K) Business support, website Alresford (£111K) Long stay parking, footpath Milford on Sea (£65K) Community Centre build New Milton (£240K) Streetscape, town development officer Stockbridge (£130K) Town Hall, tourism, events, project officer, young people Whitchurch (£120K) Streetscape, shop fronts, business centre, website Whitehill Bordon (£240K) Event space, town improvement officer, events

Final phase of SEEDA grants allocated Bishop’s Waltham (£1K) Welcome to the town boards Botley (£7,600) Training equipment Emsworth (£7,000) Train station waiting room Hayling Island £12,150) COPP Memorial signage Petersfield (£7,500) Streetscape, signage, retail Romsey (£10,500) Destination Romsey Stockbridge (£32,265) Town Hall ground floor Whitehill Bordon (£4,335) Retail training and frontages

Resources – match funding and volunteers Local authorities (parish, town, district and county) EU Leader Lottery Heritage Grant Big Lottery Developers’ contributions Private sector Community Builders Awards for All Veolia, Biffa Steering group and topic teams from community groups > 400 volunteers involved Over an average of 3 years Estimated 120,000 hours To the value of >£720,000

Riding the SRTprogramme waves Make SRT application interest Healthcheck Identify priorities Group forms Appraisal offer Only the start! Storming or performing All sub projects underway Claims in In better place for next ascent Community Group effort over time

But it’s not just been about grants…. 20 Market Town Healthchecks completed, Action Plans prepared and implemented 19 networking events in Hampshire and the SE to facilitate sharing of ideas and good practice Town Partnerships created in many towns to assist town councils Groups and individuals working more closely with local councils to make their towns a better place

And despite the rigours of the Healthcheck …. ….which some said was … Whitchurch Bollards

… a pain - it’s helped people in towns do the things they know need to be done, for themselves Lee on Solent’s programme of regular guided walks, designed to bring people to the town, in action. Milford’s replacement community centre, for which they raised £921,000, hosts a small business area and meeting room

It’s combined the energy of individuals and disparate groups Hayling’s DVD Postcard, supported by local business Fordingbridge Flower Festival brought many new visitors to the town Alton a plan for Alton

It’s acted as a catalyst Consultation event in Kingsclere Odiham Spice Restaurant at the Odiham Food Fair (Matthew Trow) Thomas wows the crowds in Petersfield

It’s left a legacy Some real successes Key lessons learnt (managing expectations, dealing with views of disparate groups) Greatest where there has been buy-in at County, District and local level Most effective with a paid member of staff Real community engagement a demonstration of how rural communities can come together to address their own needs with modest amounts of funding Big society in action before it was invented

Looking forward SEEDA more than ever, your town needs to be pro-active - Mary Portas (Town Teams, BIDS) It needs a long-term vision and a plan Plans must be evidence-based (up to date) Your town needs to be ready with an identified project outline when the funds become available Find partners from public, private and voluntary sectors and pool resources Use other agencies and other people’s ideas to help you (AMT, ATCM eg free Portas Pilot workshops 24 th May in London)