DARLINGTON has secured £3.43M in government funding to improve its town centre and help build new facilities. 

The cash boost comes part of the ‘Towns Fund’ – a pot of Government money used to invest in towns across England as part of its plan to level up the UK economy. 

The council has said this investment will enable the progression of three projects: 

  • Improving Skinnergate and the Yards areas of the town 
  • Setting up an adult skills centre in the Northern Echo building on Priestgate
  • Developing a brand new state-of-the-art facility at Darlington College 

Read more: Darlington College to develop training centres

Leader of the council, cllr Heather Scott, praised the investment and will help regenerate the town. 

She said: “This is excellent news and the funding will help us deliver our ambitions for Darlington. The fact that we are one of the first council’s to receive this funding is credit to the hard work and determination that goes on behind the scenes to get these plans across the line. 

"The latest projects will complement and extend current regeneration schemes which are already well underway in the town.”

The funding is part of the £23.3M Town Deal that the council was successful in securing in 2020. 

The Towns Fund programme manager, Chris Mains, said: “This will build upon the impressive work already undertaken within Buckton’s and Clark’s Yards as part of early Towns Fund work. 

"New shopfronts, lighting, planting, benches, WiFi and CCTV installation have been completed in phase one, which has greatly improved the street scene. I’m now looking forward to working on the schemes included within this funding and adding further to plans for our town.” 

The Northern Echo: Cllr Heather Scott and Angela Howey Cllr Heather Scott and Angela Howey

The Towns Fund Board chair, Angela Howey, said: “This announcement marks the latest milestone in this process and is testament to a great deal of work by a lot of people dedicated to the same cause – making Darlington the best it can be.” 

Darlington MP, Peter Gibson said investment is starting to have a "positive impact" on the town.

“The Towns Fund is an incredible opportunity to transform Darlington for decades to come," he said. 

"It's great to see the positive impact the funding is starting to have on our town. This is just the beginning of a very detailed phase of transformation.

“I'm looking forward to working on the many future planned projects that are transforming our community.” 

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