1. Thames Gateway projects funded through the first SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP Growth Deal (announced July 2014)

A. Projects funded in the first round of Growth Deals (SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP-wide) / Total investment / 2015-16 investment
Skills capital funding for colleges and other trainingprovidersto equip providers to deliver the skill priorities identified for the South East LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP area / £22 million / £11 million
B. Projects funded in the first round of Growth Deals (SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP, Kent and Medway) / Total investment / 2015-16 investment
Kent and Medway Growth Hub / £6 million / £1 million
Package of transport projects, including the following, all of which will an impact in the Thames Gateway directly or indirectly:-
Chatham Town Centre Place-making and Public Realm Package / £4 million / £1 million
Sittingbourne Town Centre Regeneration / £2.5 million / £1.8 million
A289 Four Elms Roundabout to Medway Tunnel Journey Time & Network Improvements / £11.1 million / £0.5 million
Rathmore Road Link, Gravesend / £4.2 million / £1.4 million
Kent Thameside Local Sustainable Transport / £4.5 million / £2.4 million
Medway City Estate Connectivity Improvement Measures / £2 million / £0.1 million
Strood Town Centre Journey Time & Accessibility Enhancements – Integrated Door-to-Door Journeys / £9 million / £0.2 million
Kent Strategic Congestion Management Programme across Growth Areas / £4.8 million / £0.8 million
Sustainable Access to Education and Employment (Delivering Kent's Right of Way Improvement Plan) / £1 million / £0.2 million
Kent Sustainable Interventions Programme for Growth / £3 million / £0.5 million
Sustainable Access to Maidstone Employment Areas (River Medway Cycle Path East Farleigh - Aylesford) / £2 million / £1 million
Medway Cycling Action Plan / £2.5 million / £0.1 million
C. Projects funded in the first round of Growth Deals (SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP, South Essex) / Total investment / 2015-16 investment
Funding to develop the Southend and Rochford Growth Hub and help develop the area around the Victoria Avenue ‘gateway’ to Southend / £6.7 million / £0.1 million
A package of transport projects, comprising:
Capacity enhancements to the A127 / £35.6 million / £1.5 million
Thames Gateway South Essex Local Sustainable Transport Programme / £5 million / £4 million
Integrated Transport Package for Basildon / £9 million / £1 million
Projects provisionally approved to start in 2016-17 or later
A package of transport works to deliver the Southend Central Area Action Plan / £7 million / n/a
Integrated transport package for improving access to the London Gateway from Stanford-le-Hope and reconstruction of the A1014 / £7.5 million / n/a
Improvements to the Thurrock cycling network / £5 million / n/a
D. Projects funded in the first round of Growth Deals (London LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP) / Total investment / 2015-16 investment
Skills funding to support the skills capital programme for colleges and skills providers in London. This is a competitive programme open to all colleges and skills providers in London, designed to ensure learners in London have access to 21st century facilities / £120 million / £55 million
Funding for a pilot programme to raise digital skills in London / £5 million / £2 million

2. Proposed Thames Gateway projects to be funded through the expansion of the SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP Growth Deal (announced 29 January 2015)

  • Regeneration of the town centre in Purfleet, linked to investment in new film, TV, media studio development and creating in the initial phase up to 530 homes and 200 jobs.
  • The Southend and Rochford Joint Area Action Plan, which provides for further expansion of London Southend Airport onto a 55-acre, greenfield site to create a high end Business Park and 858 homes and up to 2600 new jobs.
  • Growth in the advanced manufacturing sector through the provision of new employment (up to 300 jobs) and innovation space at Rochester Airport.

3. Thames Gateway Transport investment from Government N.B. Not a comprehensive list but highlights include:

  • Government has committed to provide funding of £5 million capital grant from the Local Growth Fund for the development costs of the A13 Widening project. Up to £75 million of further funding will be made available from the Local Growth Fund subject to due diligence and alignment with decision-making on the preferred option for the Lower Thames Crossing.
  • The Highways Agency has reaffirmed its commitment to deliver the A2 Bean Junction and A2 Ebbsfleet Junction between 2015 and 2020 subject to the Highways Agency and SOUTH EAST LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP and partners working together to agree the funding package and local contributions.
  • Loan funding of £55 million to support the extension of the overground to Barking Riverside. This will support the development of the brownfield site that is London’s largest regeneration scheme and will help deliver nearly 11,000 homes and support 2,500 permanent jobs.
  • A130/A13 Sadlers Farm Junction. Opened in 2012 although final work finished in January 2014. DfT provided £63.5 million for the scheme which is designed to reduce congestion.
  • M25 J5-7: £119 million. Completed April 2014. Smart Motorway scheme with All Lane Running adding a further 30-lane kilometres to the network.
  • M25 J30 Improvement: £13.1 million. Ongoing. A strategic link key to the development of the Thames Gateway area. The scheme will improve capacity of the highway network centred on M25 Junction 30 and in particular the A13 through Junction 30 and to the junction with the A126 to the east.
  • Dart Charge implementation: Estimated between £48 million - £62 million. Introduction of barrier free system at current Dartford Crossing in November 2014.
  • Local Pinch Point fund: £3.3 million for the A127 – B1013 Tesco junction improvement near Southend Airport (total cost £4.8 million). Construction started in October 2014 and the scheme is due for completion in March 2015.
  • Rail improvements: (i) a new £26 million station at Rochester, (ii) approx £160 million of passenger benefits over the 15 year life of the new Essex Thameside franchise (2014-2029), and (iii) approximately £70 million of passenger benefits over the life of the South Eastern franchise direct award (2014-2018).
  • Local Sustainable Transport Fund and Cycling improvements: (i) Dartford: £25k in 2012/13 from the Cycle Rail (Growth Fund) for extension to the Connect2 scheme, (ii) Medway: £105k from the Cycle Safety Fund for Dock Rd/ Wood St cycle and pedestrian safety improvement scheme, and (iii) £838k from Linking Communities which included the Coryton Crossing Facility in Thurrock completed January 2014 and the Prittlebrook Greenway in Southend completed in December 2013.

4. Other Thames Gateway projects funded by Government include

  • The Royal Docks Enterprise Zone occupies a key position in East London for development which will boost growth and opportunities for East London. The GLA and Newham are working closely with the developers of the key sites in the EZ and with DCLG to ensure the Zone continues to develop and provide opportunities and employment. Overall there is the potential for circa 10,000 new homes across the Royal Docks and an estimated 20,000 jobs in the long term which includes the Enterprise Zone area. Silvertown Quays is one of the two largest sites in the Enterprise Zone. £12 million grant has been awarded from the Buildings Foundations for Growth fund making it possible for the developer, the Silvertown Partnership, to commence early infrastructure works involving asbestos decontamination on Millennium Mills.
  • Once established, the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation will work closely with local authorities, local communities and other partners to develop a shared strategy for the proposed garden city. This development will provide high quality, attractive housing and opportunities to live and work. At the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced the first £100 million being made available to fund infrastructure and land remediation at Ebbsfleet.
  • In December we announced that a new National College for the Creative and Cultural Industries will be established, based on the existing Backstage Centre in Purfleet, Essex. The College will train the next generation of theatre, music and film technicians, to support our country’s next award winning directors, musicians and actors. Students and apprentices will train alongside professionals as they rehearse, record and film in Backstage’s state-of-the-art facilities. This will be one of seven new National Colleges, and Government has up to £80m of capital funding over 2015-16 and 2016-17 to support the establishment of the National Colleges. We have also announced a package of £5 million for maintenance scholarships for students at the Colleges in 2016/17.
  • Southend City Deal: £2.5 million: The Southend on Sea City Deal aims to capitalise on opportunities to increase the rates of entrepreneurship and innovation locally to realise the full potential of this major centre within the South East Local Enterprise Partnership area. Over its lifetime the Southend on Sea City is predicted to deliver: Direct business support for 1,350 businesses, mainly small and medium sized enterprises, across the South Essex area, with at least 375 businesses assisted to improve performance.