Plans to rejuvenate Humberside's ailing housing estates have finally been given the green light from the government – more than six months after the other eight market renewal pathfinders cleared the hurdle.
This means Humberside will now be able to access the £2.7m seed funding that the other pathfinders have already received. However, the pass comes with a caveat:

the pathfinder will be kept on a tight leash by the ODPM, which is anxious that Humberside meets its performance targets.

The Humberside pathfinder covers 50,000 properties at risk of low demand across Kingston upon Hull and East Riding councils.

Stuart Whyte, chair of the pathfinder, said: "Of course we're delighted to have got here – it's been very hard work. However, the hard work really starts now. We've got to deliver."

A source close to the ODPM said: "The pressure to deliver is that bit greater for Humberside – given Hull council's poor recent past performance, it would be imprudent for the government to assume things will just happen. There will be certain milestones they will have to hit, such as their strategic objectives and areas of research.

"The timetable to do this is tight; however, Hull now has to show it can deliver and this would seem to be its opportunity."

In June, the ODPM gave Humberside just two months to get its bid in order or risk losing its hard-won pathfinder status, granted to only nine areas in April 2002 (HT 4 July, page 11).

However it has not received any of the £4m so-called "early wins" money, given to the other pathfinders for smaller initial works on the ground out of the £500m pathfinder pot, because it has not yet identified appropriate projects.

Whyte said he would immediately start the job of looking for a chief executive to head up the project, and would be casting for talent outside of the two councils.

No decision has currently been taken on overall staffing for the pathfinder but Whyte said both councils suffered from small regeneration teams from which to draw.

He said: "It is clear the large city authorities such as Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle are furthest ahead on this because they have big resources to draw on. It is much harder for the smaller authorities to tool up for this kind of thing."

Meanwhile, it is expected that the Manchester Salford pathfinder will reach agreement with the ODPM as to its funding by the end of September. It bid for £100m in June (HT 6 June, page 12). Newcastle Gateshead is set to lodge its bid with the ODPM on Monday. Merseyside will submit its bid by the end of October.

Source

Housing Today