Key priority 4 - Ensuring everyone benefits from Cheltenham's growth and prosperity
Ensuring residents, communities and businesses benefit from Cheltenham’s future growth and prosperity
Cheltenham will see huge investment over the coming years through expansion of the cyber industry, more affordable homes and infrastructure. This presents a once-in-a-generation chance to ensure all of our communities can benefit from sustainable growth in jobs, skills and housing.
We will continue to develop our local networks and partnerships, working to ensure residents, communities and businesses are best placed to take advantage of these opportunities. This will include building on our strengths in cyber-tech, culture, hospitality, the creative industries and professional services.
We know that some of our residents face barriers that might prevent them from benefitting from this investment. We are committed to working with community organisations and partners to ensure that residents are supported and barriers are removed wherever possible to ensure residents, communities and businesses can take advantage of these opportunities.
"Through Cynam we are excited to be working with the council to unlock the potential from the Golden Valley project. One area of great interest to us is making sure that no-one gets left behind so will be working with No Child Left Behind to enthuse local school children as well as ensuring that adults also have opportunities to acquire new digital skills so that the whole community can benefit from this exciting investment.”
Charlotte Smith, Cyber Skills Growth Lead and Coordinator, Cynam
Goals
Strengthen our working relationship with Gloucestershire County Council to help improve Cheltenham’s infrastructure, public realm and environment- Work with partners to ensure all of our communities benefit from the investment and growth in our town by embedding our approach to social value
- Identify and take forward regeneration opportunities that enhance Cheltenham as a place to live, work and visit
- Identify and drive opportunities in all aspects of economic development across Cheltenham at every level, using economic evidence and data to inform our priorities and outcomes
- Find ways to ensure council owned buildings, including those subject to conservation and heritage rules, are financially and environmentally sustainable for future generations to enjoy
What will we do to boost the local economy
- Develop our working relationship with Gloucestershire County Council to support their improvements to Cheltenham’s high street
- Expand Cheltenham’s cyber eco-system and increase footfall to the high street through the rollout of the Minster Exchange
- Carry out regeneration in the town centre to increase footfall to the high street and provide more affordable homes
- Through Marketing Cheltenham, promote the town as a desirable place to live, work, visit, meet, and invest
- Develop a vision for the town centre to ensure it remains vibrant and an attraction for residents and visitors
- Through the Culture Board, continue to develop and improve Cheltenham’s cultural offering. Support tourist attractions, cultural venues, and event organisers to provide even more reasons to visit or live in Cheltenham
- Invest £1.1m from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to support carbon-busting initiatives, skills-boosting schemes in partnership with Gloucestershire College, business growth and a new cycle hub
- Carry out a residential and commercial regeneration of 232- 242 High Street, 254 High Street, 8 St George's Place to increase footfall to the high street and provide more affordable homes and increase town centre living
- Fund the Gloucestershire College Construction and Skills School to support the development of skills in key sectors for the town
- Invest in Cheltenham Growth Hub to provide support for existing and start-up businesses and ensure the successful delivery of a comprehensive support programme for businesses looking to start, survive or grow
- Support the promotion of Cheltenham as a place to do business with a particular focus on inward investment
- Support for people who are furthest from the labour market with individually tailored advice on how to move into, or closer to, the labour market
- Continue to build relationships with local, regional and national visitor economy stakeholders to ensure that Cheltenham remains as one of the most popular visitor destinations in the region
What we will do to enhance Cheltenham's cultural and sporting offer
- Support the Cheltenham Trust’s re-opening of the Wilson Art Gallery and Museum to enhance Cheltenham’s cultural offer through more diverse programming and use of the council’s collection
- Support the refurbishment of the museum galleries in the Victorian wing in partnership with the Cheltenham Trust; Friends of the Wilson; Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; and The Wolfson Foundation
- Work with partner organisations to develop a sports strategy for Cheltenham, to improve and further develop sport provision and help ensure more opportunities for external funding to improve health and wellbeing opportunities for local people
- Play an active role in Cheltenham’s Culture Board in developing an action plan to improve social, cultural and business outcomes, ensuring funding is targeted to secure value for money
What we will do to help our communities
- Work with partner organisations, such as #FeedCheltenham and Cheltenham Borough Homes, to support our residents and communities with the cost of living crisis
- Through ‘No Child Left Behind’ continue to raise awareness of issues affecting our children, such as criminal exploitation, period poverty or healthy eating, and work with partners across the public, private and voluntary sectors to tackle this
- With Cheltenham Borough Homes, evaluate options of how we can support the Big Local and Saracens Football Club to take forward the development of a new sustainable community facility in St Peter’s and the Moors
- Embed social value in our procurement and investment activities including maximising further benefit from the Cheltenham Lottery
- Work in partnership with the police and other agencies to ensure we continue to have a safe night-time economy
"Through #FeedCheltenham, we have worked with the council to ensure that our community food pantries and food banks get the support they need to meet needs within our communities, working on the idea that we can do much more together than we can apart. The partnership with No Child Left Behind enables us to have a consistent approach for households and those in need across Cheltenham meaning more people can get support and help at a time when they need it most through the network of food support. Working together gives a forum for sharing ideas and working together. It enables #FeedCheltenham to have greater impact and reach more people. I enjoy working with the council and long may the partnership continue.”
Sarah Avery, Family Space
How Cheltenham residents communities and businesses will benefit
| Resident benefits | Community benefits | Business benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Job opportunities | Investment in regeneration | Skilled workforce |
| Skills | Less anti-social behaviour | Increased footfall to the high street |
| Supply chain opportunities | ||
| Increase in visitors |
How success will be measured
- Number of new businesses started
- Number of visitors to Cheltenham
- Retail occupancy rate
- Retention of Purple Flag status for Cheltenham’s night-time economy
- Level of social value achieved
- Increase in Cheltenham Lottery ticket sales to support more local good causes
- Reduction in levels of anti-social behaviour (ASB)