Communities Secretary Eric Pickles and Chief Secretary Danny Alexander launched on 9th February a new fund to help create jobs and prosperity in seaside towns.  

The £23.7m Coastal Communities Fund has been created to provide struggling coastal communities all across the country with money to support new opportunities that can make their towns prosper. Seaside groups could use the money to start programmes that can deliver skills training, offer apprenticeships to school leavers, create new workspaces or support small-scale transport improvements.

Successful applicants can expect to get a grant of between £50,000 and £2million. Mr Pickles said he would especially like to see quality bids come in from social enterprises, charities, local businesses or local enterprise partnerships. 

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: "Seaside towns and coastal communities have huge potential for economic growth that we simply can’t afford to waste - this fund can make all the difference to these places we all know and love. This is a great opportunity for long overlooked seaside towns, large and small, to grab a chance to grow through imaginative and innovative projects that create skilled workers, and provide year round jobs that build stronger local economies.”

 Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, said: “Having grown up in a coastal community in Scotland, I am only too aware of the vital role these communities play in the UK. It is fair that we share the Crown Estate’s marine revenues equally and I am delighted to launch the Coastal Communities Fund prospectus today. We look forward to receiving innovative bids from charities, businesses, social enterprises and local organisations, which support the economic development of the community.”

The Fund will be financed by the Government from revenues from the Crown Estate’s marine assets.  The Fund will be UK wide, with funding allocated to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on the basis of revenue generated by these marine assets.  The Fund will be delivered by the Big Lottery Fund’s ‘BIG Fund’.

E-ON are to unveil their plans for the Rampion Wind Farm off the Sussex coast.

The project involves 100-195 turbines to be located 8 miles off the coast, enabling enough power to be generated to power 2 out of 3 houses over the wholeSussexarea. It would be one of the largest offshore wind farms in the world.

The development has been broadly welcomed by MPs, councillors and environmental groups however some concerns have been raised in relation to the impact it may have on theSouth DownsNational Park and the surrounding habitat.

Project development manager, Chris Tomlinson said: “The Rampion wind farm offers a unique opportunity for us to make a valuable contribution to securing our electricity supplies for the future.”

Lewes MP Norman Baker said: “People will hardly be able to notice the turbines in the distance and they will provide and important source of energy. This is definitely the way forward.”

In the next few months, E-ON will be installing a meteorological mast on the site to measure wind speeds, wave heights, sea currents and record other offshore environmental data.

How to have your say on the project

The project is welcoming feedback from the community and those willing can do so through the website www.eon-uk.com/rampion or in writing to Freepost Rampion Offshore Wind Farm. For a full report, please click on the following link http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/9514874.Sussex_coast_wind_farm_vision_revealed/

Public information events will be held at:

Brighton

Saturday, February 18, 10am – 6pm

BrightonUnitarianChurch, New Road.

Worthing

Saturday, February 25, 10am - 6pm

St Paul’s Church, Main Hall,Chapel Road.

Newhaven

Monday, February 27, midday – 8pm

Hillcrest Community Centre, Main Hall,Hillcrest Road.

Shoreham

Monday, March 5, midday – 8pm

Holmbush Shopping Centre, Main Atrium,Upper Shoreham Road.

Hove

Saturday March 10, 10am – 6pm

St Andrew Old Church Hall,Church Road.

Peacehaven

Wednesday, March 21, midday – 8pm

Community House, Anzac Room,MeridianCentre.

Seaford

Monday, March 12, midday – 8pm

TheClintonCentre, Clinton Hall,Clinton Place.

Albourne

Saturday, March 17, 10am – 6pm

Albourne Village Hall, The Street.

Henfield

Tuesday, March 27, 11am – 6.30pm

Henfield Village Hall, Main Hall,Coopers Way.

Lancing

Thursday, March 29, midday – 8pm

Lancing Parish Hall, Jubilee Hall,South Street.

Littlehampton

Wednesday, April 4, midday – 8pm

Manor House, New Millennium Chamber,Church Street.

A government spokesman said: "The Growing Places Fund allocation for Epsom and Ewell has been included within Coast to Capital's allocation for presentational purposes. We are clear, however, that receipt of this funding by the Coast to Capital LEP is subject to Ministers receiving formal notification from the LEP that the Board have approved Epsom and Ewell's membership."

Interest in the Coast to Capital Growing Places Fund has been high with a significant number of potential projects submitted by the deadline, 31st January 2012.

Tim Wates, Vice Chairman of Coast to Capital said, "The Growing Places fund is an exciting initiative that will unlock stalled projects enabling these projects to start will boost economic growth."

For the full story, please click here http://www.coast2capital.org.uk/latest-news/coast-to-capital-growing-places-fund-given-green-light.html

It takes just 5 minutes so if you’re a business or a resident, please help to secure the investment and the faster Broadband speeds by clicking on the link below.

http://www.westsussex.gov.uk/your_council/have_your_say/broadband_west_sussex_-/join_our_broadband_campaign.aspx

Bringing together ChichesterCollege, Women’s Wisdom, the Councils of Voluntary Services, NorthbrookCollege, the University of Chichester and the Coastal West Sussex Partnership the project will create an ambassador led programme, supported by a web based enterprise tool kit for organisations to use and develop their own expertise in the delivery of grass roots enterprise support. 

The project will equip individuals and volunteers working in the community with the skills and confidence needed to help boost new businesses and raise the concept of enterprise. The main aim is to enhance the creativity of each community, empower them to find new solutions to old problems and ultimately make a better place to live and work.

This exciting project is the starting point for a long term innovative community capacity building program which is sustainable and replicable to be become a broader approach on a national scale.  Funding for this new project has come from the Coast to Capital LEP (www.coast2capital.org.uk) as it supports one of their key themes of business creation.

Other Organisations: West Sussex schools

Target Audience: Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 pupils

Start Date: 03-01-2012

Description:
It is a pilot project, still in its infancy, to be tested on key stage 1 pupils at Holy Trinity Primary School in Cuckfield, key stage 2 pupils at Durrington First and Middle Schools, and key stage 3 pupils at Durrington High School, both in Worthing.

The pilot project will teach core skills relating to attitude, creativity, building relationships and personal organisation. The aim is for students to recognise the attitude and skills they are developing, record them and then evaluate them against the attitudes and skills found in the workplace and elsewhere. A practical challenge is to be set for each school by an employer and an Entrepreneurial Skills Development awards programme will be introduced so the achievements of pupils who take part are recognised.

Contact Name: Caroline Wood

Email Address: caroline.wood@coastalwestsussex.org.uk

The Port Masterplan, completed last year, highlights the significant opportunities at Shoreham for developing renewable energy. The strategy that MITIE are working on will unlock the potential for energy savings as well as for future local power generation to benefit port users and the local community.

Peter Davies, Development Director, at Shoreham Port said "We are very excited at the prospect of seeing the port becoming a major site for renewable energy. This fits perfectly with our plans for growing the port at the same time as reducing our carbon footprint. MITIE is the right partner for us with the experience, knowhow and access to funding they can bring to Shoreham".

Mike Tivey, Managing Director of MITIE Asset Management, said "This is a really progressive and engaging development which will stimulate investment into the port. Community and economic benefits will be at the heart of our considerations when coming up with a low carbon and sustainable energy future for Shoreham Port".

Shoreham Port is a big user of electricity, needed to power lighting towers on the terminals, the lock gates and water pumps which are used to keep the water at a constant level. The aim is to meet the port’s own energy needs on site.

The Port Masterplan sets out the long term plans to grow the port and increase its importance as a major employment area in the region. A key part of the plan is to promote renewable energy as a major new business opportunity for Shoreham. It has been endorsed by the local authorities (West Sussex County, Adur District and Brighton & Hove City) and also commended by the Department of Transport. It is a realistic and practical plan which brings greater certainty and confidence about the future of the port to port users, investors and community stakeholders.

The port has considerable advantages due to its scale and location for developing renewable energy projects. As well as the potential for solar energy using the warehouse roofs there is also, at a later stage, the possibility of wind turbines on the south side of the port along Basin Road South. This will be further investigated to see how practical this is and the opinions of the local community will be sought before any decisions are made on the wind turbines. Other forms of energy generation might also be explored at a later date.

MITIE is a leading FTSE 250 strategic outsourcing and energy services company with more than 61,000 people, revenues of £1.9bn and a strong reputation in facilities management, engineering maintenance and lifecycle energy management. They have developed energy strategies for a range of clients including the Royal Free Hospital in London and Waitrose. They see Shoreham as offering the opportunity to work across a large geographical area with the benefit of economies of scale.

The agreement is that Shoreham Port will provide the space while MITIE will fund, develop and operate the energy infrastructure. Once completed Shoreham Port, port operators and other businesses based on the port will be able to benefit from locally generated energy and at lower cost. These projects have the potential to expand beyond the immediate port area into Shoreham, Southwick and Portslade.

Energy services companies (ESCos) will be set up for each project and an energy centre will be established to control and monitor both the energy supply and its use. There will be the opportunity for local firms to bid for the work and it is hoped the projects will create training and job opportunities for local people.

Further information can be requested from

Peter Davies Development Director at Shoreham Port

Nautilus House, 90-100 Albion Street, Southwick, Brighton BN42 4ED

Telephone 01273 598100 pdavies@shoreham-port.co.uk

Or

Alison Sutton or Samia Choudhury, MITIE Asset Management

The Millennium Centre, M4 Crosby Way, Farnham GU9 7XX

01252 732436 alison.sutton@mitie.com, samia.choudhury@mitie.com