The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is a new three-year fund kicking off this year. It replaces European Structural and Investment funding which the UK continues to participate in until 2023.
The Government has set national priorities that UKSPF investments must contribute to delivering. The national priorities are:
The West of England has been allocated £13,795,332 over the three years of the programme. £3,608,467 of this money is ringfenced for a numeracy programme called Multiply.
The West of England Combined Authority is a lead authority for the fund and leading work to develop a UKSPF investment plan.
In the first two years of the fund (2022/23 and 2023/24) the UKSPF will focus on communities and place and local business interventions. Further investment to support people and skills will follow from 2024/25 when UKSPF funding reaches its full extent.
The national UKSPF prospectus sets out further detail on the fund. The national UKSPF guidance also sets out a list of example interventions for each of the three priorities.
To see a summary of the Combined Authority investment plan submitted to government please click here to download a powerpoint slide.