Government grants £1m to improve one area of Milton Keynes - and another £25m may follow

The cash has come from the Ministry for Housing, Communities, and Local Government’s Towns Fund.

It will be spent be on improvements for Bletchley and Fenny Stratford that have already been proposed by the Milton Keynes Towns Fund Board:

The proposals include redway links to connect the Lakes Estate, Bletchley town centre and Newton Leys to the Blue Lagoon Nature Reserve, and improvement works to the former Bletchley Fire Station.

This accelerated funding comes alongside the bid for up to £25m from the Towns Fund by the Milton Keynes board.

MK South MP Iain Stewart said today: “I welcome this accelerated funding for Milton Keynes from the government, - the £1m will go a long way."

He added: “The successful projects are shovel-ready and so the positive impact will be seen by residents in due course.

“I am optimistic we will secure up to £25m on top of this accelerated funding to further better the levelling up of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford.”

Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick said: “Our Towns Fund will help to share prosperity across the country and level-up. This £80 million funding for immediate investment is a real boost for our towns and will help them thrive with investment in transport, technology, skills and culture.

“It will give towns across the opportunity to drive economic growth and improve prospects for their communities, which will be vital as the country respond to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. We are fully behind our high streets and will support local areas to build back better.”

The Milton Keynes Towns Fund Board will next meet in October to further discuss their bid for up to £25m.