Five Lincolnshire towns and Lincoln city will get more than £131.1 million towards priority projects as part of the government's budget this year.

Lincoln, Boston, Skegness and Mablethorpe will all take a share of £175 million allocated to the East Midlands as part of the Towns Fund project. Meanwhile, Grimsby and Scunthorpe will also share £199 million of funding spread across Yorkshire and the Humber. 

The news that these areas across Greater Lincolnshire have been successful in their bid to secure the Town Fund Deal is crucial to the visitor economy and a huge boost to the county's tourism offer. 

The Town Fund is a funding scheme launched by the Government for towns to improve their economy and benefit all community parts. Businesses, local leaders, and communities joined forces to draw up ambitious plans to transform their town's economic growth prospect, focusing on improved transport, broadband connectivity, skills, and culture.

This crucial scheme is part of the government’s commitment to level up all regions by boosting productivity, skills and living standards. Lincoln City Council, via the Lincoln Town Deal Board, submitted plans to the government to bid for nearly £25m of funding over the next five years to deliver long-term economic growth in the city.

Under this call, Boston and Skegness and Mablethorpe also submitted investment plans for up to £25 million to facilitate future economic growth, focusing on regeneration, improved transport, better broadband connectivity, skills and culture.

Town deals have been established to counter the multiple socio-economic challenges experienced by many provincial regions. These bids' success will improve the overall sense of place, enhancing the lives of residents, businesses, and visitors and unlock vast opportunities for tourism-related investors and developers.

Visit Lincoln is proud to have supported both City of Lincoln Council and East Lindsey & Boston Borough Council in their quest to secure this once in a lifetime opportunity.

Fourteen projects were included in the wishlist for the Town Fund Deal from Lincoln city, including the Drill Hall and Barbican Hotel revamp, opposite Lincoln Central Train Station and the Transport Hub. 

Regeneration of the Central Market in the Cornhill Quarter also features highly on the priority list of projects. Money is also planned to go towards a new Hospitality Events and Tourism Institute and work in the Sincil Bank Area.

Plans also included the regeneration of a site on Tentercroft Street and Wigford Way's transformation through the centre of the city.

Here is a breakdown of how much will be received by each town:

• Lincoln - £19 million
• Skegness - £24.5 million
• Mablethorpe - £23.9 million
• Boston - £21.9 million
• Scunthorpe - £20.9 million
• Grimsby - £20.9 million

Reactions from Lincoln

Charlotte Goy, CEO of Visit Lincoln, explains, “Visit Lincoln is absolutely thrilled by today’s announcement. To say this is an exciting and historic day for the county is an understatement!

“We recognise that understanding the unique characteristics of a place and creating an authentic experience for visitors is vital to good destination management. Local authorities working alongside DMOs need to be at the heart of this driven and place-specific support to the tourism sector. Ultimately, tourism needs great destinations – and supporting the creation of great places for people to visit is vital if our tourism offer is to flourish.

“Yet it touches much more than this. Tourism’s wide-reaching remit helps create attractive places to both live and work in addition to wider benefits to local communities; an increased choice of facilities such as places to eat out, local shops, events and exhibitions, as well as conservation of local heritage and the natural landscape from castles to coast, museums and visitor attractions benefits residents as well as visitors.”

Jo Walker, Assistant Director for Growth at City of Lincoln Council, said: “It’s fantastic news that Lincoln will receive £19m of Town Deal funding.

“This money, and the projects it will fund, will help make a significant difference in the city as we come out of lockdown and begin our recovery from the pandemic.

“We now await the full detail on which of our projects have been approved. We will then put the wheels in motion to ensure these projects are delivered for the benefit of the people of Lincoln and to help consolidate our position as a leading visitor destination.”