London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Sep 01, 2025

Rising costs threaten levelling up schemes in England, councils warn

Rising costs threaten levelling up schemes in England, councils warn

Projects to regenerate town centres, help struggling high streets and provide new leisure facilities are under threat from soaring inflation, councils in England have warned.

Many "levelling up" schemes have been paused or scaled back due to rising fuel, material and labour costs.

The government says it is ready to talk to any councils struggling to balance their budget.

Levelling up was one of outgoing PM Boris Johnson's flagship policies.

The two contenders vying to succeed him as Tory leader, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, have both said it will remain a priority if they become prime minister next Tuesday.

The government has made £4.8bn available for councils to fund infrastructure schemes designed to improve life in local communities, as well as other pots of money for high street and town centre projects.

Some local authorities are funding their own schemes - but several have warned that rising costs could leave a shortfall which will make it harder to deliver.


'Strong position'


In Beeston, in Nottinghamshire, Broxtowe Borough Council has already completed the first phase of a multi-million pound scheme to regenerate the town centre which has seen a new cinema, social café and new business space.

Costs for the second phase of the project, which would see more commercial space created, have already risen by £100,000 - about 15%.

The first phase of the Beeston development has been completed


Separately, the council has bid for £20m from the government's levelling-up fund to provide a new health centre, library and swimming pool in Eastwood - but it expects costs to rise which the council would have to find from existing budgets.

Labour council leader Milan Radulovic said: "The impact of inflation is extremely concerning.

"We're in a very strong position when it comes to financial resilience, but other communities and other councils particularly in poorer areas do not have that financial resilience and they will find it impossible to meet the shortfall due to rising costs and rising inflation."


Road repairs


The Local Government Association has warned rising costs are piling pressure on already stretched budgets.

It says streetlighting and road repairs are among the services becoming increasingly expensive due to the price of energy and materials.

In Norfolk, Breckland Council has plans to refurbish and extend the Attleborough Sports Hall to provide new community facilities and a high-tech football pitch.

Breckland council has plans to improve community sports facilities


In 2019 it was estimated that the project would cost around £2.1m, but already that's gone up by 33%.

The council plans to press on with the scheme but the Conservative leader Sam Chapman-Allen - who's also chairman of the District Councils Network - said it highlighted the difficult decisions local authorities were facing.

Some councils were having to permanently pause projects to reflect on "whether they have to ride out the storm and wait until inflation costs come down - and that could be an indefinite period", he says.

"For others they're making some really tough decisions about what they set out to achieve and what they can realistically achieve.

All of us around the country want to do our best for residents and businesses but we've got to make sure those schemes are viable."

Beeston has a new community cinema


The government said it was working closely with councils to understand the impact of inflation on their budgets, and stood ready to speak to any that had concerns.

A UK government spokesperson said: "We are working closely with all levels of government to relentlessly drive forward our shared ambition to see improvements delivered through our Levelling Up, Towns and High Streets funds.

"To meet these ambitions, we have allocated £1.7bn worth of vital investment across the UK to fuel regeneration and growth in areas which have been overlooked and undervalued for far too long.

"In recognition of the role they play, we have made an additional £3.7bn available to councils this year to ensure they are able to deliver on local priorities and key public services."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×