£167,000 funding to boost Dudley high streets

Councillors say they want communities to take pride in their town centres across Dudley borough and instigate improvements.

Businesses and community groups can bid for a share of grants totalling £167,000 to breathe new life into ailing high streets.

Individuals or groups will be able to apply for grants to fund projects such as tidying up problem areas and schemes to encourage businesses to take up empty shops.

Cash could also be used to dream up initiatives to bring more people into the borough's town centres and smaller shopping areas.

Dudley Council's regeneration boss, Councillor Judy Foster, today said authority is working hard to bring improvements to town centres.

"Working with the community is vital to our vision of creating vibrant and thriving town and local centres," she said.

"As a community council, we are committed to involving people in any improvements we can make and for no town or local centre to be left behind.

"We are inviting people who love their community to bid for pots of money to fund their own schemes and innovative projects which will help rejuvenate town and local centres."

Cash has been pooled together from pre-existing pots including £100,000 from the High Street Innovation Fund which was handed to councils in the wake of a report by retail guru Mary Portas.

There is also the £52,000 from the empty shops grant also backed by the Government.

Under the proposals, the money will be available to community groups or organisations through the community forums, but is separate to the current Capital Allocations funding also available to community groups through the forums.

The council's cabinet will consider a report on February 12 to green light the project.

If approved, the funds will be available through the 10 community forums which take place at venues across the borough.

Dudley Council has already launched an initiative called the Love Your Community campaign to foster community spirit to bring improvements.

It encourages people to care for their neighbours and organise community projects such as litter picks.

Dudley Council has previously could under criticism for the numbers of empty shops town centres in the borough.

But officials dispute figures from the Local Data Company stating around 32 per cent of shops were empty in Dudley town centre.

Council leaders say the rating was actually around 18 per cent based on its own surveys.