Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking through its One Public Estate programme to identify and release surplus public sector land for local regeneration projects in (a) Crawley constituency and (b) West Sussex.
Answered by Oliver Dowden - Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
One Public Estate is a national programme that supports central and local government and wider public sector partners to collaborate on property-led projects. It aims to generate efficiencies, create economic growth (including homes and jobs) and deliver better, more integrated customer services. This includes supporting the identification and development of surplus and under-utilised public sector land and property.
The West Sussex Partnership is led by West Sussex County Council and includes Crawley alongside seven district and borough councils, emergency services and health partners. To date, the Partnership has been allocated a total of £795,000.
In Crawley, the programme is supporting local plans for town centre regeneration, which will explore the potential to develop a range of public sector assets within the town. The project will also look at the potential for a multi-agency hub. This could see a range of public services co-located, delivering significant efficiency savings and potential capital receipts for both central and local government, as well as driving local economic growth.
The wider West Sussex One Public Estate programme includes county-wide projects that will consider opportunities to regenerate other towns, release surplus public sector land for housing or mixed use development, and deliver integrated services for local communities.