{"id":728,"date":"2026-06-11T14:23:41","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T14:23:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/06\/11\/why-britains-regeneration-policies-keep-missing-the-point-expert-panel\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T14:23:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T14:23:41","slug":"why-britains-regeneration-policies-keep-missing-the-point-expert-panel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/06\/11\/why-britains-regeneration-policies-keep-missing-the-point-expert-panel\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Britain\u2019s regeneration policies keep missing the point \u2013 expert panel"},"content":{"rendered":"

After the mainstream parties suffered big losses in Britain\u2019s local elections<\/a> in May, they might be wondering how they can win back voters in left-behind parts of the country. Labour\u2019s Pride in Place scheme \u2013 \u00a35.8 billion to be shared between some of the UK\u2019s most deprived communities \u2013 doesn\u2019t seem to have won the government much support. From coastal towns to rural poverty, urban areas and post-industrial cities, we spoke to experts to find out what these communities need.<\/em><\/p>\n

Tourism won\u2019t fix Britain\u2019s coastal towns<\/h2>\n

Stefania Fiorentino, Associate Professor in Planning and Urban Regeneration<\/strong><\/p>\n

Entire generations in some parts of the UK have never seen municipal wealth. In
\nsome former mining towns and coastal towns, socio-economic decline has been
\nentrenched<\/a>. Rising discontent and eroding trust in institutions have influenced recent electoral results. Mainstream parties are losing support and Reform UK has made gains in places marked by long-term decline. This has begun in coastal constituencies such as Clacton in Essex \u2013 the constituency of Reform UK\u2019s leader Nigel Farage \u2013 and is now spreading inland. <\/p>\n

Regeneration efforts have seen limited success in these places. One reason for this is that they remain focused on physical ribbon-cutting projects<\/a>. Examples include the now-closed \u00a311 million harbourside college development in Newhaven in East Sussex, or Weston-super-Mare\u2019s Tropicana lido, which fell into disrepair and was turned into a temporary dystopian art park called Dismaland by artist Banksy<\/a> in 2015. <\/p>\n

These strategies are too fragile to withstand political instability and frequent policy reform, reliant on tourism and often rooted in nostalgia for an industrial or decadent past. Seaside resorts like Blackpool and Great Yarmouth have haemorrhaged visitors for decades, shrinking tax bases and eroding local services.<\/p>\n

\n \"A
\n Artist Banksy took over the disused Tropicana lido at Weston-super-Mare in 2015 for his’bemusement park\u2019 Dismaland.<\/span>
\n BasPhoto\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Then there is climate change. Almost 50% of the British coastline is at risk of
\ndisappearing by 2050<\/a>. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) still do not collaborate enough. Places like Sunderland and Jaywick, near Clacton, declared a state of climate emergency in 2019. Yet a decade of austerity policies has taken its toll, reducing the capacity of local governments, limiting cross-border cooperation, and eroding trust in local institutions. So, even the most recent pioneering approaches to their local plans, testing some climate-led regeneration measures, have not been enough to turn the tide.<\/p>\n

The Pride in Place scheme<\/a> is, by name, meant to address the \u201cintangible\u201d dimensions of the crisis. In practice, it offers more ribbon-cutting projects and imposing top-down regeneration under the guise of local responsibility. Even the label seems to blame communities for their doom loop, suggesting it is up to them to regain pride.<\/p>\n

Pride in Place won\u2019t fix Britain\u2019s left-behind towns on its own. What\u2019s needed is
\ncoordinated action at national, regional and local levels, alongside tailored measures that rebuild institutional trust, restore basic services and meet everyday needs.<\/p>\n

Invisible poverty in Britain\u2019s rural areas<\/h2>\n

Helen Carr, Professor of Property Law and Social justice<\/strong><\/p>\n

Recent research<\/a> into the overlooked problem of rural homelessness confirmed what academics have consistently argued \u2013 that rural poverty is real but hidden<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Despite the apparent idyll of the rural, there is extensive poverty. But in contrast to urban deprivation, it is invisible, widely dispersed and somehow unexpected and therefore out of place<\/a>. Many of the causes of rural poverty are structural and long-standing, but social policy and the lingering consequences of COVID have exacerbated and entrenched inequality. For instance, employment is often low paid and seasonal, with limited opportunities for advancement. Lower wages in rural areas are also impacted by what might be described as a rural premium \u2013 the additional costs of energy, transport and housing and lack of access to affordable shopping. <\/p>\n

\n \"Abandoned
\n Many transport routes have been abandoned in Britain\u2019s rural areas, leaving locals underconnected.<\/span>
\n WildSnap\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Moreover, this premium has been inflated by the cost-of-living crisis<\/a>. More than a decade of austerity has affected rural areas disproportionately as local government cuts were more severe in these areas, eliminating services and further reducing limited transport links. Welfare cuts, particularly to housing allowances, have pushed already-expensive housing out of reach for those relying on a rural wage. COVID delivered a particular shock to rural economies significantly dependent upon hospitality and tourism<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Policy ideas to avoid these areas being left behind include welfare programmes which take account of rural conditions. So, for instance a top up for rent in recognition of the limited availability, improved work opportunities for rural residents via business subsidies, and increased incentives to build housing that is genuinely affordable, energy efficient and close to public transport.<\/p>\n

Moving away from \u2018the high street\u2019 in urban areas<\/h2>\n

Steven Millington, Professor of Place Management<\/strong><\/p>\n

The left-behind narrative relies on a monolithic trope of dying high streets, but evidence reveals<\/a> a far more diverse reality. Decades of out-of-town retail, online shopping and economic shocks have undoubtedly fractured town centres. Yet the problem isn\u2019t simply retail decline, it is an outdated dependency on it.<\/p>\n

The primary challenge isn\u2019t a lack of commercial potential, but a deficit in local capacity. One-size-fits-all policies fail because they ignore local social infrastructure and networks. Our analysis<\/a> of 700 UK locations shows that towns with a multi-functional offer recovered much faster after COVID lockdowns. <\/p>\n

\n \"A
\n A row of closed shops on a high street in Bradford, Yorkshire.<\/span>
\n Richard Coomber\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our evaluation demonstrates that strong, collaborative partnerships between local government, businesses, and communities are the actual mechanisms of transformation. Many places are growing footfall by repurposing former retail assets into community and health hubs. Some are changing perceptions of the high street, such as Barnsley\u2019s Health on the High Street<\/a> project, South Yorkshire.<\/p>\n

Central government must move beyond devolution rhetoric and stop forcing councils into costly, short-term bidding wars for funding pots. It\u2019s vital to build long-term local capacity and invest in training people to manage their own town centres, providing shared frameworks to measure town centre vitality, and securing the multi-year funding required to transition traditional high streets into resilient community assets.<\/p>\n

Post-industrial areas: high costs, no jobs<\/h2>\n

Richard Bull, Deputy Dean in the School of Architecture, Design and Built Environment<\/strong><\/p>\n

Net zero looks different when we strip away the jargon and talk about poor-quality housing, health and jobs. As an example, the Makerfield by-election pits Labour against Reform UK with Energy Security Secretary Ed Miliband\u2019s net-zero<\/a> policies caught in the middle. Is Reform right in claiming that net zero is crippling the economy? Four years ago, my colleagues and I explored<\/a> the opportunities the net-zero transition could bring to overlooked East Midlands and northern economies. <\/p>\n

Bolsover, in Derbyshire, was typical of a post-industrial northern town and is still ranked among the most deprived areas<\/a> in the UK in terms of education, skills, training, employment and income. It\u2019s not dissimilar to Makerfield. Both also have high unemployment and are classified as deprived with poor health outcomes. <\/p>\n

In its recent report, Better Warmer Homes, Innovate UK (the UK\u2019s national agency to support business-led innovation in all sectors) noted three fundamental facts<\/a>. <\/p>\n

First, data from the 2021 census estimates 12.7 million homes in the UK are below an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C (C is increasingly recognised as the benchmark energy-efficiency rating for healthy and affordable homes).<\/p>\n

Second, the typical cost in energy bills to households of poor performing buildings is \u00a3400 a year. And third, the estimated cost to the NHS for treating illness directly related to cold, damp and dangerous homes is \u00a31.4 billion.<\/p>\n

In 2024, the estimated size of the green skills gap was as many as 200,000 workers<\/a>. In the East Midlands, the Combined County Authority is investing in clean energy which it is projected will create tens of thousands of jobs. <\/p>\n

But at the moment, there\u2019s a skills gap. Our research<\/a> shows the green skills gap presents both a substantial risk to the UK\u2019s net-zero ambitions and a major opportunity. In construction alone, for example, the UK\u2019s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and Labour\u2019s pledge<\/a> to build 1.5 million homes within five years highlight the need for a rapid increase in green construction skills. We now need to see this translated into jobs.<\/p>\n

So what do the people of post-industrial areas need from government? What we all need: healthy and affordable homes with meaningful work.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Richard Bull received funding from Bolsover District Council in October 2021 to undertake a literature review of the low carbon skills gap in the Midlands and recommend strategies for addressing this. No payment has been received for the publication of this article.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Helen Carr received funding to research rural homelessness from a coalition of
\nhousing, homelessness and rural organisations led by Rural England<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Steve Millington has received funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to design and operate the national High Streets Task Force for England. Previous funding has been received from the Economic and Social Research Council, Telemark Research Institute, and EU-INTERREG to develop research and knowledge exchange about high street revitalisation. He has also received funding from several local authorities across England to undertake independent assessments of local high streets., No payment has been received for the publication of this article.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Stefania Fiorentino does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After the mainstream parties suffered big losses in Britain\u2019s local elections in May, they might be wondering how they can win back voters in left-behind parts of the country. Labour\u2019s Pride in Place scheme \u2013 \u00a35.8 billion to be shared between some of the UK\u2019s most deprived communities \u2013 doesn\u2019t seem to have won the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=728"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}