Agenda item

To receive the presentation providing an update on progress and developments on the Pride in Place programme for both the Rotherham Central and Maltby areas.

At the Chair’s invitation, the Cabinet Member for Transport, Jobs & the Local Economy, Councillor Williams (Cabinet Member), introduced the update presentation and reminded Members that Rotherham had been awarded two schemes under the government's Pride in Place programme – Rotherham Central and Maltby, both of which had been awarded £20 million of funding over the next 10 years. The Rotherham Central area covered the geography around the town centre and the surrounding built-up neighbourhoods and communities on the edge of the town centre.

The last update to IPSC in October 2025, had been brought just prior to the council submitting its regeneration plan for the Rotherham Central scheme to government. Councillor Williams confirmed that the regeneration plan had been endorsed and that the approach which the council had taken in carrying out significant engagement and consultation work with the voluntary and community sector had been held up as an example of best practice.

The next step for the Rotherham Central scheme would be to progress on defining exactly how the funding would be spent within the first investment period, working alongside the local MP, Sarah Champion. It was hoped that a Chair would shortly be appointed to the Neighbourhood Board, which would oversee the progress of that funding.

The second Pride in Place scheme in Maltby had been awarded by government in Autumn 2025. This scheme covered a much smaller geographical area but would receive the same level of funding of £20 million over 10 years. As one of Rotherham's principal towns, the Cabinet Member welcomed this extra investment and opportunity for the Maltby area.

The Cabinet Member explained that the government guidance on the Pride in Place programme had changed over the last few months and that this this had prompted internal review within the council with regard to the council's role as the “accountable body”. As a result, it had been decided that it would be more appropriate for the leading service within the council to be the Neighbourhoods Team rather than the Regeneration & Environment Team.

Megan Hinchliff, the Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager, took Members through the update presentation, highlighting the following points:-

There would be a strong partnership approach and it was imperative that all elements worked together as one to successfully deliver the schemes under the programme:-

·       The Neighbourhood Board would be responsible for co-producing the Pride in Place plan and delivering it in the interests of local people, to improve the physical and social infrastructure of their communities.

·       The local communities would shape the priorities under the programme and hold the Neighbourhood Board and local authority to account.

·       The local MP now held a larger role in supporting the Chair and the Neighbourhood Board to inform the work and engage the community it represented.

·       The local authority would support the Neighbourhood Board to develop and deliver the plan and would act as the “accountable body” and ensure compliant, legal and effective use of the public funds granted under the scheme. The “accountable body” would act as the legal employer for staff and would contract with third parties, whilst supporting community-led delivery by the Neighbourhood Boards.

The Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager reminded Members that there was a capital and revenue split within the £20 million funding allocated to each area. This split was welcome given that there would be revenue attached to this long-term funding programme. A grassroots approach would be taken to the decision-making process, and would be led by the Neighbourhood Board, who would consider how to best to spend the money to meet the priorities of local people.

Rotherham Central Scheme

Initial consultation on the Rotherham Central scheme had been completed in summer 2025. That consultation process had lasted for around two years, having started under the former Long-Term Plan for Towns initiative. Consultation data had been fed into the final submission of the plan for Rotherham Central to government in November 2025. The submitted plan set out the overarching and strategic approach and also provided high-level thematic information. The plan did not set out individual projects as this would be decided over the coming months by the Neighbourhood Board.

The plan had been approved by government, without any conditions, in March 2026. This reflected the quality of the work carried out in preparing the plan. The ongoing support for the council as the “accountable body” would now sit with Neighbourhoods team, led by Martin Hughes, Head of Neighbourhoods.

The Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager explained that the Neighbourhood Board would be a brand-new board, rather than an evolution of the previous Town Board. It would bring together those with a deep connection to the local area and appointments to the board were being made in partnership with Sarah Champion, MP for Rotherham. The MP would have a place on the board and every board member would have an equal vote in deciding how the funding under the programme would be allocated.

The Neighbourhood Board positions had been advertised widely in March 2026, via the Rotherham Advertiser, social media, posters and community and voluntary organisations. It was reported that there had been a good response and a further information event for interested parties had been held on 9th April 2026 at the Town Hall. All of those who were considered for board positions were people who lived within the central Rotherham area, to ensure that the process would be fully resident-led. It was hoped that appointments to the board would be finalised shortly and details would then be published on the dedicated Pride in Place webpage on the council website.

Pride in Place – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

It was explained that once the Neighbourhood Board had been established and a Chair was in place, the next step would be to sign the Memorandum of Understanding, and the Board would then be able to begin developing the project pipeline for the first four years of the programme. This process would involve a number of key meetings over the next few months, and the council would commence the recruitment of a number of permanent officers within the Neighbourhoods Team, to support delivery of projects.

Maltby Scheme

The Maltby scheme had been announced in Autumn 2025, and it was reported that a lot of good work had already commenced, although this scheme was not as advanced. The capital and revenue split of the £20 million funding was different to the Rotherham central scheme, in that the proportion of revenue was slightly higher at 37%.

Establishment of the Neighbourhood Board for Maltby was progressing at pace, and interviews for board members had recently taken place with the local MP for Rother Valley, Jake Richards. Extensive consultation with the local community in Maltby would be carried out over the summer months. The feedback from this consultation would be fed into the design of the plan, led by the Maltby Neighbourhood Board. It was hoped that the draft plan for Maltby would be presented to Cabinet towards the end of 2026 and submitted to government for approval over the winter.

The Chair invited Members of IPSC to raise questions and queries on the Update on Rotherham Pride in Place Programme and in the ensuing question and answer session the following points were raised:-

The Chair asked why the council had decided to move oversight of the Pride in Place programme to the Neighbourhoods Team. In response, Andrew Bramidge, Executive Director of Regeneration & Environment, explained that the new government guidance which had been issued in December 2025, had put the Pride in Place programme in the realm of community and neighbourhood development. There was a clear aspiration from government to see the Neighbourhood Boards evolve into community interest companies or similar self-governing, self-managing entities. As the type of interventions that were likely to come forward under the programme would be around community capacity building and community development, rather than straightforward regeneration projects, it was felt that the existing expertise that sat within the Neighbourhoods Team would be best equipped to oversee these projects.

The Head of Neighbourhoods further commented that the Neighbourhoods Team had experience in working across services and with partners to deliver projects. Given that the shift in government guidance, it made sense to move oversight to the Neighbourhoods Team and the Chief Executive of the council and the relevant Cabinet Members had agreed this approach.

The Head of Neighbourhoods confirmed that an HR recruitment process was underway to appoint a Programme Manager and two Project Co-ordinators, and it was hoped that these positions would be filled by the summer. In the interim transition period, support would continue to be provided by the Regeneration & Environment team. The main point of contact with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government remained within the Regeneration & Environment team but any new interactions would be led by the Neighbourhood Team. Whilst the Neighbourhood Team would “host” staff, the whole council would be the “accountable body” and a range of services would potentially help to deliver the projects under the direction of the Neighbourhood Board.

Councillor Thorp asked whether the make-up of the Neighbourhood Boards had altered since the last update to IPSC, given the change in government guidance. Previously, parties such as the local police had been due to have a presence on the board. The Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager confirmed that the approach was no longer to seek representatives from certain organisations and was more resident-led, with applications welcomed from anyone within the community with an interest.

Councillor Stables enquired whether the work on Pride in Place projects would take Neighbourhood Officers away from their existing roles and whether the new posts would be funded from the £20 million available under the schemes. The Head of Neighbourhoods explained that in the interim period until the new posts were filled, existing Neighbourhood Co-ordinators in the relevant areas were providing support to keep work progressing. However, once the new posts were filled, there would be separate Pride in Place Co-ordinators for the Rotherham Central and Maltby areas and these posts would be funded entirely from central government grants associated with the Pride in Place Programme. 

Councillor Tinsley referred to the fact that projects were being planned for the first four years of the ten-year programme and asked whether funding for these first four years was “locked in” or could be subject to change by government? The Executive Director confirmed that the funding for the full ten years was committed by government. It had been decided to focus on an initial four-year plan of delivery as it would be difficult to foresee what projects would be appropriate in eight or nine years’ time. This would provide more flexibility over years 5-10 of the programme given that circumstances and community needs could change over this length of time.

In a supplementary question, Councillor Tinsley enquired whether the two separate schemes could work together and pool revenue to fund a similar need? The Executive Director commented that the monies provided under the programme had to be demonstrated to have been spent within the defined area. However, there could hypothetically be situations where an “economies of scale” approach would be sensible – for example if there was a similar project underway in both areas at the same time. The Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager added that the Programme Manager post would be funded 50/50 from the two schemes.

Councillor Stables asked when the Neighbourhood Board members for Maltby would be confirmed? The Regeneration Programme & Strategy Manager confirmed that it was hoped the Neighbourhood Board for Maltby would be launched by the Chair in May 2026.

The Chair thanked officers for their input and members for the questions asked.

Resolved:-

1.    That the contents of the presentation providing an update on progress and developments on the Pride in Place programme for both the Rotherham Central and Maltby areas be noted.