A new panel, co-chaired by Lord Heseltine, was launched yesterday to look into the regeneration of some of the country’s most deprived estates.
The 17-strong group, also headed by housing minister Brandon Lewis, will draw up a national strategy for estate regeneration and will work with up to 100 estates to tackle deprivation.
The panel will report to David Cameron and communities secretary Greg Clark and follows on from the prime minister’s announcement last month that £140m would be made available to jump-start the regeneration.
Lord Heseltine said: ‘Estates regeneration is key to transforming the lives of people living on poorly designed housing projects.
‘The panel will provide expert advice, support and explore innovative funding solutions to drive forward the regeneration of estates around the country.’
Emphasising the importance of local input, Lord Heseltine added: ‘I now want to see local communities coming forward with innovative ideas to achieve desirable neighbourhoods that local people can be proud of.’
The group’s objectives include delivering more homes to rent and buy, while protecting the rights of existing residents.
They will also investigate ways to attract more public and private investment into poorer estates, and design commercially viable schemes that have the potential to be self-financing.