£12.3m levelling up boost secures future for local pubs, museums and sports clubs

Pubs, museums and sports clubs across the United Kingdom have been given vital funding from Government to secure their future for generations to come.

Forty-five treasured spaces in our villages, towns and cities will receive more than £12.3m in funding so they can be run by the community, for the community. Thanks to the latest funding from the government’s Community Ownership Fund, these institutions will be owned and run by hardworking community groups.

£1m will rebuild a historic Yorkshire railway bridge in urgent need of repair, which carries the railway line over Bridgehouse Beck between Keighley and Oxenhope.

The funding will protect a tourist rail line which is used by more than 250,000 passengers a year, and will improve transport infrastructure in the region so that the local economy can continue to thrive. The original bridge was built in 1867, and the railway line has featured in dozens of films and TV shows over the years including The Railway Children in 1970.

David Pearson, co-ordinator for external finance & resources at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway Preservation Society, said: “We’re overjoyed to have received this funding, which will be going towards the complete rebuilding of the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway’s bridge 27 in the middle of the railway at Haworth and in the middle of Haworth village.

“It means that the long term survival of train services on the railway is ensured and means everything to our railway, our villages and our people.”

An educational aerospace discovery centre in Kinross will be created with £300k from the fund, offering interactive learning opportunities and exhibitions which will inspire future generations to pursue STEM careers.

And the Vale of Aeron pub in Ystrad Aeron, Wales, which was known as a favourite haunt of the legendary poet Dylan Thomas, has been given £300k for renovations to keep it open and make it accessible to the whole community.

Jacob Young, Minister for Levelling Up, added: “Our priority is to support communities and deliver opportunities right across the country, which is why we’re investing £12.3m to secure the future of cherished community institutions.

“These places, from pubs to historic railway lines, are the golden thread which run through our social fabric, and keeping them going is vital for supporting communities.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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