Final approvals have been given by the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) for Corby’s remaining two projects in the Towns Fund – the train station to town centre link road and Smart and Connected Corby.
Together with two previously approved projects, the four projects will bring many benefits to the town and surrounding area:
- The Corby 6th Form College
- Multi-use building
- Train station to Town centre link road
- Smart and Connected Corby
The last two projects in the list have now been given the formal, final go ahead to proceed by central Government.
They will further add to the positive impact the overall Towns Fund project will have on the local economy and assist with the future viability of the town centre and diversify the uses of the area.
The news comes as work is well underway on the new Corby 6th Form, based in Chisholm House, and will be open to students from September 2023, run by the Bedford College Group. The new college will accommodate 339 students by 2025/26 and be capable of welcoming over 660 students per academic year to study in this newly refurbished building in the heart of Corby.
Also located in the town centre will be the Multi-use building, which when open will provide accommodation for a modern Cultural and Community Hub, as well as meet the identified demand for creative, media and third sector uses.
Once complete, Oakley Road will provide attractive and safe pedestrian/cycle connections between the town centre and the railway station through the Train Station to Town Centre – link road project. It will connect the station directly with the Chisholm House and Multi-use Building project area, making a significant contribution to the active healthy travel agenda and help to reduce congestion and emissions across Corby.
Finally, the Smart and Connected Corby project will establish Corby as a ‘smart and green’ town centre, allowing for monitoring and management of the flow of pedestrians, cyclist and motorists to assess the impact of interventions and help as the town’s population increases.
Cllr David Brackenbury, the council’s Executive Member for Growth and Regeneration, said: “It is great news that we have been given the green light for all four of these fantastic projects, which will help enable Corby to grow and diversify.
“The new 6th Form college will help support the education and develop the skills of our younger residents, whilst the multi-use building will provide a community and cultural hub and the final two projects will improve the local infrastructure and assist in future proofing the town.
“I would like to also take this opportunity to thank the Officers who have been working extremely hard on developing these exciting projects.”
Cllr Jason Smithers, Leader of the Council, said: “The £19.9m of funding we were allocated has to be used on the four identified projects, which will bring numerous benefits to the area, so I am pleased that Government has given us the final go ahead and we will be able to continue to move forward with these important projects.”
