More details have emerged over why Lichfield missed out on Levelling Up funding to help pay for a new leisure centre.
Lichfield District Council is set to finalise plans to approve £10million to build the new facility at Stychbrook Park at a meeting next week.
The local authority has been forced to rethink where the money would come from after a bid of more than £15million to the Levelling Up fund was turned down.
Feedback has now been given to the council outlining that the bid was “reasonable” but had issues around areas aspects linked to the case for the allocation of funding.
“Overall, the strategic fit section was satisfactory. It was clear what the need was for physical activity provision in the vicinity of the proposed site, though the case for a like-for-like replacement of the existing leisure centre was less clearly made.
“The project had been progressing since 2019 and ongoing market research, stakeholder engagement and detailed demand and financial analyses had confirmed strong support for the new facility, affordability and future viability.
“The council had undertaken significant preparation for the project – including a robust appraisal of procurement options and risk assessment which would allow them to mobilise immediately on the award of a grant. Project timescales appeared realistic
and achievable.
“There were two areas where the bid could be strengthened. Firstly, indicative project costs had only been presented at a high-level for the key project stages. Some breakdowns or profiling of costs beyond this level would help to demonstrate that all expected costs had been included and were eligible.
“Secondly, whilst the overarching governance and assurance procedures of the council were detailed and appeared robust, more information on the specific way the governance for this project was to be structured, including, for example, project board membership and responsibilities would have been beneficial.
“When setting out the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plan, the bid set out a detailed plan and set out how outputs and outcomes would be measured within the costing and planning workbook. While outputs and outcomes were considered, the impacts of the proposal were neglected within the costing and planning workbook.”
Feedback on Lichfield District Council’s failed Levelling Up bid
The decision not to award the money saw Lichfield MP suggest “flaws” in the bid had led to the local authority missing out on funding.
His comments drew criticism from Cllr Doug Pullen, leader of Lichfield District Council.
Mr Fabricant has since sought to clarify his comments, saying that “the bid was flawed – not by any error contained in the bid, but because it was impossible to prove Levelling Up funding need especially compared to the needs of poorer applicants in England and Wales”.
He added that a future application was likely to more successful if it focused on Burntwood.
But Cllr Steve Norman, Labour group leader at Lichfield District Council, said the feedback showed that their had indeed been flaws.
“I was dismissive of the MP’s criticism of his colleagues at Lichfield District Council, suggesting council staff needed training, but the feedback is not good.
“I have now seen the full bid, that Mr Fabricant supported in writing, and it looked well-researched to me, but the local Government office pointed out a number of flaws.
“The council has now found the funding for the leisure centre in Lichfield so perhaps they can concentrate of bidding for grants that will benefit Burntwood.”
Cllr Steve Norman, Lichfield District Council
