Glasgow City Council are preparing an application to the UK government's Levelling Up Fund on behalf of a Pollok Country Park Stables and Courtyard project.

In April, the council approved plans to bid for funding from the UK Government for three new programmes - the Levelling Up, Community Renewal and Community Ownership Funds.

The Levelling Up Fund (LUF) has £800million available for projects in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. These projects come under three themes: smaller transport schemes that will make a genuine difference in local areas; town centre and high street regeneration; and support for the maintenance and expansion of cultural and heritage assets.

Glasgow City Council can submit up to seven bids to the LUF (one per constituency), with a maximum value of £20million per application. There is also provision for the council to submit one large scale transportation bid (with a value of between £20 - £50 million).

The deadline for applications to the first funding call for the LUF is 18 June - after this, there will be an appraisal period of around four/five months before the UK Government announces the successful applications. Projects must begin before the end of March 2022, with completion by 2024.

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Glasgow City Council has worked with a broad range of partner organisations to identify potential Levelling Up projects, with 24 schemes reaching the Expression of Interest stage, before a final review on criteria such as readiness, cost, community engagement, and deliverability led to a shortlist of four: Bridgeton Civic Hub - City Mile; Pollok Country Park Stables & Courtyard; SEC: Walkway and Connectivity; and the University of Strathclyde - TIC2.

Each of these four projects is viewed as eligible for LUF support, and potentially deliverable before the end of 2024. A briefing - in line with UK Government guidance - was given to all seven Glasgow MPs, to gauge views on the projects and provide information to the council's approach to the LUF.

Officers have now recommended that the application for Pollok Country Park Stables and Courtyard be submitted for the first funding call. This project would revitalise the dilapidated Category A listed Stables & Old Courtyard in Pollok Country Park, and deliver a heritage attraction that enhances the unique characteristics of the Country Park, fostering civic pride and bringing economic benefits to the area.

Councillor Susan Aitken, Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: "The scheme to bring new life to the Stables and Courtyard in Pollok Country Park offers the chance to improve the city in a number of ways, and is an application very worthy of submission to this fund. A number of other outstanding projects around the city also met the funding criteria, and we can look forward to submissions being made for these at the second and third calls."

Work will now be carried out on bids for the second and third LUF funding calls.