North Lanarkshire Council has secured a total of £6.37 million in external funding for a range of commercial, environmental and community led projects.

£1.8 million has been awarded through the Scottish Government's Regeneration Capital Grant Fund as part of a £5 million project to redevelop Braidhurst Industrial Estate in Motherwell. This will include development of new industrial start-up units as well as the refurbishment of existing industrial stock, roads and infrastructure.

Plans for the construction of new commercial developments at Ravenscraig and at Gartcosh Business Interchange have received £1.94 million from the Scottish Government's Vacant and Derelict Land Fund.

£230,000 has been awarded by the Scottish Government's Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme to develop Glenmanor Greenspace, a community greening project in Moodiesburn.

In addition, the Scottish Government's 2022/23 Placed Based Investment Programme provided over £2.4 million to deliver a range of town centre, active travel and community projects across North Lanarkshire, including the development of a new immersive digital community and education hub at Motherwell Library.

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Councillor Ayeshah Khan, Convener of the Enterprise, Growth and Fair Work Committee, said: "This additional funding supports the council's own investment and allows us to move forward with significant capital projects bringing jobs, new facilities and opportunities to North Lanarkshire.

"We have ambitious plans to regenerate our town centres, create high quality premises to attract new businesses to the area, and build transport and active travel routes to link communities and attract inward investment.

"Our success in securing significant external funding is key to achieving our vision of making North Lanarkshire the place to live, learn, work, invest and visit."

The council has also made a number of bids to future funding programmes, including:

• applications seeking over £50 million from the UK Government's Levelling Up Fund for projects in Airdrie, Coatbridge, Cumbernauld and Ravenscraig;

• a bid for £10 million from the Scottish Government's Green Growth Accelerator to support Strathclyde Country Park to transit towards net zero emissions through projects such as the retro-fit of the park's watersports centre and the installation of a water source heat pump within the park's loch;

• a partnership with communities and partners to submit five Stage 1 bids to the Scottish Government's 2023/24 Regeneration Capital Grant Fund;

• two bids to the Scottish Government's Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme for a new active travel link connecting Craigneuk in Wishaw with New College Lanarkshire's Ravenscraig Campus and a social housing project in Pather, Wishaw; and

• a funding bid to the Scottish Government's Town Centre Demonstrator Project to help promote and enable town centre living as part of the approved vision for Airdrie Town Centre.

Decisions on these bids are expected by the end of 2022.