Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, has launched a new £3.8 billion investment fund to unlock major regeneration opportunities, increase affordable housing delivery and give investors greater confidence in the region’s long-term growth pipeline.
The funding will help deliver major projects across the Birmingham-North Solihull Gateway, Coventry Growth Arc, Sandwell-Dudley Metro Corridor and Wolverhampton-Walsall Growth Cluster, which represent a £20 billion pipeline of investment opportunities, as set out in the West Midlands Investment Prospectus.
The Mayor said the fund gives the region the financial strength to unlock major development sites, back growing industries and attract billions more in private investment.
Managed through the new West Midlands Investment Partnership, the fund includes £800 million from the West Midlands Combined Authority, a commitment of £1.1 billion from the West Midlands Pension Fund, and £1.7 billion from Homes England. The Mayor is also working with the office for Investment, National Housing Bank, and others to bring additional investment to the fund.
The fund, combined with the West Midlands’ £20 billion pipeline of investment-ready opportunities, sets the region apart. Unprecedented public funding, aligned with a major project pipeline, is giving investors greater confidence in the region’s economy and strengthening its appeal as a magnet for capital.
You can discover this pipeline yourself by visiting the interactive Site Selection WM platform.
Announcing the fund at the UKREiiF real estate show in Leeds, the Mayor said he wanted project developers to partner with him and local council leaders and join the building boom sweeping the region.
This gives us the financial firepower to invest in the things that matter most to local people – affordable homes, good jobs, skills and better transport.
The West Midlands has never had this level of investment working together behind a single regional plan. We now have the chance to shape our own economic future and bring in billions more of private investment alongside it.
I want developers and investors to work with us to help grow the economy and raise living standards right across the region.
– Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands
Boosting regional investment is key to national growth. Through our Strategic Partnership with the Mayor of the West Midlands, we’re backing the ambition behind the West Midlands Investment Partnership, helping to develop the pipeline of investable projects that can unlock jobs and private investment for communities across the region.
– Oliver Holbourn, Chief Executive Officer, National Wealth Fund
The fund’s launch comes on the back of further signs of economic revival in the West Midlands, with:
- More professional services jobs created, more exports and more foreign direct investment than any other strategic authority area
- 12% more high-growth business start-ups and double the number of construction jobs this year compared with last year
The fund will build on the momentum of the West Midlands Growth Plan, which sets out to increase prosperity by creating 100,000 good jobs in fast-growing industries and building over 120,000 homes.