Crawley Town Investment Plan Project Proposals

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework

Our project will establish the Gatwick Diamond's first Innovation Centre in the heart of Crawley's Manor Royal Business District, unlocking prized, high value jobs to boost the local economy and serving Crawley's advanced engineering business cluster to help safeguard its huge contribution to the town’s economic output and productivity.

The centre's innovation output will be characterised by the fusion of high technology expertise practised by digital micro-enterprises prevalent in the broader Coast to Capital sub-region and the cutting edge technological and product development aspirations of Manor Royal's advanced engineering cluster of major businesses.

Once established, this multi-disciplinary Fusion Centre will develop and enable spin-off innovation and commercial partnerships between digital small and medium enterprises (SME) and advanced engineering enterprises to drive product development and high value business cluster growth, helping to catalyse the type of transformative economic restructuring so crucial to Crawley's sustainable economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.

The centre will focus and specialise on designing, building, prototyping, testing and then bringing to market hybrid digital or electronic products and services, which will:

• Boost the competitiveness of Crawley's advanced engineering business presence, with a particular bespoke focus on specific local strengths: avionics, transportation technologies (including bus and rail) and bio-medical engineering and instrumentation
• Retain and significantly grow local Research and Development and innovation capacity through the "on site" cluster growth of digital and advanced engineering micro-enterprises/small business serving the above sectors
• Unlock job creation and higher value employment growth to enhance overall economic productivity and help reboot local economic growth
• Stimulate highly valued pre-competitive research and development (R&D) co-operation with university academic teams, attracting post-graduate/post-doctoral expertise to the Fusion Centre, boosting the volume of innovation output and establishing an initial university presence foothold for Crawley and Gatwick Diamond

Given a top priority for the Coast to Capital sub-region is achieving a significant uplift in innovation output and bearing in mind its critical importance to sustaining economic productivity in Crawley and Gatwick Diamond as a counter-recessionary tool, it is envisaged that there is ultimately both the scope and need for a full end-to-end campus-based provision in Manor Royal to support technological workforce growth, linking through to Crawley College and its emerging new science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) Skills Centre. That centre is due to be launched next year in Crawley town centre to help upskill local people in STEM disciplines, particularly young people and opening up pathways for them into high value jobs arising from this Innovation Centre project.

In these challenging economic times the Crawley-Gatwick Innovation Centre will become a vital asset and anchor for the area’s advanced engineering presence by offering an invaluable source of digital innovation expertise practised by the fast growing numbers of micro-enterprises in the broader Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) region.

The initiative will ultimately help consolidate and grow Manor Royal's economic output of £1.7 billion and associated tax and business rates revenues.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework: The TIP Vision for Crawley states that: "a pioneering advanced engineering Business Park and Innovation Centre at Manor Royal" will be play a major part in Crawley's success by 2050. The Vision also proclaims that "Crawley will benefit hugely from Manor Royal – a stunning digital Business Park with a highly productive green technology and advanced engineering business base".

One of the key strategic opportunities set out in the TIP document is: "To enable a high value digital Business Park in Manor Royal, with a formidable reputation in advanced engineering innovation".

The TIP document also emphasises the critical importance of the scheme delivery interventions associated with the Towns Fund programme in order to help Crawley "inject critical counter-recessionary infrastructure investment into Crawley to help tackle the immediate COVID-19 crisis and mitigate its severe economic impact". The current unemployment crisis in Crawley is a real and present portent of even deeper recessionary conditions further down the line. One analysis by the Centre for Progressive Policy projects a 42 per cent reduction in economic output in Crawley, wiping over £2 billion off the value. Should that happen there is a real risk that it will fatally undermine Crawley's significant cluster of advanced engineering businesses in Manor Royal – Thales, Elekta, Varian, Chemigraphic, Permasense, CGG, Aerotron, Doosan etc. – hugely significant contributors to economic output in Crawley. The development of an Innovation Centre facility filled with digital technology micro-enterprises, which deliver business output in support of product and services development of the advanced engineering cluster in Manor Royal, is a vital mechanism to generate new business and jobs growth in the advanced engineering and digital sectors in Crawley and to retain and consolidate the presence of Crawley's advanced engineering presence, so critical to Crawley's long-term economic recovery.

Finally, one of the structural weaknesses identified in the TIP as a key reason for the Towns Fund investment in Crawley is the fact that Crawley and the Gatwick Diamond lags some way behind other competitors areas when it comes to volume of innovation output. This new Fusion Centre facility will make a major difference in addressing this shortfall, boosting innovation output and securing its long-term sustainable growth, which has been identified by the Coast to Capital LEP as a key strategic goal for the forthcoming Local Industrial Strategy

The restructure, conversion and fit out of a 20,000 square foot vacant commercial building on the Thales business site in Manor Royal. The building will comprise:

• Fully equipped and serviced high quality research and development (innovation) space and prototyping facilities to support the centre's digital and advanced engineering micro-enterprises, providing world-class facilities close to some of the region’s largest technology companies
• "Project Space" - Flexible working, bookable, highly versatile space available for micro-businesses and SMEs to grow and scale their activities, with appropriate specialist support drawn from business and academic partners, focused on accelerating technological development
• The provision of outreach advanced engineering and digital development co-working space, which encourages the growth of new micro-enterprises and commercial spin-offs and the sharing of expertise through multi-disciplinary co-operation
• The provision of a "Design Centre" - a bookable facility with support to enable "design thinking" and "user-centred design" to be undertaken at pace and scale, which would otherwise be inaccessible for smaller businesses and project teams.

Innovation Centre - day-to-day management

Our project will also procure and secure a specialist managing agent to take on the day to day running of the Fusion Centre operation and “pump prime” this to ensure it is established to meet regional and local business needs and that it continues to do so sustainably in the long-term beyond the project lifetime.

The managing agent will drive the engagement, active involvement and support of national and international advanced engineering businesses present locally. The advanced engineering business participants will include “anchor” local economic contributors such as Thales, Elekta, Varian, Welland Medical, Aerotron, Chemigraphic and Permasense.

The managing agent will deliver full occupancy of the Innovation Centre with digital micro-enterprises/small businesses and will enable close co-operation with research and development institutions and a physical presence at the centre for them. It will base its approach to securing tenants on the following “customer journey”:

Step 1: Marketing, promotion and proactive engagement to attract tenants
Step 2: Facilitating entry into the Fusion Centre through incentives
Step 3: Integrating the incoming micro-enterprise into the centre community
Step 4: Development and scaling up of micro-enterprises
Step 5: An exit strategy – upscale to intermediate space available locally once the SME has outgrown the Innovation Centre.

The managing agent will ensure that the centre maintains an up-to-date focus on priority emerging technological development trends professed by the local advanced engineering cluster. This will ensure that the innovation output of the Fusion Centre is synonymous with the “live” business development priorities of the cluster in order to optimise the impact of centre activity on enhancing business competitiveness, growth, high value job creation and ultimately uplifting local economic output.

• A total of 130 businesses will receive support emanating from the services provided by the Crawley-Gatwick Innovation Centre
• A total of 60 micro-enterprises or small businesses will take up occupancy at the new Innovation Centre
• A total of 400 jobs created and protected and an additional 616 indirect jobs (calculated using HMG "UK employment multipliers and effects")

£11 million
Funding sought from TIP: £2.6m

September to December 2020 - Finalise designs, submit planning application

February 2021: Secure planning permission

February to July 2021: Pre-construction work and works contract tender process

July 2021 to March 2022: Works construction phase, tender for Innovation Centre managing agent and secure and appoint managing agent, commence marketing programme

April 2022: Launch Innovation Centre; managing agent commences day-to-day management of centre

April 2022 to March 2023: First phase of Innovation Centre operation – deliver 20% occupancy

April 2023 to March 2024: Second Phase of Innovation Centre Operation – deliver 50% occupancy

April 2024 to March 2025: Third phase of Innovation Centre Operation – deliver minimum 90% occupancy

£8.4 million - Get Britain Building programme (MHCLG)

The Innovation Centre project partnership is led by Thales, who specialise on the site in aviation electronics (avionics), aerospace communications and military technologies. They are prepared to enable use of a vacant commercial building on site to be developed as the Innovation Centre.

The project partnership also includes the Manor Royal BID and through the BID, key advanced engineering business partners: Elekta; Welland Medical; Varian; CGG etc. Thales are working closely with the Coast to Capital LEP and Crawley Borough Council on the design of the project.

The Manor Royal BID has established an extensive business network amongst Manor Royal businesses and will play a key role working with the Innovation Centre managing agent to engage and involve Manor Royal advanced engineering businesses in building relationships with the centre and its emerging micro-enterprise business community offering digital and advanced engineering expertise. The Coast to Capital LEP’s Business Hub acts as a major conduit to access digital technology micro-enterprises across the Coast to Capital area, who are seeking new business space opportunities to expand, particularly from places like Brighton where availability has become saturated. The Innovation Centre managing agent will work with the LEP and the Manor Royal BID to attract digital technology micro-enterprises to the Innovation Centre and the managing agent will forge business to business connections, supported by the Manor Royal BID with advanced engineering businesses in Manor Royal.

Crawley Borough Council has managed to secure £27 million of private sector investment to roll out gigabit bandwidth speed full fibre broadband across the borough, including Manor Royal, and this new technology will be a vital attribute to support the day-to-day operation of the Innovation Centre and the product and service development activity of the incoming digital technology micro-enterprises, bespoke to the needs of Manor Royal’s advanced engineering cluster. This £27 million investment will also unlock 5G wireless coverage across Manor Royal.

The Innovation Centre project also aligns closely to the Manor Royal gigabit business park project under the “connectivity” pillar of the TIP, which will invest in a package of incentives to enable Manor Royal businesses and business premises to gain access to the full fibre gigabit broadband services by helping to fund the cable connection right into the business premises off the street. The Innovation Centre will be one of the beneficiaries of this project under the “Connectivity” pillar.

In addition, under the “Urban Regeneration” pillar, there will be investment in upgrades to the business environment in Manor Royal to specification levels commensurate with the visual quality of a Business Park. This scheme will be interdependent with the Innovation Centre project because both will attract new businesses into Manor Royal – in this case digital technology and advanced engineering micro-enterprises. The growing innovation and research and development output from the Innovation Centre will unlock new “university/industry” co-operation and attract teams of university researchers to the centre to work with micro-enterprises and advanced engineering businesses to boost research and development output. There will be opportunities linked to this new co-operation to present a strong case for the development of an Institute of Technology focused on advanced engineering and this initiative would be interdependent with the scheme presented under the “Skills and Enterprise” pillar to enable development of a university presence in Crawley.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

A programme of investment in infrastructure for vocational skills training and higher education. The development of venues, specialist equipment and facilities with the appropriate quality specifications to accommodate the design and delivery of new training programmes in construction, professional services, engineering and digital. These will empower Crawley’s local workforce and boost local businesses in these sectors by helping them to locally recruit people with the correct skills.

The Invest in Skills for Crawley programme will comprise three principal schemes:

1. Infrastructure and facilities for new university-level training provision
2. Additional F.E. infrastructure to enable Level 2 and 3 training pathways for Crawley residents access into employment in the above sectors
3. A construction skills hub venue equipped with green construction skills training facilities. This infrastructure will be developed and built out on sites in Crawley town centre and, subject to additional funding, in Manor Royal. The programme aim will be to enable the creation of a compendium of new vocational and higher education training programmes, designed to:

• Help employers in the sectors listed below recruit locally
• Equip Crawley’s local resident workforce with key skills and to gain associated qualifications at Levels 2, 3, 4 and above (with clear progression pathways). There will be a particular focus on those skills/qualification levels required by employers in the construction, engineering, professional services and digital sectors.

This programme will respond both to:

1. The immediate imperative brought on by the Covid-19 crisis to re-skill the local workforce away from sectors like aviation and hospitality into the above business sectors where there are opportunities to access jobs and for jobs growth
2. The longer term priority to address a significant structural impediment in Crawley’s local economy, which is a lower than average proportion of the workforce with skills qualifications at Level 3 and 4 and above and the inability for local employers from the above sectors to recruit into roles because of skills gaps and shortages in the workforce, not just locally but more broadly.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

The vision for Crawley in the TIP by 2050 involves the establishment of a successful, well established and thriving university-level presence in Crawley. There is currently limited training provision locally at Level 4 and above both in Crawley and in the surrounding Gatwick Diamond sub-region. The absence of such provision is holding back the workforce and stifling higher value jobs growth - employers cannot recruit because those with the right skills levels are not available.

The inclusion of a Construction Skills Hub facility as one of the projects within the Invest in Skills for Crawley programme is hugely important, both for immediate and long-term economic development reasons linked to the TIP framework.

The TIP Vision for Crawley states that Crawley will have a “transformed green economy” by 2050 and that Crawley will have a “burgeoning green technology and construction jobs base”. In order to achieve this, there is a vital need for investment in green construction skills training infrastructure, which will enable a much greater range and higher volume of green construction skills training interventions to be designed and implemented by Crawley College and other providers. This is hugely important not just to empower local residents with the key green construction skills needed for a future influx of jobs required to “green retrofit” and “green new build” for homes in the borough – but also to provide the construction industry with the workforce availability and capacity to drive forward the delivery of green construction practices. This is essential if the “transformed green economy” vision for Crawley is to be realised and a major programme of green construction skills workforce training will be a key factor ultimately in driving down CO2 emissions in Crawley households and enabling the borough to realise its net zero carbon by 2050 commitment.

More immediately, there are thousands of Crawley residents being made redundant as a consequence of the Covid-19 crisis in the aviation industry and the hugely negative impact of the crisis on the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors. 20,000 Crawley residents are furloughed.

The Construction Skills Hub will provide opportunities for local residents, including young people, to access construction skills, traineeships, apprenticeships and ultimately on-site construction trade employment, which will certainly be viable in view of the continuation of significant residential development within Crawley despite the recession, particularly in Crawley town centre. The Hub will unlock the development of an expanded local construction skills programme and its location in the town centre will enable the training facilities to be in close proximity to town centre regeneration and construction sites either “live” now or going live in the next 12 months. These sites include the new Town Hall development (currently live) and the Station Gateway site scheme: a new railway station for Crawley town centre and 304 new residential apartments.

• Confirm site locations for the new skills infrastructure
• Conclude Construction Employment and Skills Plan MoUs between site owners and delivery partners to commit them to taking on local residents as construction apprentices, trainees and as recruits to trade vocations
• Draw up designs for the new construction, digital and professional services skills training facilities and infrastructure
• Agree compendium of skills training interventions and educational offer – to be designed through the Town Deal Board – with clear progression pathways
• Develop associated business cases to demonstrate how the facilities will unlock revenue funding investment in the design and delivery of new skills training programmes as presented above
• Produce detailed designs and submit planning applications
• Agree works parameters and secure construction contractors via a tender process to commence the build out works
• Complete construction and launch/deliver training programmes
• Review outcomes and produce final report

One new Construction Skills Hub One new university-level skills training facility One new F.E. skills training facility providing Crawley residents with a skills progression pathway through levels 2 and 3 into job opportunities in digital, engineering, professional services and construction.

Target numbers for Crawley workforce participating in skills training and securing qualifications.

Short-term: Number of local unemployed residents accessing employment in construction and in the priority sectors above.

Longer term: Local businesses create new jobs in the above priority sectors because they are able to recruit locally; establish Crawley as a centre of best practice for green construction skills.

£5 million

Strand 1: Establish the Construction Skills Hub (Cost estimate: £750,000)

April to October 2021: Negotiate, agree and design construction site employment and skills programmes with site owners and construction contractors; design construction skills hub and submit planning application; commence on-site construction apprenticeships and traineeships using temporary facilities at Crawley College.

November 2021 to April 2022: Secure planning permission; procure contractor to erect Construction Skills Hub to provide a base for construction site apprentices, trainees and local recruits to trade roles to access construction skills training in tandem with their practical work experience on-site.

April 2022 to March 2025: Launch Construction Skills Hub and roll out delivery of construction skills traineeships and apprenticeships to serve Crawley’s construction sites and to benefit local residents wishing to secure new skills to pursue careers in construction. Design portfolio of “green” construction skills training programmes and commence delivery at the Construction Skills Hub, providing green construction businesses with a vital mechanism for provision of a supply of local residents with the right skills to support the roll out of green construction and sustainable homes technologies in both existing housing stock and the new homes to be built out.

Strand 2: Development of new F.E. skills training infrastructure on Crawley College campus to create pathways for local residents in one of the following priority high value/growth sectors in Crawley:

• Professional services
• Digital technologies

Estimated cost: £4 million

April to October 2021: Finalise Crawley College campus masterplan to determine the appropriate site location for the new F.E. facilities

October 2021 to March 2022: Develop designs for new professional services or digital technologies F.E. training facilities at the college and submit planning application

April 2022 to October 2022: Secure planning permission and commence process to procure a contractor to build out the facilities

October 2022 to March 2023: Secure contractor, mobilise the works site

April to December 2023: Build out new training facilities

April 2024 to March 2025: Launch new F.E. training facilities and commence delivery of skills training programmes to equip Crawley residents with Level 2 and 3 qualifications and clear pathways, through close co-operation with local business, into employment opportunities.

Strand 3: New university-level training centre/facilities

Estimated cost for feasibility analysis and designs; £250,000

April 2021 to March 2022: Undertake a major feasibility analysis to determine the most appropriate first phase of delivery to enable the development of new university-level training facilities. This will establish the priority course subjects, justified by presentation of a clear local economic rationale, explaining how practically this higher education training and new qualifications will unlock pathways for Crawley residents into high value local employment in one or more of Crawley’s priority growth sectors. The feasibility analysis will determine the appropriate location for delivery of this training in Crawley, what additional training facilities are required and how delivery of the training programmes will be resourced financially and what academic expertise will be required to deliver the programmes to ensure they are sustainable.

April 2022 to October 2022: Produce university-level training delivery plan; prepare concept designs

October 2022 to March 2023: Draw up detailed designs and submit planning application for new university facilities

April to October 2023: Secure planning permission and, subject to Institute of Technology funding (complementing and enhancing any successful bid), procure works contractor to deliver the new facilities

November 2023 to June 2024: Build out new university training facilities

September 2024 to March 2025: Launch new university-level training centre and commence delivery of Level 4 and above courses, delivering skills training in sectors identified in feasibility analysis, potentially engineering, professional services and digital technologies/automation.

Planned bid to Institute for Technology programme to fund the costs of building out of Strand 3 – the new university-level facilities

The design and delivery of the Invest in Skills for Crawley programme and its three strands will be overseen by the Crawley Town Deal Board and Taskforce Skills Sub-Group, chaired by the Chief Executive of Chichester College Group, which runs Crawley College.

This Skills Sub-Group will comprise employer representatives from the construction, professional services and digital technologies sectors who will help to shape the training facilities and course design so that they align as closely as possible to the requirements of these sectors. The Manor Royal BID, the Town Centre BID and Gatwick Airport will also participate.

The Sub-Group will also comprise representatives from Crawley Borough Council, West Sussex County Council, the Local Enterprise Partnership as well as local voluntary and community sector partners such as Crawley Community Action, Crawley Town Community Foundation and Citizens Advice Bureau alongside the DWP/Jobcentre Plus to provide advice on how to promote these new skills training opportunities to local residents in the community and attract them to sign up to the training.

The Invest in Skills for Crawley programme is closely complementary to the Crawley College-led, LEP funded scheme to build out a new STEM Skills Centre on the college site in the town centre. This new facility , which will open early in 2021, will offer STEM training in Level 2 and above to help create pathways for local residents into jobs in the advanced engineering sector businesses located in Crawley. The Invest in Skills for Crawley programme will unlock similar pathways in regard to construction, digital and professional services, all part of the drive to empower Crawley’s local workforce with access to Level 2 qualifications and above in key high value employment sectors locally.

The programme, through undertaking a thorough feasibility and design assessment for the development of new university facilities provision in Crawley, will create firm groundwork for the significant future expansion of higher education provision. This will help to enable development  of an Institute of Technology and complementing the other strands of the Invest in Skills for Crawley programme, which will provide access to Level 2 and 3 skills pathways in construction, professional services and digital for residents to access the new higher education provision as an option. In this way, there will be strong interdependencies between the three strands of the Invest in Skills for Crawley programme.

These exciting new facilities in the heart of Crawley town centre will provide excellent opportunities for Crawley residents to progress into digital employment vocations and high quality town centre professional services employment as accountants, lawyers, management consultants, commercial agents, property consultants, architects, design and planning consultants etc.

By opening up access to green construction skills training, the Invest in Skills for Crawley programme complements closely the focus on the development of “green homes” retrofitting under the “Urban Regeneration” pillar, to help stimulate business growth in green construction and technologies and to respond to the net zero carbon emissions by 2050 imperative.

The project also complements the scheme which will establish business infrastructure grants for green technology and green construction businesses to support their growth and associated job creation.

All three of these schemes will stimulate business and jobs growth in the green technology and green construction sector within Crawley, strengthening the business and workforce base required in order to drive Crawley’s progress towards net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The new Invest in Skills for Crawley programme will also be able to take full advantage of the digital infrastructure and platforms enabled by the “Connectivity” pillar of the Town Investment Plan to make maximum use of digital media as a mechanism for delivering the training programmes virtually as well as physically.

There will also be clear links with the planned Fusion Centre – embedding a local culture of innovation and enterprise and providing a progression route from higher education into employment – championing the commercialisation of intellectual property and research and development in an alliance between the public and private sectors.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

A programme of business infrastructure grants to attract “green” technology and construction businesses to take up premises in Manor Royal and help Crawley business adopt “sustainable energy” provision.

The purpose of these business infrastructure grants would enable small, green technology businesses to invest in new business premises or in new facilities and equipment in order to expand their commercial footprint and their jobs base within Crawley. The scheme would also provide “start-up” business grants and micro-enterprise grants to help support the growth and expansion of Crawley’s green technology cluster.

Green technology and construction businesses would be invited to respond to a series of calls for grant applications, which would be assessed against the extent to which the grants will invest in infrastructure, facilities and equipment that generate green business growth and job creation. Once allocated Crawley Borough Council – the accountable body – and a Green Infrastructure Grants Programme Board will oversee the realisation of the grants investment, monitoring the progress and achievements made by the businesses in deriving stronger competitiveness and business and jobs growth through the grant investment in new green infrastructure and facilities.

The overarching rationale is for the green infrastructure business grants to stimulate the growth of the green construction and technology business sector in Crawley. This would therefore increase the capacity of the private sector locally to help Crawley deliver significant reductions in CO2 emissions through business activity which yields more sustainable homes and sustainable business premises.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

• This project responds directly to the TIP vision, which declares that Crawley will have a “transformed green economy” by 2050 “alongside extensive sustainable homes, transport and green tech business”. The Vision goes on to say that Crawley will have a “burgeoning green technology and construction jobs base”.

This project also responds directly to one of the four key strategic opportunities of the TIP:

• To facilitate the green transformation of Crawley’s economy as part of the national drive to realise zero net carbon emissions by 2050, maximising investment locally in green business, green homes, green technologies, green transport and infrastructure.

The TIP document goes on to state that the Town Investment Plan will help to tackle “stubbornly high carbon emissions”.

Our project will do this by investing green infrastructure business grants, enabling local green technology and construction businesses to boost their competitiveness, expand and create new jobs, strengthening the scope and capacity of the green business sector in Crawley to deliver sustainable homes, business premises and transport infrastructure, which is key to the goal of Crawley delivering net zero carbon by 2050.

Design and launch green infrastructure business grants programme.

Implement the grants programme, issuing calls for grant applications with clear guidance highlighting eligibility and selection/evaluation criteria for the grants.

Manage the evaluation of grant applications and select the strongest applications from eligible green technology/construction businesses, which will invest in facilities and infrastructure to deliver business and jobs growth and boost the green technological conversion of homes, transport and commercial premises to drive down carbon emissions.

A business grants panel will meet to award and select the successful applications.

The Green Business Infrastructure Grants Programme Board will then oversee the delivery of the grant investment into facilities and infrastructure required by the successful grant applicant businesses, determining the levels of success in growing their business activity and generating new jobs in the sector.

There will be further call rounds for applications until all the green infrastructure business grant funding is committed. Once the grants programme has completed there will be an ex-post evaluation of the overall impact of the grant investment on the growth of the green technology/construction sector in Crawley.

• 50 business grants distributed to green
• technology companies in Crawley
• 150 green business jobs created
• 200 green business jobs safeguarded
• 15 new green businesses started up

£2.5 million

April to December 2022 – Design of the Green Infrastructure Business Grants Programme

February 2023 – Launch of Green Business Grants Programme

March to December 2023 – Delivery of three rounds of calls for grant applications. Business grants implementation begins

April 2024 – Full commitment of business grants resource allocations to green technology businesses

April 2024 to March 2025 – Ongoing implementation of business grants investment in green technology businesses

January to March 2025 – Ex-post evaluation of impact of the Green Infrastructure Business Grants on jobs and business growth in the sector and the extent to which enhanced green business activity has driven down carbon emissions

Not applicable.

The grants programme will be overseen by a Green Infrastructure Business Grants Programme Board and this Board will comprise private sector bodies such as the Manor Royal BID, the Town Centre BID and Gatwick Diamond Business as well as representatives of local voluntary and community sector bodies, including, in particular, groups with a strong focus on sustainability.

This Business Grants Programme Board will play a key role in monitoring and assessing the impact of the business grants programme in delivering jobs and business growth in the green business sector and in boosting green business activity to drive down carbon emissions.

This project is a key part of the drive to restructure Crawley’s economy through “green” transformation, providing investment to boost business activity in green construction and green technologies by enabling access to vital infrastructure, facilities and equipment.

This project therefore complements closely the focus on the development of “green” construction skills training infrastructure under the “Skills and Enterprise” pillar, to help equip the local workforce with those skills required to give the construction industry the skills base it needs to drive “green” retrofitting to existing housing stock and to deliver “green” new build homes.

The project also complements the scheme which will provide grants to invest in the green retrofitting of homes in Crawley because that scheme will provide resources for households to finance green retrofitting, calling on green construction businesses, such as the beneficiaries of these business grants, to help implement the types of retrofitting set out under project 1C above.

All three of the above schemes will stimulate business and jobs growth in the green technology and green construction sector within Crawley, strengthening the business and workforce base required in order to drive Crawley’s progress towards net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

This project will deliver feasibility and then concept and masterplan design work, which will deliver proposals for the build out of further phases of new commercial space, following on from the new Town Hall development (which includes five floors and 78,000 square feet of new office space). This will produce a delivery plan for a new commercial “eastern gateway”.

The project will identify the specific site locations where the further phases of new office space will be developed in order to increase the capacity of high grade commercial space in Crawley town centre. The project will present detailed designs and recommendations as to how the new commercial eastern gateway can be delivered. It will define specific delivery phases for the new gateway in accordance with specific locations that will bring about the incremental expansion of new build, high grade commercial space to accommodate professional services.

Crawley Borough Council is leading by example by investing in the construction of five floors of new build Grade A office space, as part of the Town Hall building.

The development of such modern high quality office stock is absolutely essential to consolidate the presence of professional services employers in Crawley town centre and to mitigate the threat of such employers leaving, which would have a real adverse impact on the town centre economy.

As part of Crawley’s long-term economic recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, there is an excellent opportunity not just to consolidate but to expand significantly the professional services hub in the town centre. In order to achieve this, it is essential that further new Grade A commercial space is designed, unlocked and built out. The Local Plan identifies three opportunity sites at the “eastern gateway” of the town centre for significant “mixed use” regeneration with the opportunity to yield new commercial space. One of those sites is the Town Hall, which is already being built out.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

The TIP Vision states that success by 2050 in Crawley will “yield exciting and refreshing state of the art business space for micro-enterprises and a major professional services commercial quarter” and the first of the key strategic priorities presented in the TIP advocates the development of a “professional services hub” in Crawley town centre. This would be impossible without major new investment in modern high grade commercial office space to both retain existing professional services business in the town centre (there are approximately 1,000 jobs in the sector there) and attract further inward investment by professional services businesses.

This project will build on the currently active commitment by Crawley Borough Council to deliver 78,000 square feet of new, high grade commercial office space by designing a complete commercial quarter at the eastern gateway of the town centre, defining the specific locations for the next phases of new commercial space development and producing associated designs and preliminary masterplans.

One Commercial Eastern gateway delivery plan, designs and mini masterplan.

Capital investment unlocked for the next phase of the commercial eastern gateway in Crawley town centre.

£150,000

Autumn 2021 – Produce specification for tender process

January to May 2022 – Tender process to select design consultants

June 2022 – Inception meeting

July 2022 to March 2023 – Design consultants to work up commercial eastern gateway designs, mini masterplan and delivery plan

Spring 2023 – Present recommendations and promote mini masterplan and designs to secure investment for the next phase of the commercial eastern gateway

Summer 2024 – Secure investment for the next phase of the commercial eastern gateway.

Not applicable.

A Project Board will be convened, overseen by the council and the Town Deal Board, which will comprise key stakeholders based in the town centre from the private sector – the Town Centre BID; the Professional Services Forum; the Federation of Small Businesses and from community representation: the Town Access Group; Crawley Community Action. This Board will be responsible for overseeing delivery of the project and for engaging on an ongoing basis in the design development work to ensure they can input into and influence that work.

The consultants will hold regular meetings with the Board on project progress in addition to formal quarterly meetings, providing excellent opportunities for community and private sector representatives to steer project delivery.

This commercial eastern gateway design project will be closely aligned to the following “live” projects that sit outside of the Town Investment Plan delivery programme:

1. Eastern Gateway – Crawley Growth Programme – Investing £8.3 million in public realm upgrades, traffic calming, a new segregated cycle route and new/upgraded pedestrian crossings on College Road/The Boulevard/Northgate roundabout and Southgate Avenue – this scheme provides much improved pedestrian and cyclist access between the town centre core and development sites at the “eastern gateway” of Crawley Town Centre
2. The new Town Hall development, which includes the construction of a new nine-storey building, accommodating four floors of Town Hall civic space and above that five floors and 78,000 square feet of new Grade A commercial office space, equipped to accommodate professional services businesses. This development should be considered the first phase in the development of the commercial eastern gateway, which will provide sufficient new Grade A commercial office space to accommodate a professional services hub in Crawley in the longer term.

This project will also complement closely the “Virtual Village” initiative – under the “Connectivity” pillar as part of the Town Investment Plan, since it will equip the town centre with full fibre gigabit speed digital applications. A number of these will benefit professional services employers operating from Crawley town centre. These digital infrastructure assets will help attract professional service businesses into the town centre to take up the new commercial space.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

The design, development and delivery of a high quality, 21st century bus station in the heart of the town centre as a centrepiece of Crawley’s shift to green transport and to a high quality town centre amenity offer. This investment will involve co-financing Towns Fund investment with investments from the Crawley Growth Programme, the Arora Group and from Metrobus.

A programme of public realm upgrades and cycle/pedestrian connectivity improvements is already envisaged as part of the Crawley Growth Programme, including upgrades to bus station infrastructure. This Towns Fund investment offers the opportunity to deliver a higher quality design and delivery specification for the bus station in order to provide the quality of sustainable transport infrastructure necessary to unlock delivery of 3,000 fully occupied, high quality town centre homes and a professional services hub in Crawley town centre, both key to the long-term economic future of the town.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

The Vision presented at the top of the Town Investment Plan document advocates that by 2050, Crawley should have “state of the art amenities” and “extensive... sustainable transport”. The Vision goes on to place the vital importance of high quality sustainable transport infrastructure such as a new bus station at the heart of the imperative to attract footfall: “The town centre will have a flourishing evening economy and will attract significant footfall from other parts of the borough and further afield thanks to state-of-the-art sustainable transport”.

The development of a transformed “state-of-the-art” town centre bus station is very much in line with the drive to green Crawley’s economy, in accordance with the key strategic opportunity set out in the TIP:

To facilitate the green transformation of Crawley’s economy as part of the national drive to realise zero net carbon emissions by 2050, maximising investment locally in green business, green homes, green technologies, green transport and infrastructure.

Investment of this nature to transform the quality of Crawley Bus Station is critical to the achievement of significant uplift in bus patronage in the long term, beyond the period of Covid-19 crisis. This outcome in turn is critical to the ability for Crawley to drive down its carbon emissions, particularly in transport, where it is still rising. Metrobus, the local bus operator, is committed to converting its entire bus fleet to hydrogen and electric power. The absence of such investment is clearly articulated as a threat in the TIP document: “To deliver on net zero carbon commitments by 2050, it is critical for the Town Investment Plan to deliver further significant sustainable transport and digital infrastructure investments to drive down the propensity to commute/travel by carbon emitting conventional vehicles".

1. Produce concept designs for the new bus station, pedestrian and cyclist connectivity to the bus station and surrounding public realm enhancements on Friary Way and Station Way
2. Determine design options for consultation Deliver a programme of consultation with local community and stakeholders
3. Determine preferred design
4. Progress to detailed design stage, planning pre-application discussion and consult again
5. Prepare and submit planning application
6. Secure planning permission and tender for works contractor to deliver new bus station, pedestrian and cyclist connectivity and surrounding public realm works
7. Secure contractor, mobilise and programme of works begin to erect the new bus station infrastructure and deliver the pedestrian/cyclist connectivity improvements and the public realm enhancements
8. Complete works and finalise
9. Launch new bus station and new public realm on Friary Way and Station Way

One new “sustainable” bus station, powered by renewable energy and designed to a high quality, state-of-the-art specification with digital RTPI.

New segregated cycle route on Station Way linking to Crawley Train Station.

New upgraded toucan crossings across Station Way to link pedestrians and cyclists from Crawley Train Station to Crawley Bus Station and the town centre core.

Traffic calming raised table at Station Way/Friary Way junction.

Completed public realm improvement scheme on Station Way/Friary Way

The delivery of 3,000 fully occupied, high quality homes by 2030.

£7.5 million of which £2.3m sought from TIP

April 2021 to March 2022 – Produce concept design options/consult with stakeholders and the community, determine preferred option

April to September 2022 – Progress detailed designs, engage in planning pre-application conversations

October to December 2022 – Prepare and submit planning application

January to June 2023 – Secure planning permission and commence tender for the works

July to December 2023 – Appoint contractor, prepare and mobilise

January 2024 to March 2025 – Works to deliver new bus station, pedestrian/cyclist connectivity and public realm improvements on Station Way and Friary Way

£5.2 million secured from the Crawley Growth Programme (Coast to Capital LEP Local Growth Fund; Crawley Borough Council; West Sussex County Council).

The project designs for the bus station will be worked up in close co-operation with Metrobus (the local bus operator), West Sussex County Council (the Highways Authority), the Town Centre BID (representing the town centre business community), with the Arora Group, who are leading on the Station Gateway site regeneration scheme, with GTR (the train operator) and with County Mall shopping centre, situated next to Crawley Bus Station.

These parties will, together with community representatives, form a Project Board to oversee delivery of the scheme. The Project Board will report to the Town Deal Board on a quarterly basis on progress with delivery.

Community and business representatives on the Town Deal Board will be consulted for their comments, feedback and steer on the proposals. There will be three phases of consultation with the local community to ensure their involvement and engagement:

1. At concept design, to consult on several design options for the bus station
2. At detailed design stage for feedback on the preferred option ahead of a planning application
3. The consultation formally during the planning application process itself

The new bus station design will dovetail closely with the Town Investment Plan priorities for investment in town centre gigabit speed broadband digital applications – the “Virtual Village” and in the roll out of investment in green energy for homes.

This is because the bus station will be equipped with digital technologies to provide high grade, real-time digital bus arrival and departure time information and the bus station will also be powered by solar renewable energies, thanks to investment from the Towns Fund.

The real-time digital timetable integral to the bus station and the bus network will be connected to the “virtual village” integrated digital platform, enabling local residents in the new apartments to have direct access to multiple timetables.

The Towns Fund investments will be combined with funds from the Crawley Growth Programme in order to deliver a much higher specification bus station design and provision in order to achieve a much greater quality of visual amenity and a much greater level of physical transformation of the bus station itself and the surrounding public realm.

This impact is key to the ability to attract people to live in Crawley town centre in high quality apartments and, in turn, the occupancy of such apartments and the creation of a vibrant new town centre neighbourhood is one of the critical ingredients that will achieve a long-term sustainable economic and prosperous future for the town centre and for Crawley.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

The Town Investment Plan will finance the development of a priority arterial off-road and segregated cycle route linking Crawley’s key employment destinations – Gatwick Airport, Manor Royal and Crawley town centre.

This will provide safe, reliable, high quality cycle connectivity to boost the amount of “active commuting” locally to key local employment destinations: Crawley town centre, Manor Royal and Gatwick Airport.

This priority route (highlighted below) is determined from the list of preferred routes identified by the borough’s Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan:

1. Gatwick to town centre via Manor Royal and Northgate
2. Forge Wood/Manor Royal to Three Bridges Station (Brighton mainline)
3. Pound Hill to town centre via Three Bridges Station
4. Maidenbower to Manor Royal via Three Bridges Station
5. Maidenbower to Three Bridges Station via Furnace Green
6. Crawley town centre to Tilgate Park
7. Crawley town centre to K2 Crawley Leisure Centre
8. Pease Pottage to town centre via Tilgate

A recent Study commissioned by the Manor Royal BID revealed that 50 per cent of Manor Royal employees (there are 32,000 jobs in the Business District) live within a 30-minute cycle ride. According to Gatwick Airport data around half of all employees on the Gatwick campus live in Crawley and the vast majority travel there by car.

In order to significantly increase the volume of local commuters travelling to employment locations like Manor Royal by bike, it is essential to invest in off-road and segregated cycle routes which are good quality, safe and reliable. This will provide local resident commuters in Crawley with a realistic “active travel” alternative to the car. Provision of such infrastructure will also have a positive impact in terms of encouraging more exercise and therefore healthier lifestyles, which is in line with the TIP vision of a “healthy” town in Crawley in the future and the government’s emerging nationwide strategy to tackle obesity.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

• The Vision presented at the top of the Town Investment Plan document proclaims that by 2050, Crawley should have “state-of-the-art amenities” and “extensive... sustainable transport”

Investment in a new arterial off-road and segregated cycle route for local resident commuters linking key employment zones like Manor Royal is very much in line with the drive to green Crawley’s economy and accords with the key strategic opportunity set out in the TIP:

• To facilitate the green transformation of Crawley’s economy as part of the national drive to realise zero net carbon emissions by 2050, maximising investment locally in green business, green homes, green technologies, green transport and infrastructure

This outcome in turn is critical to the ability for Crawley to drive down its carbon emissions, particularly in transport where it is still rising. This is clearly articulated as a threat in the TIP document: “To deliver on net zero carbon commitments by 2050, it is critical for the Town Investment Plan to deliver further significant sustainable transport and digital infrastructure investments to drive down the propensity to commute/travel by carbon-emitting conventional vehicles”

1. Develop detailed designs for new routes in conjunction with Local Cycling and Walking
2. Infrastructure Plan working group, which includes the local Cycle Forum and community representatives
3. Prepare and then launch a public consultation period in order to present the detailed designs and the detail linked to proposed priority cycle route for investment
4. Finalise cycle route designs, enhancing the level of detail to achieve a full technical appraisal
5. Submit any planning applications required
6. Secure planning permission and commission works contractor
7. Works contractor to commence delivery of the new cycle route infrastructure
8. Completion of cycle route infrastructure works Finalisation and launch of new cycle routes

One new, major arterial off-road, segregated and high quality cycle routes linking Crawley town centre, Manor Royal and Gatwick Airport.

A 300 per cent increase in take up of cycling.

£2.4 million

April 2021 to March 2022 – Produce detailed design options/consult with stakeholders and the community, submit planning application and secure permission

April to August 2022 – Go out to tender and then secure a works contractor

September 2022 to June 2023 – Deliver one new off-road segregated high quality cycle route linking Crawley town centre, Gatwick Airport and Manor Royal

July 2023 – Launch new cycle route

To be arranged.

A Project Board will be formed to plan and oversee delivery of the new arterial cycle route and this Board will include the Crawley Cycle Forum, local ward councillors, Gatwick Airport and the Manor Royal BID. This will ensure ongoing engagement by community and business representatives in the development of the cycle route schemes.

The new cycle route will link the borough’s three major employment destinations including Crawley town centre and access to the brand new bus station, which be delivered by a complementary scheme within the Town Investment Plan.

In addition the cycle route link into Manor Royal will connect to the Innovation Centre site to enable local access by bike.

This cycle route into Manor Royal will complement the programme of Manor Royal Business District environment improvements, which will upgrade the visual appearance of Manor Royal to help it secure Business Park green infrastructure quality.

The cycle routes will very much complement those being delivered as part of the Crawley Growth Programme (such as Three Bridges Station to Manor Royal), part of the drive to boost the quality of sustainable transport infrastructure for Crawley residents, to drive up the number of sustainable commuters into Manor Royal and to uplift significantly the volume of cycling as a mode of transport in order to drive down car use and carbon emissions.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

£30 million of investment from public and private funds (via City Fibre) is going into the roll out of gigabit full fibre infrastructure in the ground across Crawley, including in Manor Royal.

The purpose of this Towns Fund scheme will be to develop a programme of incentives for Manor Royal businesses to connect to the new full fibre and 5G infrastructure being installed. This will allow business tenants to have access to gigabit bandwidth speeds.

Investment in the below ground cable infrastructure for the critical “last few hundred yards” intervention from the street into business premises will make a massive difference in enabling the practical take-up of this enhanced digital capability. It is key to the Manor Royal Business District developing a “Manor Royal “Gigabit” Business Park branding to unlock six hectares of dormant commercial space development, which has planning permission and the associated investment and jobs.

The scheme will offer access to infrastructure grant funding for Manor Royal businesses to secure full fibre gigabit infrastructure cable into their business premises from the street.

Access to such funding will be managed by the Manor Royal Business Improvement District who, supported by Crawley Borough Council, West Sussex County Council and a selection of business representatives from the Town Deal Board, will oversee the design and delivery of a full fibre infrastructure grant application process. Through this, Manor Royal businesses and business premises owners will be able to bid for such investment funding to help pay for the full fibre infrastructure to be laid from the “street” outside into the business premises. This will allow the businesses benefiting to then seek and secure contract arrangements from a choice of internet service providers to provide them with access to the gigabit speed broadband services.

The significant up-front capital cost associated with gaining access to the full fibre broadband in the street by laying cable from the street into business premises is a major stumbling block to the local business community in Manor Royal, preventing them from accessing gigabit speed broadband. This is particularly the case for small businesses and micro-enterprises. This programme of gigabit infrastructure grants is critical to enable businesses across Manor Royal to be able to access the huge benefits of gigabit speed broadband – these include the speed of data download, a huge increase in data manipulation scope and the ability to take account of new “data intensive” digital applications. A lack of access to gigabit speed data services limits significantly the digital applications that businesses can access to support day-to-day business competitiveness and growth.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

• The TIP vision advocates for Crawley to become an “exemplar” digital town and that Manor Royal will become a “stunning digital business park”. It is vital that the Town Investment Plan can make use of Towns Fund monies in this way in order to enable take-up by the maximum number of businesses in Manor Royal of the new gigabit full fibre broadband infrastructure being laid in the street by City Fibre and public partners.

This scheme will also support therefore the realisation of one of the TIP’s key strategic opportunities:

• To enable a high value digital Business Park in Manor Royal, with a formidable reputation in advanced engineering innovation and green technologies, underpinned by state of the art green infrastructure and sustainable transport connectivity

The delivery of this scheme will help the Manor Royal BID, Crawley Borough Council, the LEP and partners to showcase credibly Manor Royal as a “gigabit business park”. The ability to do this is critical to help unlock business investment in Crawley to bring forward dormant commercial space and inward investment.

The scheme is therefore closely aligned as to one of the reasons why TIP Towns Fund interventions are needed – as set out in the TIP – to address the current structural weakness in Crawley, which is that six hectares of commercial space have secured planning permission but are not currently being built out. It is vital that schemes such as this are implemented to help unlock this existing dormant commercial space development in Manor Royal.

Finally, this scheme is needed to help ensure that Crawley is not left behind compared to other areas when it comes to full fibre take-up by businesses and the community. This is described as follows in the TIP document: “However whilst this (the City Fibre investment) will roll out the full fibre infrastructure in the street, this will not be enough to allow access to it by businesses and residents. Further infrastructure investment is needed to connect the full fibre through into Manor Royal business premises and into new town centre residential and commercial accommodation so that Crawley does not fall behind other areas. The TIP investment will offer a programme of funding incentives for businesses on Manor Royal to resource the required cable infrastructure investment to unlock access to the gigabit broadband speeds”

1. Design Gigabit Infrastructure Business Grants programme application process, selection criteria
2. Consult on the proposed grants programme with Manor Royal businesses through the Manor Royal BID
3. Manor Royal BID, supported by Town Deal Board partners, to finalise the grants programme and to launch it
4. Manor Royal BID to issue a call for projects and deadline
5. Consideration of Gigabit Infrastructure Business Grants applications by an independent panel, chaired by Crawley Borough Council
6. Proposed selected applications reviewed by the TIP accountably body, due diligence checks undertaken
7. Successful businesses receive their gigabit infrastructure grant funding
8. Delivery of grant capital investment to open up access by Manor Royal businesses and business premises to the gigabit infrastructure
9. Completion of grant capital investments and the realisation of access to gigabit speed internet and digital services by Manor Royal businesses
10. Ex-post evaluation of the impact of the new gigabit speed coverage on business activity and competitiveness
11. Development of inward investment materials to promote the benefits and outcomes to Manor Royal business and to showcase Manor Royal as a gigabit business park to attract new business investment.

To be confirmed.

£2 million

April to December 2021 – Design Gigabit Infrastructure Business Grants programme

January to March 2022 – Consultation on the grants programme proposals with Manor Royal businesses through the Manor Royal BID, and with the Town Deal Board; Recommendations arising from that consultation drawn up

April to June 2022 – Revise grants programme and launch Gigabit Infrastructure Business Grants programme

June to August 2022 – First round applications process

August to September 2022 – Assess the applications and panel meets to review/select successful applicants

October 2022 to June 2023 – Roll out of grants and delivery of gigabit connectivity to Manor Royal businesses and business premises

June 2023 to March 2024 – Manor Royal businesses gain access to “live” gigabit digital services and secure contracts with internet service providers

April to September 2024 – Undertake an ex-post evaluation of the impact of the gigabit connectivity on Manor Royal business competitiveness.

£27 million from City Fibre being invested in rolling out gigabit speed broadband infrastructure “in the street” across Crawley over the next two years, in addition to £3 million of public funds from the LEP and the “business rates retention pool”.

A Project Board will be formed to plan and oversee delivery of the new Gigabit Infrastructure Business Grants.

This Board will comprise representatives of the Town Deal Board.

Manor Royal BID, a key local private sector representative, will take a lead role in project managing and co-ordinating this scheme and will be in charge of the design and management of the applications process, supported by Crawley Borough Council and West Sussex County Council.

The Manor Royal BID will engage the Manor Royal business community in informal consultation ahead of the commencement of this scheme as well as arranging a formal period of consultation once the grants applications process has been formulated.

The Manor Royal BID will make use of its existing calendar array of business engagement events - both virtual and physical – in order to continually engage with the Manor Royal business community and to ensure as far as possible that businesses across Manor Royal can participate in the scheme.

The relevant “additionality” demonstrated by the Town Investment Plan Towns Fund monies for this scheme includes the following key factor explained in the TIP document under the “additionality” section:

• To unlock major dormant commercial space development opportunity Manor Royal has over six hectares of land granted planning permission for new commercial space not being built out. The Town Investment Plan includes scheme proposals which seek to upgrade the Manor Royal business environment and facilitate access to gigabit speed broadband by Manor Royal business to create a “gigabit” business park and unlock dormant commercial space investment.

There is therefore clearly an interdependency between this scheme, which opens up the ability for Manor Royal businesses to access the benefits of gigabit speed full fibre infrastructure, and the programme of Manor Royal business environment and public realm improvements envisaged by the scheme presented under the “Urban Regeneration” pillar for the TIP.

These two schemes both represent essential “ingredients” in the transformation of Manor Royal into the “stunning digital Business Park” promoted by the TIP vision.

This scheme of gigabit business infrastructure grants also aligns closely with the major private sector investment in laying full fibre cable “in the street” being undertaken by a partnership of City Fibre, West Sussex County Council, Crawley Borough Council and the Coast to Capital LEP. Without the “hard” infrastructure investment (worth £30m across the entire borough), it would not be possible to design and launch this gigabit infrastructure grants scheme to help Manor Royal businesses address the major capital investment cost associated with laying cable to connect the gigabit infrastructure into the business premises from the street.

Last but not least there is also interdependence with the Crawley Growth Programme’s investment in sustainable transport infrastructure in Manor Royal, in particular the investment in upgrading bus waiting areas to encourage more business employees to avoid commuting in and out of Manor Royal by car. At present more than 80 per cent of commuters into the Business District travel in by car and this has caused significant congestion problems to the extent that transport capacity has been identified by Manor Royal businesses as the number one impediment to business and jobs growth.

The investment in bus waiting areas and associated digital real-time passenger information, alongside the segregated cycle route to Three Bridges Station to be built out, will – alongside this scheme to incentivise access to gigabit broadband infrastructure – be another key ingredient to the transformation of Manor Royal into a “stunning digital Business Park”.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

Using gigabit broadband infrastructure and 5G mast infrastructure being installed in the town centre (thanks to private sector investment and LEP finances), this scheme will design and deliver a platform of digital applications in Crawley town centre to create the country’s first Live-Work “Virtual Village” as a key driver for Crawley town centre’s sustainable economic future.

Digital applications could include Citizen Wi-Fi, a “virtual high street” to showcase digitally the High Street’s evening economy offer and the digital data integration of co-working spaces, coffee shops, apartments, retailers, high street, evening economy pubs and restaurants, gyms, amenities, cultural venues, railway and bus stations.

Data integration through a digital platform will enable residents of the new town centre neighbourhood from their homes to access real-time practical data information about services offered to them by the surrounding town centre amenity, for example:

1. Rail and bus arrival and departure times;
2. Evening economy offers and bookings or Takeaway
3. Retail and gym services – real time information on how busy they are, offers etc;
4. Cultural venues – “what’s on”. It will also provide an opportunity for leisure, culture and retail businesses to showcase themselves to the residents of the new town centre neighbourhood

One of the key strategic opportunities for Crawley presented by the Town Investment Plan is “To achieve a dynamic, sustainable and digital economy in Crawley town centre”, enabled by a 3,000 home neighbourhood”, which provides a “vibrant community heart”.

Critical to the achievement of a vibrant new town centre neighbourhood characterised by high quality homes with fully occupied apartments is the achievement of significant “liveability” ingredients, which make Crawley town centre a natural location for people to both live and work and in tandem spend disposable income in the surrounding retail, leisure and cultural amenity.

One of the most fundamental of such ingredients in a forward thinking 21st century context is easy availability in the town centre of gigabit speed broadband bandwidth and 5G infrastructure in addition to a range of exciting new digital applications as a key drawer for such communities to come and live in the new high quality homes in the town centre.

Whilst private sector investment and LEP funding is set to provide the above infrastructure for Crawley town centre, this TIP scheme will develop and establish a digital platform for the town centre, which provides a range of digital applications that will integrate data presentation and provision from a range of surrounding amenities for the benefit of the town centre’s new residents. The platform will comprise digital applications which integrate data on the following:

1. The latest High Street and evening economy offers in the town centre restaurants and bars
2. Access to real-time data about train and bus departure and arrival times in and out of Crawley town centre
3. Data information about “what’s on” in the town centre gyms and how busy they are at any time in order to help residents determine the best times to go
4. Data information about the availability of “hot desk” or work space availability from which to work, whether it be in new town centre communal co-working spaces or in one of the many coffee shops spread out across the town centre
5. Comprehensive information about availability of space for such “agile working” will be available across the town centre because the data across the different participating co-working spaces and coffee shops across the town centre will be integrated and shared
6. Last but not least this digital platform will provide new residents with comprehensive information about what’s on offer at Crawley’s future/existing cultural venues (such as Crawley Museum) and will provide the latest information about retail offers.

The integration of the above data and information about these related services on a “Virtual Village” digital platform of this nature will act as a major asset in attracting new residents to live in Crawley town centre’s emerging new high quality apartments and will sustain momentum with the influx of residents, including professionals who wish to both live in the town centre and work at one of Crawley town centre’s professional services businesses.

1. Complete roll out of gigabit full fibre broadband infrastructure
2. Draw up design framework for the “Virtual Village” digital platform and complete full specification
3. Complete tender documentation and go out to tender to procure contractor to produce the digital platform and enable integration of the above data services and presentation
4. Secure contractor and instruct their commencement of the process of building the “Virtual Village” digital platform prototype comprising digital applications and data presentation/flows for the above town centre amenities
5. Deliver and complete the virtual construction of the digital platform prototype and trial the technology
6. Secure full agreement for the launch of this new platform
7. Launch the “Virtual Village” digital platform and confirm the participation of existing, new and forthcoming town centre residential sites
8. Undertake regular quarterly reviews of progress with the roll out of the digital platform, refine and enhance, develop further the services
9. Complete the scheme and ensure its ongoing operation beyond the project
10. Ex-post evaluation of project outcomes and impact

To be arranged.

£550,000

October 2020 to December 2021 – Complete roll out of gigabit broadband infrastructure serving Crawley Town Centre

January to April 2022 – Draw up comprehensive design framework for the digital platform required and draft tender specification documentation

May to November 2022 – Commence tender process, complete process and secure a contractor to design and deliver the digital platform, integrating data access, provision and presentation across the above town centre amenities

November 2022 to May 2023 – Appoint contractor to “build” the new digital platform and to trial the new technologies using selected residential apartments in the town centre

June 2023 to March 2024 – Launch the “Virtual Village” digital platform and confirm the participation of existing, new and forthcoming town centre residential sites. Undertake regular quarterly reviews

April 2024 to March 2025 – Undertake “ex-post” evaluation of outcomes and impact of this town centre digital platform in regard to the numbers of occupied high quality homes and the positive impact on footfall and business activity in the town centre

£27 million of investment to be provided by City Fibre to roll out gigabit speed broadband infrastructure across Crawley in addition to £3 million of public funding via the Local Enterprise Partnership.

A Project Board will be formed, co-ordinated by Crawley Borough Council and reporting on progress quarterly to the Town Deal Board.

The Board will comprise key community and private sector stakeholders in Crawley town centre, including:

1. The new Town Centre Business Improvement District
2. County Mall shopping centre
3. Crawley Museum
4. The High Street Business Forum (representing the town centre’s evening economy)
5. The Town Centre Professional Services Forum (representing town centre employers who have an interest in attracting employees to live/work in Crawley town centre)
6. Representatives of residential developers in the town centre: Westrock, Arora Group, Inspired Asset Management, Crawley Borough Council, Crest Nicholson, A2 Dominion, Rainier Developments
7. St John’s Church
8. Creative Crawley
9. Crawley Community Foundation

This scheme to develop a town centre “Virtual Village” digital platform also aligns closely with the major private sector investment in laying full fibre cable “in the street” being undertaken by a partnership of City Fibre, West Sussex County Council, Crawley Borough Council and the Coast to Capital LEP. Without the “hard” infrastructure investment (worth £30m across the entire borough), it would not be possible to develop this digital platform scheme to enable residents of the new town centre neighbourhood from their homes to access integrated real-time practical information about services offered to them by the surrounding town centre amenity, for example:

1. Rail and bus arrival and departure times
2. High street evening economy offers and bookings or takeaway
3. Retail and gym services – real-time information on how busy they are, offers etc
4. Cultural venues – “What’s on”

This scheme also complements very well the “urban regeneration” scheme proposal to design and unlock a new cultural quarter in Crawley. It will be vitally important for new cultural venues, activities and events in Crawley town centre to be able to draw on the opportunities presented by this digital platform to promote, showcase and highlight their cultural offer to the residents of the new town centre neighbourhood.

This scheme also complements the development of several Skills and Enterprise infrastructure schemes set out in the TIP. These schemes, through designing a new commercial quarter in the town centre for the professional services and through investing in new skills training infrastructure and university-level provision, will attract students, professional services employees and college staff into Crawley town centre and enhance commercial space and training provision capacity. This new digital infrastructure for the town centre will provide a valuable and practical tool to help businesses and training providers to attract new recruits to take up their services in line with opportunities to take up living accommodation in the town centre.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

The design of a new Cultural Quarter in the town centre, mapping out the prospective location of new cultural and events venues and providing site concept designs to visualise these new amenities, demonstrating in principle effective and workable site layouts, appearance, scale, mass and access in order to justify the scope of the offer on each site.

The realisation of the vision for Crawley town centre articulated in the TIP relies on the achievement of a town centre neighbourhood of 3,000 high quality homes, fully occupied by residents and professionals with disposable and available income to spend. Whilst the Crawley Growth programme is enabling the physical delivery of these homes, the TIP interventions must help attract new residents to want to live in high quality apartments in the town centre to help make high quality homes a “market reality”. The creation of a cultural quarter and the related portfolio of venues and events locations to attract major footfall from within and far beyond Crawley is one of the fundamental “liveability” ingredients to attract residents to want to live in high quality homes in the town centre and potentially also work in the town centre thanks to the presence of the town centre’s professional services employment hub.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

The Crawley TIP Vision states that: “Crawley will have a bold and vibrant community heart in the town centre”... ”underpinned by an enriched cultural offer and a vibrant cultural quarter”. The Vision goes on to say that: “The town centre will have a flourishing evening economy and will attract significant footfall from other parts of the borough and further afield thanks to... an array of cultural assets and flagship new events venues with a rich and vibrant cultural events programme”.

The TIP Background context section states that: “Key to a sustainable economy in the town centre is its regeneration through new commercial, community, cultural and residential developments... that will ensure its viability and vitality is enhanced”.

The first strategic priority of the TIP is to: To achieve a dynamic, sustainable and digital economy in Crawley town centre, enabled by a 3,000 home neighbourhood, the growth of a rich cultural offer”.

The development of this cultural quarter will unlock new employment and business growth in the cultural and creative industries, which will assist the local economy to diversify in the face of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

Produce cultural quarter masterplan; associated site designs (as described above) for cultural venues alongside corresponding feasibility analyses and delivery plans.

Develop/deliver a “pop up” site programme of cultural, arts and creative industry interventions through the temporary refurbishment of vacant retail units to help pump prime the development of the cultural quarter. This will involve stakeholders from the town centre’s cultural and leisure community and economy

• One Cultural Quarter masterplan
• Four site feasibilities
• Two site delivery plans
• A culture and arts pop-up programme

£500,000

2021 to 2022 4 site feasibilities

2021 to 2024 Culture and arts pop-up programme

2022 to 2023 Cultural Quarter masterplan

2023 to 2024 Two site delivery plans

To be arranged – Bids to Arts Council England.

A Project Board will be formed, co-ordinated by Crawley Borough Council and reporting on progress quarterly to the Town Deal Board.

The Board will comprise key community and private sector stakeholders in Crawley town centre including:

1. The new Town Centre Business Improvement District
2. County Mall shopping centre
3. Crawley Museum
4. Arts Council England
5. Creative Crawley
6. Crawley Town Community Foundation
7. St John’s Church
8. West Sussex County Council
9. The High Street Business Forum (representing the town centre’s evening economy)
10. The Town Centre Professional Services Forum (representing town centre employers who have an interesting in attracting employees to live/work in the town centre).
11. Representatives of residential developers in the town centre: Westrock, Arora Group, Inspired Asset Management, Crawley Borough Council, Crest Nicholson, A2 Dominion, Rainier Developments

Whilst the Crawley Growth Programme is enabling the physical delivery of these homes, the TIP interventions must help attract new residents to want to live in high quality apartments in the town centre to help make high quality homes in the town centre a “market reality”. The creation of a cultural quarter and the related portfolio of venues and events locations to attract major footfall from within and far beyond Crawley is one of the fundamental “liveability” ingredients to attract residents to want to live in high quality homes in the town centre. This scheme also complements very well the “connectivity” scheme proposal below to enable development of a digital platform to accommodate digital applications. These could include Citizen Wi-Fi, a “virtual high street” to showcase digitally the High Street’s evening economy offer and the digital data integration of co-working spaces, coffee shops, apartments, retailers, high street evening economy pubs and restaurants, gyms, amenities, cultural venues, railway and bus stations.

It will be vitally important for new cultural venues, activities and events in Crawley town centre to be able to draw on the opportunities presented by this digital platform to promote, showcase and highlight their cultural offer to the residents of the new town centre neighbourhood.

This scheme also complements the development of several Skills and Enterprise infrastructure schemes set out in the TIP. These schemes, through designing a new commercial quarter in the town centre for the professional services and through investing in new skills training infrastructure and university-level provision, will have the impact of attracting students, professional services employees and college staff into the town centre and in enhancing commercial space and training provision capacity in the town centre. This cultural quarter for the town centre will provide hugely important leisure, entertainment, cultural and evening economy activity to help its professional services employers and its college and university provision to attract new recruits to take up their services.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework

Deliver a programme of business environment upgrades and modernisation in Manor Royal to reach a quality of “specification” that befits a Business Park:

1. Create a network of new “Micro-Parks” upgrading the visual amenity in the green spaces and linking all of them together via a series of “Walking Trails”
2. Enhancements to two major entry points/Gateways to the Business District
3. Manor Royal public realm/business environment upgrades targeted particularly for maximum visual amenity benefit at public realm zones in the immediate vicinity of transformed bus waiting area “super hub” investments being provided by the Crawley Growth Programme.

To provide a significant boost to amenity in the Business District – part of the goal of creating a “Business Park” as articulated by the TIP Vision. To enhance significantly the visual “look and feel” of the Business District – to help create the specification required for a 21st century high quality business park.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

• The Crawley TIP Vision states that success will include a “pioneering advanced engineering Business Park and Innovation Centre at Manor Royal”. Manor Royal will visually become “a stunning digital Business Park” and upgrades to the business environment delivered by this project is integral to realisation of this goal.

The second strategic priority of the TIP is to: “enable a high value digital Business Park in Manor Royal”, which is “underpinned by state-of-the-art green infrastructure”. This scheme responds directly to this priority by investing in major improvements to the quality and visual amenity of the Manor Royal business environment.

• Design of micro-park upgrade proposals, Gateway enhancements and public realm improvement programme, consultation, detailed designs, planning application
• Secure planning permission, procure contractor to deliver business environment improvements programme
• Oversee delivery of micro-parks in close liaison with Manor Royal businesses
• Launch

• Number of new sites/facilities delivered. Minimum six new micro-parks/urban public spaces, with associated facilities
• Entrance/Gateway enhancements
• Number of engagement events and participation of local businesses and community
• Number of artists employed/construction jobs created
• Occupier satisfaction and retention metrics (staff and business)
• Inward Investment metrics (new business and staff attracted)

£2 million

£75,000 from Manor Royal BID

The delivery of this project will be closely co-ordinated with the following sustainable transport infrastructure schemes being delivered by the Crawley Growth Programme over the period 2020 to 2024:

• Design and deliver new “Super Hub” – high quality bus waiting areas in Manor Royal to maximise business employee take-up of bus travel for sustainable commuting to and from the Business District via Gatwick and Three Bridges railway stations
• Delivery of a new bus lane on Manor Royal to improve bus frequency and efficiency for onward travel to Gatwick and Three Bridges railway stations
• Delivery of Manor Royal cycle route enhancements and a dedicated new segregated cycle route to Three Bridges station
• Highways junction improvements to enhance traffic flows

Whilst the Crawley Growth Programme focuses on upgrading the quality and breadth of sustainable transport infrastructure and access in and out of Manor Royal, the Town Investment Plan focuses on another essential for Manor Royal’s future success: major upgrades to the business environment so that Manor Royal can reach a “Business Park” level quality of specification.

Project description, rationale and alignment with intervention framework.

The design, launch and delivery of a borough-wide home “green retrofit” grants programme, which will play a key role in the council’s drive, following the government’s lead, to deliver zero net carbon emissions by 2050. This will equally stimulate business growth, economic activity and job creation in green construction. The type of green retrofitting envisaged could include the following:

Insulation, primarily roof/ceiling/attic and secondary walls and floor

1. Retrofitting heating equipment in older houses, results in household savings of 30 to 80 per cent due to cut in energy use and a reduction of CO2 by 30 to 100 per cent[6]
2. Choosing appliances with low energy consumption, including LED light bulbs
3. Reducing water use by installing aerators and low-flow shower heads
4. Switching to green power for both energy and heating including solar energy via PVC installation and renewables in addition to heating-pellets, heat pumps and bio-gas

To pump prime progress towards delivery of the sustainable homes needed to deliver net zero carbon by 2050. To enable access to local investment in order to “green retrofit” existing private sector Crawley housing stock as part of the drive to achieve net zero carbon by 2050. According to a recent carbon audit of the borough, home CO2 emissions are one of the three main carbon contributors in Crawley. As part of the drive to restructure Crawley’s economy and deliver economic recovery in the face of the COVID-19 crisis, this programme will generate business and economic activity in “green” construction and unlock local jobs and apprenticeships to benefit Crawley residents.

Alignment with TIP Intervention Framework:

• The TIP Vision for Crawley states that Crawley will have a “transformed green economy” and that Crawley will have a “burgeoning green technology and construction jobs base”. In order to achieve this, incentives are required to generate momentum for green construction businesses to grow and create jobs.

The TIP Background context section states that residential development in Crawley must be “underpinned by digital and green infrastructure”. For the reasons described above, this scheme aligns closely with the third key strategic opportunity set out in the TIP:

• To facilitate the green transformation of Crawley’s economy as part of the national drive to realise zero net carbon emissions by 2050, maximising investment locally in green business...

• Draw up, design, consult on and promote the new Crawley Green Homes retrofit programme
• Establish governance, application assessment process, selection criteria, grants decision-making panel and secure approval to launch programme
• Launch application programme for retrofit grants, prioritising opportunities for local green construction and technology businesses
• Project is live: roll out of “green retrofit” programme and associated green construction interventions to benefit households across Crawley
• Mid-term review and final evaluation

Output: Delivery of Crawley Home Green Retrofit Grants programme
Outcomes: 230 homes retrofitted
Impact: By 2030 - 50 per cent reduction in carbon emissions from Crawley dwellings.

£5 million

April to December 2021 – Prepare programme (see first two stages above)

January 2022 – Launch programme

January 2022 to autumn 2023 – Phase one

Autumn 2023 – Mid-term review

November 2023 to spring 2025 – Phase two

To be confirmed.

A Project Board will be established to oversee the development and delivery of the scheme, ensuring that it adheres to the above project tasks and milestones.

The Board representatives will be selected from organisations participating on the Town Deal Board, both business and community representatives. These will include Gatwick Diamond Business, Sussex Chamber of Commerce, Manor Royal BID and Town Centre BID.

The Board will in turn nominate representatives to take part in the grants decision-making panel, which will be led by Crawley Borough Council alongside a representative of the accountable body – the borough’s Section 151 officer and the council’s Cabinet member for Housing.

This project is a key part of the drive to restructure Crawley’s economy through “green” transformation, providing investment to boost business activity in green construction and creating demand for green construction products and services, which will in turn stimulate business and jobs growth in the sector.

This project complements closely the focus on the development of “green” construction skills training infrastructure under the “Skills and Enterprise” pillar, to help equip the local workforce with those skills required to give the construction industry the skills base it needs to drive “green” retrofitting to existing housing stock and to deliver “green” new build homes.

The project also complements the scheme which will establish business infrastructure grants for green technology and green construction businesses to support their growth and associated job creation.

All three of the above schemes will stimulate business and jobs growth in the green technology and green construction sector within Crawley, strengthening the business and workforce base required in order to drive Crawley’s progress towards net zero carbon emissions by 2050.