News on HS2 in Hillingdon

Ten London projects share over £670,000 as the total number of projects supported by HS2 along the route of the new railway reaches 100

The number of community and business groups to receive awards from the HS2 community and business funds has topped over 100 with London receiving ten awards to date totalling £670,374. The Community and Environment Fund (CEF) and the Business and Local Economy Fund (BLEF) for Phase One, between London and the West Midlands, make a combined total of £40 million available to local communities and businesses disrupted by the construction of HS2.

Amongst London's ten awarded projects is the Greengage project run by the Castlehaven Community Association, a charity based in Camden. They received £74,000 and have transformed part of a local park, creating a community garden, used by children and residents in the local area, which includes bug hotels and bird boxes. The changes have also seen a reduction in anti-social behaviour in the area by improving walkways and lighting in the area.

A map of all awarded projects is available here . Some of the awards in London include:

£66,047 for the ‘Enhancing the River Pinn’ project in Hillingdon run by Thames21

£74,804 for ‘Healthtrain’, a health and wellbeing project being run by the West Euston Partnership

£74,235 for ‘Developing skills for employment’, a three year vocational skills training programme in Camden, run by Training Link

£75,000 for the Euston Well-being Team project providing community outreach around Euston, run by the London Borough of Camden

£73,581 for the Castlehaven Community Association project Greengauge, creating a community greenspace in the heart of Camden

£74,708 for ‘Creating futures through Bubble and Squeak’, a project run by Bubblesqueakeat CIC providing healthy and affordable food for the community in Hammersmith

As we work through the COVID-19 pandemic, the approval for the next stage of the project has meant that our contractors now have the go ahead to start building the new railway whilst remaining within the Public Health England (PHE) and industry guidelines. As part of our commitment to being a good neighbour, we realise that communities are affected by the construction of HS2, and the community and business funds are key to help offset the disruption caused.

As construction of HS2 gets underway, applications for the funds are still being welcomed. The Funds for Phase One, administered by community charity Groundwork UK, support urban and rural, community, environmental and business projects. Community and Business groups along the HS2 route between London and the West Midlands have been able to apply for funds since March 2017.

A series of videos and case studies about projects that have received HS2 funds can be found here.

The independent administration of these funds is managed on behalf of HS2 Ltd by the charity Groundwork who will ensure both funds remain available for applications throughout the construction of Phase One. Read the Groundwork annual review.

Community and business groups interested in applying for the fund can find out more at www.hs2funds.org.uk

Posted on 28th April 2020

by HS2 in Hillingdon