More than £300,000 is to be invested across Gravesham to attract visitors, support innovation and skills, and revitalize urban and rural areas.
We have been awarded a further £327,000 from the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) to build on a successful three-year programme it has already managed.
In that time the funding has supported a number of pilots projects in an effort to boost employment and skills.
This has included eight economically inactive residents receiving employment and skills training and one-to-one support, and 24 young people in Gravesham at risk of becoming not in education, training or employment being supported. The interventions have already helped two residents into work.
A number of health and wellbeing projects have also been funded, including a six-month free learn to swim project for young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds; boxercise classes for women, and self-defence sessions for the over 50s; weekly sports activities for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds; and a weekly program to get over 50s with long-term health conditions into a water-based exercise program.
In the borough’s town centres, 14 businesses have received grants to refurbish and improve their shopfronts in Gravesend, while in Northfleet, preparatory works for significant improvements at the Hive precinct and the old Coach House building have been funded, with work at the Hive starting next month.
And a new Visit Gravesham tourism brand and website have been launched, boosting visitor numbers and reaching over three million people across Kent and London.
The fund also helped bring the Fourth Portal project to Gravesham, which included a pop-up café at Str Andrew’s Church, an Innovation Showcase event across the town and a newspaper showcasing Gravesham’s rich heritage and innovative businesses and community organisations.
The newspaper went on to be highly commended at the National Newspaper Awards 2025 and reached over 12,000 people across the south east and beyond.
Welcoming the further funding, Cllr John Burden, Leader of Gravesham Borough Council said:
“The UKSPF support has already made a real and lasting impact on the quality of life for many people in our borough who needed it the most and contributed to improving our local economy and environment. This latest award will help us drive those improvements even further.”
The additional funding will now support a second round of shopfront improvement grants, and work to increase footfall within Gravesend town centre and along St Andrew’s quayside – particularly between 5pm and 8pm - through improvements and events.
Promoting Gravesham as a visitor destination, the fund will be used to celebrate its history through new blue plaques and interpretation boards, improvements to heritage assets, hosting maritime related events and a promotional partnership with local tourism businesses.
It will help deliver safer and healthier spaces across Gravesham including new outdoor fitness activities and improvements to public spaces on housing estates.
Supporting innovation and skills, the fund will provide training that helps residents gain and excel in work; from basic English classes to coding and youth coaching qualifications; and will help businesses work together to identify and fill local skills training gaps.
Cllr Burden added: “We are constantly looking for additional funding to support our communities, and we will be working hard to ensure this latest UKSPF support will be used in the right areas and will get to the right people and businesses to make a positive difference to the borough.”