To carry out a project of this scale and complexity requires enormous amounts of cooperation, time and understanding between many different organisations.

"Collaboration is key, without Funders & Partners, we go nowhere"

The Towns Fund is part of the government’s plan for Levelling Up the UK economy. Towns across England are working with the Government to address their growth constraints, deliver economic benefits and improve the lives of people within their communities. The overarching aims of the Towns Fund are to drive sustainable economic regeneration and productivity across the UK. In September 2019, the government invited 101 places to develop proposals for a Town Deal, as part of the £2.4 billion Towns Fund.

The St Helens Town Deal Board submitted its Town Investment Plan in 2021 and was approved for £25 million in support of the projects it had indicated. The subsequent Business Cases produced for each project were in turn approved in 2022. Cannington Shaw was one such project and received an allocation of £1.3 million to carry out its Phase One works of stabilisation and preservation. The Trust is grateful of the support it has received via Towns Fund, without which it would not have been possible to get this project off the ground.

It is equally grateful for the support and guidance of St Helens Borough Council, whose belief in the importance of Cannington Shaw to St Helens was paramount to its success as a concept. They’re a stakeholder partner in our project and their ongoing help and determination to see it succeed is a key enabler with our work.