Whitechapel Highstreet. Pic: Mike Faherty
Whitechapel High Street has been given £1 million in funding to help boost business in the area.
The Greater London Authority (GLA) and the Mayor of London’s High Street Fund will invest £500,000 into the Whitechapel area, which will be used to support local businesses, bring empty buildings back into use, provide affordable workspaces, and attract investment.
Tower Hamlets council will be matching GLA’s investment, bringing the funding to £1 million.
The plans, branded “The Whitechapel Vision,” were launched in March and were commended at the National Planning Awards in November 2014.
Speaking about the investment, Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman, said: “Whitechapel is going to be the site of a huge amount of change over the coming years.”
“The Whitechapel Vision master-plan will deliver a real economic boost to the area, and the funding that we have received today will help us to build on that even more by offering vital support to local businesses.”
The project will also provide up to 3,500 new homes by 2025, including a substantial number of family and affordable homes, 5,000 new jobs, seven new public squares and open spaces.
Councillor Rabina Khan, cabinet member for housing and development, said: “It’s fantastic to hear that our vision for Whitechapel is being recognised as one of the leading regeneration projects in the country.
“What is so brilliant about Whitechapel Vision is that residents are so on board with this project. We want to capture their enthusiasm for these plans and ensure that, by 2025, Whitechapel is even more of a thriving, cohesive and vibrant community.”
“This funding is recognition that we are doing a great job in creating the opportunities for Whitechapel to become one of the most thriving and exciting parts of London.”
“We are making sure that local residents will reap the benefits of Whitechapel’s transformation.”
In early March it was announced that Lewisham will receive a £540,000 share of the Mayor’s High Street Fund to fund an enterprise hub at the site of the old Ladywell leisure centre, and to make improvements to parts of the Forest Hill area.
