South East England Development Agency (SEEDA)

In April 2004 SEEDA launched a new programme of £7 million to support small rural towns across the region.

The new programme has been developed together with the regional South East Rural Towns Partnership and the Countryside Agency. Local authorities are key members of the South East Rural Towns Partnership and have also played a significant role.

The new programme recognises the vital role that small towns play and this has been reflected in the Regional Economic Strategy which argued for region-wide support.
An information pack sets out the criteria for SEEDA funding and the different roles being played by the variety of bodies who have an interest in both developing and delivering this programme.

• For information for those parts of the region that lie within an Area Investment Framework (East Sussex, Kent and Medway, and the Isle of Wight) click here (Adobe Acrobat PDF 124Kb)
• For information for other parts of the region (Berkshire Unitaries, Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex) click here (Adobe Acrobat PDF 129Kb)
• For the list of small rural towns in the region click here (Adobe Acrobat PDF 78Kb)

For information about the South East Rural Towns Partnership please use their website: www.setowns.org.uk

The importance of small rural towns

Small rural towns in past times have been the lifeblood for rural areas and still today provide a key focus for their surrounding hinterland of villages and hamlets. Small rural towns provide jobs and major services. They are already a focus for public transport routes and many have developed leisure facilities.

However many have seen a real downturn in their retail position. New patterns of shopping and the influence of out-of-town shopping centres have all taken their toll.

Many towns are trying to find a new role. However they have significant assets that can lead any renaissance. There are significant opportunities for new business development, and an opportunity to become an outlet for local produce for their area. They could offer affordable and key-worker housing. Many are historic towns with an additional asset, with a display of a wide variety of different traditional vernacular architecture offering considerable potential for tourism

SEEDA support from 1999 to 2004

SEEDA support to small rural towns is not new.

SEEDA has already supported them through its Rural Development Programmes and the 11 Market Towns programme – both focused on the more deprived areas. SEEDA committed a budget of £2.4 million to support the 11 towns: Cranbrook; Hythe; Lenham; Minster in Thanet in Kent; Battle; Hailsham; Heathfield and Rye in East Sussex; and Sandown, Shanklin and Ventnor on the Isle of Wight.

Rural Towns – Rural Life was successful Single Regeneration Budget programme of £700,000 that operated for more than 2 years and has supported more than 30 towns across the region.

Retz Conference
SEEDA staged a conference together with the region of Lower Austria and the European Council for the Village and Small Town, in Retz, Austria.

To access the presentations from that conference click here.