New multi-million pound move signalled over future of Telford's University of Wolverhampton campus
A council is throwing its hat in the ring over the future of a university campus site in Telford – potentially backed by a multi-million-pound fund.
Telford and Wrekin Council's full council meeting on Thursday (February 27) included references to what councillors referred to as the 'Priorslee Innovation Fund'.
A senior councillor and the authority’s chief executive confirmed to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the fund relates to the future of the University of Wolverhampton's Telford Innovation Campus in Priorslee.
The university announced earlier this year that it plans to end its 32-year association with Priorslee. The site will close next year, the university has announced.
Councillor Shirley Reynolds (Labour, Wrockwardine Wood & Trench) the council’s cabinet member for children, young people, education, employment and skills, told the LDRS that the council was keen to protect the site for the people of the borough.
“We are being proactive in preparing ourselves to protect that site for the residents of Telford,” she said.
David Sidaway, the council’s chief executive, said the council could not provide more details at this stage because of “commercial confidentiality”, but he said the fund would provide access to a “multi-million pound” figure.
“We are getting ahead of the curve,” he said, during a break in council proceedings.
The council leadership awaits university announcements for the future of the site, which includes student accommodation and the historic Priorslee Hall, which was previously home to the Telford Development Corporation.
During the debate, and presenting her first budget, Councillor Zona Hannington (Labour, Lawley) cabinet member for finance, mentioned the Priorslee Innovation Fund as part of a package backing the council’s mission to “protect, care and invest.”
The fund, which is mentioned as part of the council’s borrowing-based capital programme, was also referred to by council leader Lee Carter (Labour, Arleston & College) in his summing up of the budget debate.
The Conservative group leader, Councillor Tim Nelson, (Newport North) attacked the Labour administration’s policies on borrowing.
Without specifically mentioning the Priorslee Innovation Fund, Councillor Nelson said the council is “on a trajectory” towards a £750 million “authorized debt limit” and a cycle of “never paid off loans.”
This, he said, would make the council “always a slave to interest rates.”
But council deputy leader Richard Overton (Labour, St Georges) said the council had “good borrowing” which creates a return of £40 million through the council’s own solar farm and rents paid by tenants of its housing company, Nuplace.
Liberal Democrat group leader Bill Tomlinson (Shawbirch & Dothill) said the council’s auditors have called the budget “sound” and his group supported it.
Councillor Tomlinson continued his campaign for better bus services in Shawbirch by asking for investment there “if you have any money left".
The Labour group’s budget was passed by 43 votes to six as the majority group and the Lib Dems combined to defeat Tory opposition.
