The Reviving of Small Towns in England

By Meron Habte, IPAD Program Analyst

Town center development of affordable housing funded by the Darlington Council. Photo credit: Meron Habte

In early May 2024, a delegation consisting of Jennifer Larson, director of the Multifamily Office of Asset Management and Portfolio Oversight; Lindsey Redlin, senior advisor in the Program Administration Office; Felicia Gaither, deputy assistant secretary for field operations; Marianne Nazzaro, deputy assistant secretary for public housing investments; and I traveled to the United Kingdom (UK) to meet with the government's Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). During the visit, the delegation traveled to Darlington, a town in County Durham in northern England, to learn more about the government's efforts to restore the town's physical and economic vitality.

Darlington, a manufacturing hub since the Industrial Revolution, has declined because of its geographic location, health inequalities, and low-paying jobs. While in Darlington, the delegation learned about DLUHC initiatives that focus on regeneration and "levelling up" the area. One such initiative is designed to spur economic growth by attracting sustainable, well-paying jobs; businesses; and housing. The first part of DLUHC's plan involves relocating civil servants from London to Darlington.

Currently, most civil servants work and live in London or the surrounding area. According to DLUHC, the UK government plans to relocate 20 percent of its civil service workforce from London to locations throughout the UK; through this initiative, Darlington will gain approximately 1,400 positions by 2030. DLUHC, in partnership with the government's Department for Business and Trade, established the Darlington Economic Campus in 2021 to accommodate this relocation. DLUHC estimates that transferring civil service roles to Darlington will generate approximately £30 million in economic benefits per 1,000 positions relocated to the town.

The relocation project also gave Darlington access to various funds that allow it to develop land and renovate the existing housing stock. For example, in 2021, DLUHC announced the creation of the £3.6 billion Towns Fund, which the department uses to revitalize and increase economic output in struggling towns throughout the country. These towns work with their communities, public and private partners, and investors to develop proposals for how they intend to use the fund. Since the fund's creation, more than 100 towns have received up to £25 million to develop their projects. Darlington used its Towns Fund allocation to renovate local businesses, improve existing housing, and offer skills training to youth and adult residents.

In addition to the Towns Fund, Darlington also has participated in other DLUHC initiatives such as the Brownfield Land Release Fund, which releases otherwise unusable land for remediation and the construction of affordable housing, and the Getting Building Fund, which supports the remediation of buildings to provide high-quality, sustainable office spaces and labs suitable for startups and innovation.

Overall, DLUHC's "levelling up" agenda to connect Darlington to other major cities and improve its economy through creating quality jobs, providing opportunities for youth, and reducing health inequalities could prove a successful case study for large industrial cities throughout the United States experiencing decline because of disinvestment and a lack of access to education, health care, and affordable housing.