The Regional Growth Fund was launched with the Local Growth White Paper on 28 October 2010. It is a new £1.4bn Fund that will operate for three years from 2011/12 to 2013/14.

The objectives of the Fund are:

   * to create economic growth by levering private sector investment and creating additional sustainable private sector employment
   * to rebalance the economy by helping those areas and communities that are currently dependent on the public sector
   * to seek proposals from private bodies and public private partnerships

The first round of bidding closed on 21 January 2011. The second round will be announced shortly.

The final decision on bids will be made by a ministerial group chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister and include the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Communities and Local Government, Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Transport. Ministers will be supported in making decisions by an independent advisory panel chaired by Lord Heseltine.

Find out more about the Regional Development Fund on the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills website - Opens in a new window.