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The Thames Gateway
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The Wider Context Challenge and Opportunity
3 Keys to Unlocking its Potential
The Changing Face of North Kent
A Story of Achievement
In 2001-02, the TGKP carried out a detailed analysis of the area’s investment needs - The North Kent Area Investment Framework (AIF) - to inform future planning and discussions with Government and other agencies.
This established a vision of what North Kent could become; provided a clear picture of its strategic investment needs; articulated many of the aspirations of local communities; and established a baseline and targets against which to measure progress. Within three years, a review of the AIF reported an impressive record of achievement forming a solid foundation for future progress.
Local Regeneration Partnerships
To underpin this vision and investment framework, it was vital to drive forward and facilitate the detailed planning and delivery of projects at local level.
Three Local Regeneration Partnerships were therefore established, each covering one of the three key areas of change in Thames Gateway Kent; and each including a range of business and community partners, as well as the local and regional authorities –
A Commitment to Invest
The AIF also informed detailed talks with Government, regional agencies and other partners leading, in 2003, to a major package of Government investment in the Thames Gateway under the Sustainable Communities Programme.
By 2005, TGKP’s partners had secured Government funding of around £210million in support of 47 key projects in Thames Gateway Kent. This, plus major funding from SEEDA and growing project-specific support from other bodies, demonstrates a strong, coordinated approach to delivering investment and change.
Business Development Excellence
With 5,000 new jobs already created at the highly-successful Crossways business park in Dartford, the nearby mixed-use development at The Bridge (open in 2007) has 1.5million sq. ft. of business space, and the potential for a further 7,500 jobs.
Already a North Kent icon, Bluewater is also a retail management centre of excellence and its Learning Shop offers on-line learning opportunities to the local community and businesses.
The Medway Innovation Centre, in partnership with BAE Systems and the Government, is set to create up to 2,000 new jobs and be a catalyst for developing technology companies.
The Medway Enterprise Gateway encourages creative businesses in design and the arts; whilst the Sittingbourne and Medway Enterprise Hubs, specialise in biotechnology, life sciences, ICT, high-tech manufacturing, environmental technologies and pharmaceuticals.
Excellence in Science and Education
A major step to higher educational standards, international recognition and more graduates for North Kent’s economy, the Medway Universities at Chatham offer a wide range of courses to over 6,000 students.
In Dartford, developments at The Bridge also include the London Science Park and Innovation Centre and a pioneering School of the Future setting a new standard for community-based education.
A key driver for developing the area’s capacity in knowledge sectors is the Kent Science Park in Swale. With purpose-built research and
development facilities and, from 2007, a Kent Science Resource Centre offering foundation degrees, it is already home to 84 companies working in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and high-tech engineering.
Design Excellence
The flagship developments at Bluewater and Chatham Maritime – one in a former quarry and the other on part of the former Naval Dockyard – signalled the area’s commitment to recycling damaged land with high quality developments. This commitment carries through into new residential developments such as Ingress Park and Greenhithe in Dartford and The Embankment in North East Gravesend.
The Kent Architecture Centre is a key resource in promoting high standards of design and community involvement across North Kent.
High Speed Connectivity
Ebbsfleet international station – open in 2007 and bringing Paris and Brussels within around 2 hours - is a major catalyst for growth. And when new domestic high speed trains start running in 2009, Ebbsfleet will be just 17 minutes from St. Pancras, and journeys from London to Medway (now the same as to Leicester) will be cut by more than two-thirds.
Fastrack is a high-quality bus rapid-transit network that will link centres across Kent Thameside. Its first route between Dartford and
Gravesend was launched in early 2006 and is already carrying over 50% more passengers than predicted.
Although Thames Gateway Kent is well-served by the strategic road network, many key sites have been poorly connected to it. New road
links are changing that picture rapidly. Thus the new Sheppey Crossing and A249 improvements have boosted access to Sheppey from the mainland; a major programme of improvements along the A2/M2 and M25 has begun; and Chatham Maritime now links directly to the strategic road network via the Medway Tunnel.
Investing in Communities
Impressive new community and sporting facilities are coming forward, such as the world-class Dartford Judokwai, set to be a practice centre for the 2012 Olympics; the Princes Park Stadium, providing a home for Dartford Football Club and other community activities.
Opportunities for disadvantaged communities to share in the benefits of change are also crucial. The EU’s URBAN Programme has invested heavily in several Kent Thameside communities, and Government funded Neighbourhood Renewal Initiatives are also under way in parts of Medway and Kent Thameside. And on Sheppey, community participation in planning the regeneration of Queenborough and Rushenden is giving a strong lead.
Local community facilities are key to capacity-building, and several projects are already complete or in progress. These include an upgraded and enhanced library in Gillingham Town Centre; the Seashells Centre in Sheerness; and the Living Well and Gr@nd Centres in Kent Thameside.
Community enterprise hubs have been established, playing a valuable role in supporting and developing the voluntary and community sector in North Kent.
The Kent and Medway Local Area Agreements are opportunities to work in innovative ways to deliver improved outcomes for local communities, for example, in the fields of children and young people, older people, community safety and health.
Greening the Gateway
The idea of a Green Grid – a greenspace network of footpaths, cycleways and wildlife corridors woven through urban areas and connecting up with North Kent’s wonderful countryside and estuary landscapes - has become a key feature of planning and is steadily building up through new developments and regeneration schemes.
For example, between Gravesend and Medway, a green conurbation of over 800 hectares is being established made up of the Shorne Woods Country Park, with its superb new visitor centre, together with the new Jeskyns community woodland, Cobham Park and Ashenbank Woods.
This is now being taken a stage further with the innovative concept of the Thames Gateway Parklands, designed to make the Gateway a great place to live, work and visit.
In 2001-02, the TGKP carried out a detailed analysis of the area’s investment needs - The North Kent Area Investment Framework (AIF) - to inform future planning and discussions with Government and other agencies.
This established a vision of what North Kent could become; provided a clear picture of its strategic investment needs; articulated many of the aspirations of local communities; and established a baseline and targets against which to measure progress. Within three years, a review of the AIF reported an impressive record of achievement forming a solid foundation for future progress.
Local Regeneration Partnerships
To underpin this vision and investment framework, it was vital to drive forward and facilitate the detailed planning and delivery of projects at local level.
Three Local Regeneration Partnerships were therefore established, each covering one of the three key areas of change in Thames Gateway Kent; and each including a range of business and community partners, as well as the local and regional authorities –
- Kent Thameside Regeneration Partnership
- Medway Renaissance Partnership
- Swale Economic Regeneration Partnership
A Commitment to Invest
The AIF also informed detailed talks with Government, regional agencies and other partners leading, in 2003, to a major package of Government investment in the Thames Gateway under the Sustainable Communities Programme.
By 2005, TGKP’s partners had secured Government funding of around £210million in support of 47 key projects in Thames Gateway Kent. This, plus major funding from SEEDA and growing project-specific support from other bodies, demonstrates a strong, coordinated approach to delivering investment and change.
Business Development Excellence
With 5,000 new jobs already created at the highly-successful Crossways business park in Dartford, the nearby mixed-use development at The Bridge (open in 2007) has 1.5million sq. ft. of business space, and the potential for a further 7,500 jobs.
Already a North Kent icon, Bluewater is also a retail management centre of excellence and its Learning Shop offers on-line learning opportunities to the local community and businesses.
The Medway Innovation Centre, in partnership with BAE Systems and the Government, is set to create up to 2,000 new jobs and be a catalyst for developing technology companies.
The Medway Enterprise Gateway encourages creative businesses in design and the arts; whilst the Sittingbourne and Medway Enterprise Hubs, specialise in biotechnology, life sciences, ICT, high-tech manufacturing, environmental technologies and pharmaceuticals.
Excellence in Science and Education
A major step to higher educational standards, international recognition and more graduates for North Kent’s economy, the Medway Universities at Chatham offer a wide range of courses to over 6,000 students.
In Dartford, developments at The Bridge also include the London Science Park and Innovation Centre and a pioneering School of the Future setting a new standard for community-based education.
A key driver for developing the area’s capacity in knowledge sectors is the Kent Science Park in Swale. With purpose-built research and
development facilities and, from 2007, a Kent Science Resource Centre offering foundation degrees, it is already home to 84 companies working in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and high-tech engineering.
Design Excellence
The flagship developments at Bluewater and Chatham Maritime – one in a former quarry and the other on part of the former Naval Dockyard – signalled the area’s commitment to recycling damaged land with high quality developments. This commitment carries through into new residential developments such as Ingress Park and Greenhithe in Dartford and The Embankment in North East Gravesend.
The Kent Architecture Centre is a key resource in promoting high standards of design and community involvement across North Kent.
High Speed Connectivity
Ebbsfleet international station – open in 2007 and bringing Paris and Brussels within around 2 hours - is a major catalyst for growth. And when new domestic high speed trains start running in 2009, Ebbsfleet will be just 17 minutes from St. Pancras, and journeys from London to Medway (now the same as to Leicester) will be cut by more than two-thirds.
Fastrack is a high-quality bus rapid-transit network that will link centres across Kent Thameside. Its first route between Dartford and
Gravesend was launched in early 2006 and is already carrying over 50% more passengers than predicted.
Although Thames Gateway Kent is well-served by the strategic road network, many key sites have been poorly connected to it. New road
links are changing that picture rapidly. Thus the new Sheppey Crossing and A249 improvements have boosted access to Sheppey from the mainland; a major programme of improvements along the A2/M2 and M25 has begun; and Chatham Maritime now links directly to the strategic road network via the Medway Tunnel.
Investing in Communities
Impressive new community and sporting facilities are coming forward, such as the world-class Dartford Judokwai, set to be a practice centre for the 2012 Olympics; the Princes Park Stadium, providing a home for Dartford Football Club and other community activities.
Opportunities for disadvantaged communities to share in the benefits of change are also crucial. The EU’s URBAN Programme has invested heavily in several Kent Thameside communities, and Government funded Neighbourhood Renewal Initiatives are also under way in parts of Medway and Kent Thameside. And on Sheppey, community participation in planning the regeneration of Queenborough and Rushenden is giving a strong lead.
Local community facilities are key to capacity-building, and several projects are already complete or in progress. These include an upgraded and enhanced library in Gillingham Town Centre; the Seashells Centre in Sheerness; and the Living Well and Gr@nd Centres in Kent Thameside.
Community enterprise hubs have been established, playing a valuable role in supporting and developing the voluntary and community sector in North Kent.
The Kent and Medway Local Area Agreements are opportunities to work in innovative ways to deliver improved outcomes for local communities, for example, in the fields of children and young people, older people, community safety and health.
Greening the Gateway
The idea of a Green Grid – a greenspace network of footpaths, cycleways and wildlife corridors woven through urban areas and connecting up with North Kent’s wonderful countryside and estuary landscapes - has become a key feature of planning and is steadily building up through new developments and regeneration schemes.
For example, between Gravesend and Medway, a green conurbation of over 800 hectares is being established made up of the Shorne Woods Country Park, with its superb new visitor centre, together with the new Jeskyns community woodland, Cobham Park and Ashenbank Woods.
This is now being taken a stage further with the innovative concept of the Thames Gateway Parklands, designed to make the Gateway a great place to live, work and visit.
