Seven projects across Essex have been given £4.4million to help breathe new life into towns and villages in the county. 

The money has come from the Government Community Renewal Fund.

The projects in Essex, and funding they have received, are:

Pathways to Diagnostics Trailblazer has been awarded £480,807 and will be delivered by Colchester Institute & East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT). This project will provide residents of Tendring with skills to support local job opportunities created within the new Community Diagnostics Hub at Clacton Hospital.

Planting the seeds for Growth in Tendring is a project which has received £510,313. Delivered by Abberton Rural Training it will provide residents of Tendring district with access to support and training to overcome the negative impact of Covid 19 on their work and physical and mental health.

Harlow & Tendring Retrofit Pipeline for Economic Renewal has been awarded £717,060. This project will be delivered by The Retrofit Academy Community Interest Company (CIC) in partnership with Essex County Council and will support residents and businesses to create jobs and growth from making private properties more energy efficient.

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Digital Skills Transformation for Essex's High Streets has received £756,560. This project, delivered by Maybe Solutions Limited, will provide accelerated digital learning for staff of independent High Street Businesses.

Essex IAG Connect has been awarded £720,541 and will be delivered by Adult Community Learning at Essex County Council. This project aims to provide Information and Guidance to help local people across Essex into employment within growing sectors of industry.

Harlow College and Enable East Skills Pilot has been awarded £779,537. This project delivered by Harlow College & Enable East will offer a range of employment support to unemployed and employed residents in Harlow, while a second base in Tendring will aim to support Year 11-13 pupils and their teachers.

Harlow Local Procurement Portal has been awarded £476,001 and will be delivered by Harlow District Council. This project will support Harlow based Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to supply larger companies in the district, increasing local purchasing and supply of services to grow the district economy.

Louise McKinlay, Deputy Leader of Essex County Council and Cabinet Member for Community, Equality, Partnerships and Performance, said: “This announcement means our ambitions to level up Essex are off to a flying start, driving our aim to create prosperity across all of our county.

“It’s great news for the businesses and residents of Harlow and Tendring, particularly the local people who will benefit from the opportunity to gain the skills they will need to secure the jobs of the future.”