£200,000 funding set to secure the future of Wood Green High Road

Wood Green High Road is set to receive £200,000 funding aimed at revitalising the high street as the capital emerges from the pandemic.

The Future Wood Green BID’s strategy was one of 35 projects across London to initially receive £20,000 seed funding from Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to test the potential for neighbourhood kitchens to support local food start-ups.

The additional £200,000 announced in December 2021 will now ensure that the Future Wood Green Business Improvement District gets off the ground.

The project focuses on creating a food growing space and garden on an underused car park roof in the town centre, that will support the emergence of a food-based identity for the area and address local issues including public health and air quality.

London Assembly member for Enfield and Haringey, Joanne McCartney, said: “Improving access to green space in our capital is a social justice issue and the pandemic has taught us that this is vital not just for environmental reasons, but in terms of boosting the mental health and wellbeing of our communities.

“When it comes to greening and food growing projects, roofs are an underused resource. So, I am delighted that Future Wood Green BID has won significant financial support from the mayor to deliver one on the top of an underused car park on the High Road.

“This is a perfect example of how we can reclaim and rejuvenate old spaces to increase biodiversity and make our communities more resilient in the face of the climate emergency”.

The British Retail Consortium estimate there are around 5,000 fewer shops since the start of the pandemic, with one in seven shops across the UK now lying empty.

Khan, said: “The shops, cafes and other businesses on London’s local high streets have been the heartbeat of our economy, but they’ve been hit incredibly hard by the Covid pandemic.

As we start to recover, we need to be bold and innovative to ensure our high streets can survive as diverse, bustling centres of our capital’s economy.

“I’m doing all I can to encourage Londoners to safely return to our high streets, but these ongoing partnerships with councils and businesses across the capital will be vital for guaranteeing their future growth and prosperity.”

Overall £4million of funding will be provided to support local councils, businesses and other organisations respond to the huge challenges faced by London’s high streets and town centres.