RYEDALE’S economy has received a huge boost with the announcement of several million pounds of Government funding.

The area’s Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has secured £8.3m towards the transition of the Food and Research Environment Agency site at Sand Hutton into the National Agri Food Innovation Campus, with an expected 800 new jobs to be created at the site over coming years.

However, a bid for £2.1m of funding towards a roundabout and infrastructure required for the relocation of Malton’s livestock market and a new Agri-Business Park, north of Eden Camp at Old Malton, will now have to be resubmitted after it failed to secure funding.

There is also no allocation at this stage for improvements to the A64 although the growth deal states that the LEP and the Department for Transport “commit to working together proactively on long-term strategic road network planning to support local economic growth”.

The deal secures more than £110m for York and North and East Yorkshire from the Government’s Local Growth Fund, which is expected to unlock a further £100m of funding from the private sector and local partners. The overall £210.1m package of funding is expected to create more than 3,000 jobs and see over 4,000 homes built. Barry Dodd, chairman of the York, North Yorkshire & East Riding LEP, said: “We have developed an ambitious economic plan driven by our many small businesses and genuine competitive advantage in food, agricultural technology and biorenewables. This commitment from Government to back our vision will help the Partnership deliver over 4,000 good quality jobs across the LEP area.”

The funding is the largest amount to date made available to LEPs by Government.

While the money will not be released until April 2015, work will commence immediately on making plans in preparation for its arrival. The LEP will also work with partners with a view to helping unfunded proposals, included in their bid to government, happen.