What is Renaissance Southend Ltd?
Renaissance Southend Ltd (RSL) was established in 2005 as the Urban Regeneration Company (URC) for the Borough of Southend. The role of a URC is to coordinate activity to achieve sustainable growth and regeneration, and our Regeneration Framework sets out the priorities for both RSL and many of our partners.
“Building a Better Future ... Our aim is to create a thriving regional centre which celebrates and enriches our community.”
The activity and strategic direction of RSL is overseen by a Board with representatives from both the public and private sectors. The founding organisations of RSL are:
• Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
• East of England Development Agency
• Homes and Communities Agency
• South Essex College
• University of Essex
RSL receives core funding from three organisations:
• Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
• East of England Development Agency
• Homes & Communities Agency
Public sector funding is also provided through all of the core funders for specific regeneration projects. Regeneration and growth cannot happen through public sector funding alone, and to this end, Renaissance Southend is also clearly focused on creating the opportunity for significant private sector investment in Southend.
Southend is one of six medium sized cities in the East of England who have come together to form the Regional Cities East (RCE) partnership.
Important to this concept is the idea that all these cities have Functional Urban Areas (FUAs) that may be beyond their recognised administrative boundaries, but which are as relevant in economic development and regeneration terms as the cities themselves. For Southend, this FUA includes the districts of Rochford and Castle Point.
What happens in Southend matters across an area beyond the administrative boundary of the Unitary Authority. Regeneration and growth in Southend will have a beneficial effect in the two neighbouring districts for which Southend is the regional centre.
Southend is a regional centre for Further and now Higher Education, for shopping and for leisure. It is important that people living in Rochford and Castle Point are able to access what Southend has to offer, and equally, that people living in Southend can make the most of what the FUA has to offer, particularly in terms of quality open space, for instance, Hadleigh Country Park to the west.
The growth of the Thames Gateway presents opportunities to strengthen Southend’s position as one of the UK’s favourite tourism destinations, to create new jobs in a more diverse range of sectors and to improve the quality of life for local residents.”
Company Name: Renaissance Southend Ltd
Company registered in England & Wales number: 5398028
Registered Office: 19 Clifftown Road, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, SS1 1AB
