Purpose

This report will set out the
proposed project budgets in the Growth Zone Programme, to be
delivered from 2025/26 for approval by the Executive
Mayor.

Content

For
the reasons set out in the report, the Executive
Mayor AGREED: 
 

to agree
an additional £9,526,090 budget for the
continued delivery of the Growth Zone programme in 2026/27
and 2027/28; 

 

to delegate to the
Corporate Director of Sustainable Communities, Regeneration &
Economic Recovery in consultation with the Chief Finance Officer
(Section 151), the Executive Mayor and the Cabinet Member for
Planning and Regeneration authority to make necessary future
changes to the funding assigned to projects within the Growth Zone
Delivery Programme; 

 

to delegate to the
Growth Zone Steering Group authority to make the necessary changes
to the final distribution of funding and forecast annual spend
profile for relevant projects, as noted in Table 1; 

 

to note the
indicative funding profile for Growth Zone Sub Groups and projects as detailed in
Table 1 of this report. 

 

Reasons for the decision

This report sets the Growth
Zone budget and project programme for 2026/27 and 2027/28,
which is an annual requirement of Growth Zone
governance. 
 
 
The recommendation to approve
the programme for 2026/27 and 2027/28 as set out in this
report reflects the continued need to support the town
centre’s growth, regeneration and social and economic
recovery as defined in the Council’s Town Centre Vision,
Growth Plan, Local Plan Partial Review and Mayor’s business
plan.  
 
The budget and programme
reflect the Council’s current resource structures that
reflect and respond to the Council’s financial challenges. It
is important that the programme is realistic in terms of the
capacity for delivery. 
 
The Growth Zone programme is
supported by core partners: Greater London Authority (GLA) and
Transport for London (TfL). This partnership has been
secured through the well-established and functional Growth Zone
governance.  As in previous years, to support this report
the Executive Mayor and the GLA Deputy Mayor for Planning,
Regeneration and the Fire Service, Jules
Pipe CBE, met in December 2025 to discuss the proposed
Growth Zone Budget and Programme for 2026/27 and 2027/28, at the
Growth Zone Annual Board Meeting, during which the GLA
expressed its support for the programme. 
 

Alternative options considered

Three other reasonable
alternative options were considered and were rejected for the
reasons set out below. 
 
An option would be to not
set a budget and programme from 2026/27 and allow the
Growth Zone income to appreciate given the Council’s
financial and capacity constraints. This option was
rejected as it would not support the town centre’s growth,
regeneration and social and economic recovery at a very
critical stage given the impact of the pandemic and the
challenging macro-economic conditions. Also, Growth Zone income is
ring fenced given the statutory instrument, so is a source of
funding for interventions and projects that is not available from
other sources given the Council’s and partners’
financial challenges. Finally, the GLA and TfL would be unlikely to
support this option as it creates a clear tension with
the original intent and approval of the Growth Zone in
2016. 
 
A second option would have been
to set a budget and programme that is overly ambitious with the
very real risk of under delivery. To ignore the Council’s
current resource and structures as of 2025/26 that reflect the
Council’s financial challenges would represent poor
programme management.  
 
A third option would
be to continue setting the Growth Zone programme and budget on
an annual basis, as has been done in recent years. However,
this approach has been discounted because a one-year cycle does not
provide sufficient strategic oversight of the Growth Zone funding
pot given the publication of the Town Centre Vision, Croydon
Growth Plan and Local Plan Partial Review.