Rural growth is focus for investment and infrastructure forum
Daniel Burgess, centre, head of economy and climate at Powys County Council, represented the Marches Forward Partnership at UKREiiF
The Marches Forward Partnership (MFP) has showcased its ambition to define and lead rural growth and cross-border collaboration to a national platform at a national investment and infrastructure forum.
UKREiiF brings together public and private sector leaders from across the UK to discuss investment, development and the future of places. For MFP, it provided a valuable chance to position the partnership as a credible, delivery-focused voice for rural areas, showing how long-term planning, infrastructure investment and environmental resilience can go hand in hand.
The partnership, through Powys County Council’s attendance, engaged with investors, government representatives and delivery organisations to promote the scale of opportunity across Shropshire, Powys and neighbouring areas and promoted the region as the Capital of Rural Britain.
Discussions focused on unlocking investment in infrastructure, supporting sustainable housing and jobs, and demonstrating how flagship programmes such as the Severn Valley Water Management Scheme can support both economic growth and climate resilience.
Councillor Jake Berriman, leader of Powys County Council, said:-
“UKREiiF is an important opportunity to make the case for rural areas like ours. We have real potential to deliver sustainable growth, but we need the right investment and partnerships to unlock it. Working together across our areas, we can show that rural Britain has a vital role to play in the UK’s future.
“The event also created space to build new relationships and strengthen existing ones, helping to ensure rural areas are part of national conversations about growth and investment and not dismissed or left on the sidelines.”
About the MFP: The Marches Forward Partnership includes councils from Shropshire, Powys, Herefordshire, and Monmouthshire, working together to unlock investment and deliver transformational change across the England-Wales border.
About the SVWMS: The SVWMS is a cross-border initiative led by the Environment Agency, in partnership with Natural Resources Wales, Powys County Council, and Shropshire Council, and funded by Defra. Its aim is to develop a holistic water management strategy for the upper Severn, which could serve as a model for similar projects nationwide.
