Issue - meetings

Report of Interim Executive Director Finance and Governance

Purpose of report

To consider whether or not to provide a £1m loan facility to Silverstone Heritage Limited as part match-funding to their Lottery grant application for the delivery of the Silverstone Heritage Experience.  Other Local Authorities (including South Northamptonshire Council) and LEP partners have already signed an agreement to loan up to £8m of funding to the experience.  Works have already commenced on site, with a planned launch in Spring 2019.

The loan facility is a partial match fund for a project to develop a visitor experience at Silverstone that focusses on the history and heritage of Silverstone and to understand he context and importance of the internationally renowned racing circuit. The experience will be a dynamic exhibition taking visitors through both the history of Silverstone as well as the current world of motor sport and the future. The work to build the facility has already commenced following a rigorous tender process by the Silverstone Heritage Experience for new building works and refurbishment of a hangar at the Silverstone.  This means that costs have now been fixed and there is more certainty about project delivery, with regular updates on project progress received by senior officers at the Council.

Recommendations

The meeting is recommended to:

1.1          Recommend to Council that they should consider the application for a loan facility of up to £1 million, to the Silverstone Heritage Experience.  This is to partially match fund the £9.1m of grant funding secured from Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and in addition to £8m of loans granted by Local Council partners and Local Enterprise Partnerships.

Resolved

(1)          That Full Council be recommended to consider the application for a loan facility of up to £1 million, to the Silverstone Heritage Experience.  This is to partially match fund the £9.1m of grant funding secured from Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and in addition to £8m of loans granted by Local Council partners and Local Enterprise Partnerships.

The Interim Executive Director Finance and Governance submitted a report to  consider whether or not to provide a £1m loan facility to Silverstone Heritage Limited as part match-funding to their Lottery grant application for the delivery of the Silverstone Heritage Experience. Other Local Authorities (including South Northamptonshire Council) and LEP partners had already signed an agreement to loan up to £8m of funding to the experience. Works had already commenced on site, with a planned launch in spring 2019.

The loan facility was a partial match fund for a project to develop a visitor experience at Silverstone that focusses on the history and heritage of Silverstone and to understand the context and importance of the internationally renowned racing circuit. The experience would be a dynamic exhibition taking visitors through both the history of Silverstone as well as the current world of motor sport and the future. The work to build the facility had already commenced following a rigorous tender process by the Silverstone Heritage Experience for new building works and refurbishment of a hangar at the Silverstone. This meant that costs had now been fixed and there was more certainty about project delivery, with regular updates on project progress received by senior officers at the Council.

Resolved

(1)           That Full Council be recommended to consider the application for a loan facility of up to £1 million, to the Silverstone Heritage Experience.  This is to partially match fund the £9.1m of grant funding secured from Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and in addition to £8m of loans granted by Local Council partners and Local Enterprise Partnerships.

Reasons

Silverstone represents a significant hub for leisure, tourism, employment and high tech industry.  Its draw and impact in the region extends much beyond the administrative boundaries of the councils surrounding it, including Cherwell District Council, with an economic radius estimated to be of up to 50 miles.  Further, an estimated 36,000 jobs are dependent on Silverstone as the centre for UK motorsports and the home of Formula 1.

Additionally, the leisure, recreation and employment businesses that depend on the venue generate significant amounts of business rates for the councils in the area, and the changes to the retention of business rates mean that councils now benefit directly from the success of Silverstone.

The support requested for SHL within this report is recognition of the strategic importance of the venue to the area and the need to promote the venue and enhance its attraction in order to ensure the long term future of Formula 1 motorsports.

Alternative options

Option 1: Do not offer a loan facility. If a loan facility is not forthcoming then SHL would have to seek funds from other bodies, but that may jeopardise the completion of the project on time and impact on the potential positive outcomes for the area.