Stevenage Development Board – find out more
The Stevenage Development Board was set up in March 2020 to formulate a bid for the national Government’s Town Fund initiative.
Stevenage was one of 101 towns in England invited to bid and was successfully awarded £37.5m in March 2021 following the submission of the Stevenage Town Investment Plan, set out and ratified by the Stevenage Development Board
The Stevenage Development Board is chaired by businessperson Adrian Hawkins OBE, the Independent Chair. The Board brings together voluntary key stakeholders from public sector organisations, private businesses, not-for-profit organisations and Heritage organisations, to ensure a diverse range of views are represented. Thanks to the effort of all of those involved, Stevenage secured the second joint highest bid in the country, working in collaboration on a Town Investment Plan with a clear vision, strategy and delivery proposals, that support local residents and businesses.
The board chair Adrian Hawkins OBE is the former Deputy Chair of Hertfordshire LEP, Chair of the LEP’s Skills and Employment Board and the Founder of Weldability SIF, an innovative advanced manufacturing firm based in Letchworth Garden City. He is the Chairman and Founder of biz4Biz, an organisation established to support Hertfordshire business owners and leaders, as well as a Patron of Business Clubs, working alongside local MPs.
Adrian is a former School and College Governor and Chair of an Academy Trust. As the Founder of the Weldability SIF Foundation, a registered charity, working alongside FE Colleges and businesses like Make UK and EDF, he has helped create 41 Welding Skills Training College Studios across the UK, delivering 29,000 qualifications since its inception.
The independent Stevenage Development Board continues to provide strategic oversight for the Towns Fund projects, with all its members working together for the town.
The work of the development board forms part of the wider £1bn regeneration of Stevenage Town Centre. Please visit the Stevenage Even Better website for regular updates.
An artist’s impression of the new Sports and Leisure Hub, one of the Towns Fund projects.