If successful, this could amount to £186 million worth of investment in Leeds.
Leeds City Council has submitted multiple funding bids for six constituencies to receive funding to transform communities across Leeds.
The Levelling Up Fund is now in its second round, and Leeds City Council hopes to receive a portion of the funding to dedicate to areas like Morley, Armley, Holbeck, the River Aire corridor and further out into the North East and North West of Leeds.
The plans could see a total of £186 million worth of investment: up to £120 million from the Levelling Up Fund, then a further £56.3 million from partners and grants for economic growth, health and wellbeing inequalities, and a £8.7m match funding contribution from Leeds City Council.
In a press release, Leeds City Council explained that there were six bids in total, and each would target a different area of Leeds' development:
The Leeds Central bid aims to renew Holbeck's local infrastructure, including a transformation of the local community centre, green spaces and deliver green retrofit property repairs.
Armley Gyratory / Image: Leeds City Council
Leeds West's bid would also focus on green spaces with development across five community parks, travel connections, and the high street in Armley that prioritises public transport and pedestrians.
North West Leeds has focused on a package of two "intrinsically linked" projects that would invest in transport infrastructure as a way of making the 90 acre North West Leeds employment hub site more accessible.
Similarly, the bid for North East Leeds prioritises transport by looking to offer new sustainable methods of travel. This would include options through a new park and ride site and the provision of high-quality segregated walking, cycling, and dedicated bus infrastructure along one of the main corridors. This area was chosen to "connect North East Leeds with the city centre and relieving the communities along the corridor" in an increasingly eco-friendly way.
The existing Fearnville Leisure Centre would also see a 6000 m² wellbeing centre as part of the Leeds East bid. The council has stated that this would be an important part of "allowing for the revitalisation of a rapidly deteriorating facility to serve some of the most deprived communities in Leeds".
The bid for Elmet and Rothwell, is all about linking the River Aire through a "coherent connected corridor", focusing on creating a new visitor welcome building at the RSPB St Aidan’s Nature Reserve.
St Aidan's Nature Reserve. / Image: RSPB
Councillor James Lewis Leader of Leeds City Council, said: “We have put together six ambitious bids and they represent a real opportunity to build on the great work taking place across Leeds to regenerate our local communities, delivering 21st Century infrastructure and create meaningful jobs.
“The scale and ambition of the bids also reflect the incredible amount of work put into their development and I must extend a sincere thank you to teams from Asset Management and Regeneration, Highways and Transportation, and Parks and Countryside along with their partners and consultants.”
Now that the bids have been submitted, the proposals will be evaluated by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
The outcome of the bids is expected to be announced with the Autumn statement.
Feature Image- Leeds City Council
Leeds
No Greek Tragedy, just indie bangers – The Wombats set Leeds’ First Direct Arena alight
The Wombats aren’t just still going strong - they’re getting better. And honestly? Long may they reign.
The Wombats absolutely tore the roof off the First Direct Arena in Leeds last night, Wednesday 26 March and what a night it was.
From the second they hit the stage it wasn’t just a gig, it was a full-blown indie-pop spectacle, packed with infectious energy, nostalgia, and a whole lot of dancing.
They kicked things off with “Moving to New York,” and honestly? The crowd was in from the first note.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Matthew Murphy’s unmistakable vocals rang through the arena and suddenly, thousands of people were screaming every lyric like it was 2007 all over again. It was one of those moments where you could just feel how much this band still means to people.
Despite the massive venue, The Wombats somehow made it feel intimate. The lights? Pure chaos in the best way - vibrant, colourful, and totally in sync with the band’s wild, bouncy sound.
Murphy’s cheeky banter between songs made it feel less like a polished arena show and more like a jam session with a few thousand of your closest mates.
Setlist-wise, they nailed it. “Let’s Dance to Joy Division” and “Greek Tragedy” had the whole place losing it, while the stripped-down version of “Techno Fan” gave everyone a minute to breathe (and maybe get a little emotional).
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Those quieter moments just made the high-energy choruses hit even harder. It was a rollercoaster - in the best way possible.
Then came the encore. If you thought the crowd was loud before, “Kill the Director” took things to another level. Pure, chaotic indie bliss. The kind of moment you don’t want to end.
Here’s the thing about The Wombats: some might say their older songs hit harder than their newer stuff, but is that just nostalgia talking? Or maybe it’s a generational thing?
Either way, they proved they’re still one of the most exciting live bands out there. They’ve still got the hooks, the humour, and the ability to turn a massive arena into a sweaty, euphoric singalong.
Get Baked’s viral ‘Bertha’ cake has a sister on the way – and she sounds just as cheeky
Danny Jones
She's big, she's green and she's ready to ruin your figure.
A lot of you will have seen the viral ‘Bertha’ cake by Leeds born beloved sweet treat specialists Get Baked.
They recently opened another site in Manchester's Northern Quarter, where queues literally formed round the block of hungry punters wanting to get their hands on the infamous sugary treats.
And now it's going to happen all over again, as they've recently unveiled their newest flavour which is sure to go down a storm.
We’ll give you a hint: it’s a current food and drink trend that’s about as big as Bertha herself – it’s not matcha, it’s not hot honey (duh), and it’s not Guinness…
Images: Get Baked
Yes—scratch that; HELL YES!Get Baked is set to welcome Bertha’s equally beautiful twin sister, and she’s officially a pistachio girlie.
Having started out life simply as ‘Bruce’, after taking inspiration from the iconic scene from Matilda, this thing has become a phenomenon in its own right, and who doesn’t like more flavours of a good thing?
Probably one of the biggest foodie crazes going at the minute, thanks to the popularity of pistachio cream, cookies, lattes and the similar social media sensation that is the ‘Dubai Pistachio Bar' people are rather fittingly going nuts for this particular flavour of almost absolutely anything.
With that in mind, the Leeds-born bakery and dessert shop – founded by Rich Myers over in Headingley back in 2011 – have shown no hesitation in hopping on the bandwagon and creating a new twist on their own viral menu item.
Teasing the full details in a post on their Instagram this week, they wrote: “What’s big, green, and is going to destroy your life in a couple of weeks’ time? Pistachio Bertha. Strictly limited to 5,000 slices. Coming oh so soon. GB.”
In case you were wondering just how mad those with a sweet tooth could possibly go for a slice of cake, just look at the recent queues when they finally launched in Manchester city centre:
Speaking on the grand opening here on our turf and his partner Amy’s hometown, Myers said simply: “Manchester, what a launch. Thanks for much for the warm welcome. Stay baked.”
Sophie Smith -
15th August 2022 
