Southampton Council is one of 50 local authorities that will recieve a grant of £52,631 to invest in town centres and shopping districts to keep them healthy as we move out of recession.  This is part of a £2.6 million scheme that comes on top of the £3 million that was announced in August, meaning a total of 107 local authorities in England will benefit from this initiative.

John said, "More money to help shops and traders facing difficuilt times is exactly what is needed.  I'm sure it's going to make a big difference.  This funding will mean shopping districts can be cleaned up so that shoppers' confidence in their local precincts are boosted, which in turn will mean a boost in local economies."

After a long-running campaign with local Labour councillors John is hoping to see this money ploughed into Woolston shops, an area that would benefit enormously from the investment.