Blacon residents are being invited to attend a community event to discuss a £20 million investment in the area.

Taking place on Saturday 14 February at Matthew Henry Evangelical Church, residents will have the opportunity to learn more about the funding, ask questions, and hear about the next steps in the process.

Plans also include the creation of a neighbourhood community board to help shape decisions.

Last year, local MP Samantha Dixon secured £2 million a year for the next ten years as part of the Government's new Pride in Place Programme.

Blacon was selected as one of over 330 areas across the country, to pioneer a new approach that puts local people in charge of how public money is spent on local projects.

"This is a great opportunity to discuss this important investment and what it could mean for Blacon," said Ms Dixon.

"The whole point of this funding is that the community decides how every penny is spent, so it's vital that we hear people's voices, ideas and thoughts.

"Blacon is a fantastic place and reading the surveys that have already been returned, it's clear how many residents have real pride in their area.

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"This is a huge opportunity for Blacon, and I'm really looking forward to hearing what people have to say on 14 February."

The Pride in Place Programme is designed to understand what gives people pride in their area and to empower communities with the funding to deliver improvements that matter most to them.

The upcoming event is part of the wider community engagement process and follows the distribution of a survey to all households in Blacon, asking residents to share their ideas and priorities for the investment.

This outreach also includes engagement with local schools, with surveys being shared with both primary and high schools to ensure young people's voices are heard.

The deadline for returning the household survey has been extended until mid-February to allow more people to have their say.

Residents are encouraged to attend the event from 10:30am to 12:00pm, and to complete and return the survey if they have not already done so.

If you have any questions, please get in touch with Samantha's office on [email protected] or by calling 01244 343 229.