MP Chris Bloore has used a House of Commons debate to issue a stark warning that Redditch’s New Town promise has been steadily eroded by decades of short-termism, disinvestment and a failure to plan for the long term.
Speaking in House, Mr Bloore said while Redditch was built on ambition, integrated planning and a clear social purpose, that commitment has not been sustained. He added it had left communities paying the price through lost jobs, stretched services and rising deprivation.
Redditch was designated a New Town in the 1960s to provide high-quality housing, skilled employment and strong public infrastructure.
He said for many years, that model worked with purpose-built neighbourhoods, local jobs and green space planned together, and backed by institutions.
But Mr Bloore told the House when long-term planning gave way to piecemeal development and the winding-down of strategic oversight, Redditch was left increasingly exposed.
He said manufacturing jobs disappeared without replacement, investment slowed and the town was allowed to drift into becoming a commuter settlement – placing growing strain on public services and hollowing out local opportunity.
The MP also shone a light on the disadvantaged communities of Greenlands and Woodrow, saying they qualified for regeneration funding because of concentrated deprivation – a clear sign the system has failed to adapt and support them.
“Redditch didn’t fail – it was failed.
“We had a model that worked – jobs planned alongside homes, infrastructure built upfront and institutions that were prepared to think long-term.
“What changed wasn’t the town but the political will to back it.
“Too often, Redditch has been left to make do with short-term fixes while the deeper problems were ignored.
“My constituents deserve better than managed decline – they deserve the same level of ambition that built this town in the first place.”
He urged ministers to ensure future New Towns and the renewal of existing ones like Redditch, were driven by long-term, place-based planning, with secure employment, skills, transport and public services embedded from the outset, not bolted on years later.
