£100 million government regeneration cash will benefit Cannock, Wolverhampton, Brownhills, Handsworth and Tividale

The Government has announced that Brownhills, near Walsall, Chadsmoor, near Cannock, the Waterloo Road area of Wolverhampton, Handsworth and Tividale will all be recipients of the Pride in Place initiative, which will see each of these areas receive £2 million a year over the next 10 years.

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The money can be used for projects such as youth centres, restoring parks and bringing empty buildings back into community use, and local boards will be set up to decide how it is spent.

The neighbourhoods are among 40 announced yesterday, on top of 244 which had already been given funding.

News that Chadsmoor would be one of the beneficiaries has been welcomed by Josh Newbury, MP for Cannock Chase, who said that west Chadsmoor, Broomhill and the Bevan Lee estate would all be beneficiaries, but that the community could choose to expand it further if it wanted.

"This is a huge win for Chadsmoor," he said. "This funding is long overdue and badly needed. Chadsmoor is a brilliant community full of everything that makes a place special, from small businesses to voluntary groups, the food bank, family centre and local churches."

He said that early suggestions included a new building for the Scouts and Guides, an expansion of West Chadsmoor Family Centre, and to replace broken block paving in High Street.

Communities Secretary Steve Reed said: "Across the country, people step outside their front door and feel like there is nothing for them: no sense of belonging, no investment in their area, no feeling that anyone is listening. 

"Pride in Place backs these people and puts the tools and the money directly in their hands to change that, because strong communities aren't built for people, they're built by them. 

"These new neighbourhoods are joining a movement that is bringing people closer together, and this government is backing them to do it."