The fund will focus on areas located on the fringes of town andcity centres which have found it difficult to compete with theappeal of a thriving nearby centre. Regeneration Minister LordFalconer said: 'The problems affecting some of these areas arekeenly felt by those living there - a lack of investment, poorquality housing, lack of access to services, no jobs. The EnglishCities Fund will secure greater private investment in regeneratingthese parts that badly need it.'

The launch of the fund follows approval from the EuropeanCommission which cleared the English Cities Fund as a legitimateform of state aid. To kickstart the fund up to £100 milllion ($143million) will be invested in up to six projects. The partners havealready been working for a year with local authorities and RegionalDevelopment Agencies to identify suitable projects. They expect tobe ready to launch the first investment in the New Year.

Jones Lang LaSalle advised English Partnerships on thefeasibility, structuring and financing of the fund, the selectionof Legal & General as investment manager and AMEC asdevelopment manager.