Research and analysis

Watford UKSPF evaluation: impact and value for money findings – executive summary

Updated 28 August 2026

Applies to England

Introduction

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) was launched by the UK Government in April 2022. It provided £2.6 billion funding for local investment by March 2025, with an additional £900 million available for 2025-26. Local decision-makers worked with their local communities and partners to deliver interventions under three investment priorities: Communities and Place, Supporting Local Businesses, and People and Skills. UKSPF empowered places to identify and build on their own local strengths and needs, with a focus on enhancing community pride and increasing life chances. Watford Borough Council (WBC) received £1 million in UKSPF funding for the period 2022/23 to 2024/25.

Watford is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, located 15 miles northwest of central London, with a population of around 102,246. The town has a higher proportion of working-age residents than the national average, although recent years have seen slow population growth and a decline in the working-age group. Watford is less deprived than half of the local authorities in England overall, and many residents report being satisfied with living there. However, concerns about violence, theft, and safety issues persist in certain parts of the town centre. The local economy benefits from strong entrepreneurial activity and established sectors such as digital creative industries, retail, and construction. Challenges in Watford include a decline in employment levels from 2015 to 2020, low wage growth, and rising living costs. To address these issues, local UKSPF interventions aimed to enhance community pride and safety perceptions, support business resilience and entrepreneurship, and reduce skills gaps and economic inactivity.

Key impact evaluation findings

Communities and Place

UKSPF funding contributed to improving community infrastructure and shifting public perceptions of St. Mary’s Churchyard

Local stakeholders believe that the redevelopment has increased the area’s usability by reducing anti-social behaviour and attracting a wider variety of activities and visitors. Those consulted linked these improvements to the new, more open layout featuring informal play areas, the removal of hidden spots, and enhanced seating.

UKSPF-funded investments in safety infrastructure have improved perceptions of security and served as crime deterrents

Stakeholders noted that installing CCTV in locations such as Victoria Passage and Cassiobury Park has already led to reductions in crime and anti-social behaviour, enhancing security in areas previously associated with drug activity and other criminal conduct. Police feedback also linked the decrease in local crime rates to increased visibility and real-time surveillance, which helped prevent crime and reassure residents, some of whom confirmed this. Police and WBC stakeholders emphasised that the cameras are part of a broader community safety strategy supporting patrols and targeted operations. This suggests that the improvements seen are not solely due to UKSPF but result from a combination of enforcement and preventative measures.

Supporting Local Businesses

UKSPF-funded business support helped establish new firms and strengthen the resilience of existing companies

MI data and interviews with entrepreneurs and UKSPF-delivery providers indicated that structured mentoring and targeted advice helped early-stage founders develop their ideas and start operations. Beneficiary feedback suggests that mentoring had the greatest impact by boosting confidence and providing clarity on next steps, while small grants acted as an incentive to move forward.

UKSPF interventions also helped SMEs improve operational efficiency

Interviewed firms reported establishing clearer internal routines, strengthening management practices, and improving documentation, which led to gradual gains in efficiency and daily productivity. These findings provide qualitative support for the contribution claim, although more quantitative data is needed to measure the scale of these outcomes. UKSPF funding also enhanced business resilience by enabling small improvements that high street businesses otherwise would have been unlikely to undertake without support. These improvements aimed to enhance aspects of the customer offer. Businesses saw these improvements as important for maintaining their competitiveness and attractiveness to customers on the high street.

Support focused on increasing businesses’ ability to enter markets showed promising early results

Businesses reported feeling more confident when engaging with larger buyers, having clearer procurement expectations, and gaining better visibility in key sectors in Watford, including the creative industries. Interview findings suggest that UKSPF-funded support helped firms enhance their market-readiness, although more quantitative data is needed to obtain a complete picture of the impact.

People and Skills

UKSPF interventions increased participants’ confidence and job readiness through skills support initiatives

Qualitative evidence from interviews with delivery providers, case studies, and written testimonies indicates that confidence was often the first noticeable change, supported by short courses, volunteering opportunities, and mentoring. These helped individuals re-engage with education and feel more prepared to transition into employment.

UKSPF funding also supported the development of essential skills needed for further education and employment

Delivery providers and case study material indicated that participants improved their interpersonal and organisational skills through structured activities, and that accredited training was vital for individuals aiming to progress into the job market.

UKSPF funding allowed delivery partners to support individuals further from the labour market who faced multiple or complex barriers to employment

Delivery providers reported that the flexibility of UKSPF enabled them to address the combined effects of underlying challenges, such as limited IT literacy and social isolation. Although employment outcomes remain modest at this stage, qualitative evidence indicates that these interventions have helped participants take initial steps towards employment by building confidence, developing basic skills, and re-establishing routines.

Key economic evaluation findings

The UKSPF programme in Watford demonstrated adequate to high value for money across the 4Es framework.

• Economy – High: Transparent procurement and pooled commissioning attracted qualified providers. The compressed timelines represented a challenge, which affected consultation to some extent, but Watford’s cohesive institutional set-up and strong networks compensated for this challenge, supporting timely delivery meeting the budget.
• Efficiency – Adequate to high: The interventions delivered substantial outputs within the budgeted £1 million, with pooled commissioning supporting economies of scale. However, a significant share of output targets was either not specified or unmet, affecting overall efficiency.
• Effectiveness – Adequate: Watford has made good progress to several target outcomes, likely at a cost which is likely to be adequate in comparison to other programmes. Yet, many intended outcomes remain outstanding or are still emerging.
• Equity – Adequate to high: Delivery reached the intended groups (particularly NEET young people and those with high barriers to employment in Skills and People) and addressed the need for increased safety in the public realm, particularly for women. Evidence by specific demographic characteristics is thinner, but engagement appears to have been broadly inclusive.

Key learning

The following key learning and lessons have been identified, which will support design and delivery of future local growth funds:

• Although delivery benefited from WBC’s ability to leverage match funding, future rounds could enable longer timelines to support more extensive community engagement.
• Challenges with the current monitoring framework highlight the need for funding and monitoring systems that differentiate between interventions with immediate effects and those designed to build capacity for future growth. Locally, WBC could also present the interventions more clearly as a single business support package to improve visibility and uptake among SMEs.
• Future interventions need longer-term delivery periods for training and employment outcomes to develop more fully, along with a monitoring framework that captures both tangible and less tangible or “softer” results. Locally, WBC could further ensure closer alignment between skills initiatives and broader workforce development priorities.