Lewes District Council urges East Sussex Pension Fund to invest in local projects

The council said councillors agreed to lobby the pension fund at the Thursday, September 26, Cabinet meeting.

The council said community wealth building aims to use the power of institutions, businesses and communities to create more wealth in the local economy, while creating new local jobs and locally owned enterprises.

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Councillor Zoe Nicholson, Leader of Lewes District Council, said: “This council is spearheading a community wealth building approach and embedding it across the breadth of our services, to make a real difference to the way our economy operates and bring benefits for local people. As part of this, we want to use our influence to develop sound investment propositions for East Sussex Pension Fund that deliver on our objectives, such as building homes, renewable energy projects or retrofitting properties, while providing financial returns.”

The council added that council spending within Lewes district has almost doubled – rising from £5.4 million in 2020-21 to £10.1 million in 2023-24 – since it committed to community wealth building four years ago. The council said local employment been boosted with 95 per cent of council staff (760 full time equivalents) living in East Sussex, with more than a fifth of living in Lewes district.

Lewes District Council said it is a ‘significant contributor’ to the pension fund, which holds assets worth more than £2.5 billion and has more than 85,000 members.