A west Cumbrian town is in the running for a £14 million grant in order to support a proposed new innovation project.

Copeland Mayor Mike Starkie announced that Copeland Borough Council has submitted a bid for a portion of the Levelling Up Fund for a Cleator Moor Innovation Quarter (CMIQ).

The ‘innovation quarter’ will be used as a campus for the Industrial Solutions Hub.

Copeland Mayor, Mike Starkie, said: "We are confident that our Levelling Up Fund bid can make a huge difference to the long-term prospects of Cleator Moor and its residents.

"Work is already under way to lay the foundations for a better future, and some key interventions have already been made, including the Town Deal funding offer and Copeland Council’s purchase of the Leconfield Industrial Estate.

"These steps highlight the commitment of Copeland Council and local stakeholders - with the support of the community - to drive change."

More recently, Cleator Moor was successful in its bid for a £22 billion grant as part of the Towns Fund.

Copeland Council hope the £14 million sought by the CMIQ project will build on the success of the Towns Fund bid and their purchase of the Leconfield site.

The plan is for the CMIQ an additional 400 per cent space for development that would enable facilities for skills and training, research, development, innovation, testing and manufacturing.

"Copeland Council’s ownership of the Leconfied Industrial Estate is already changing perceptions of what this central part of Cleator Moor could be.

With the Industrial Solutions Hub investment and the interest in new space, it’s clear that the Leconfield Industrial Estate is not large enough to capitalise on this opportunity and the site needs to be developed and expanded to reach its significant potential.”

The ISH is seen as a big opportunity for Copeland to create new opportunities and move away from its dependency on Sellafield.

Chief Executive Officer for Copeland Borough Council, Pat Graham, said: "What we want is to be more outward-focused, looking at investment opportunities, creating a new commercial dynamic around the Sellafield capability, supporting the delivery of the mission on site, but also celebrating and harnessing the capability of this world class business.

“This has been created over decades of tax payer investment.

“We need to return that investment now."