Government has failed to provide the necessary skills for the urban renaissance and should fund "regeneration universities", deputy prime minister John Prescott will be told today.

Regeneration experts at the Urban Summit will tell him the government has not created centres of regional excellence as recommended in the urban white paper two years ago.

Shortage of skills and lack of understanding can affect the sustainability of renewal projects.

At a summit session entitled "How do we develop the right skills?", Chris Brown, chief executive of the Igloo Regeneration Fund, will put forward the case for regional universities where professionals can share skills with the community.

Funding of up to £300,000 for each university would come from regional development agencies, but the government could underwrite this for five years to ensure the centres get off the ground.

Brown said: "Skills centres are crucial to breaking down the language barrier between professionals and communities.

"These universities would go some way towards doing that."

  • Isis, a new waterways regeneration partnership, will be launched at the summit this week. The partnership between British Waterways, Amec and the Igloo Regeneration Fund will develop 8000 mixed-tenure homes.

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    Housing Today