A NUMBER of Southampton communities could see new investment in their areas to "help them thrive".

Councillor Satvir Kaur, the Labour leader of Southampton City Council who took power at the May election, said she will be investing in high streets, district precincts and shopping centres.

No full details have been given on the plans but Cllr Kaur said she will be reinvesting into Bitterne precinct, Lordshill and other high streets "to help them thrive."

Cllr Kaur said her vision for Southampton is a family city that is "safer, greener, and more affordable" in a bid to bring back pride to those that live here.

Labour took back control of the council last month after a year of a Conservative administration.

The Tories previously scrapped a number of Labour proposals including the £30m allocated to Bitterne Hub.

Cllr Kaur has already confirmed that the bus and cycle lane on the A3024 Bitterne Road West will not return.

She said the scheme is currently under review along with proposals to slow traffic in the Bedford Place area of the city.

Plans for 1,000 new parking spaces dotted across the city are also under review.

Speaking about the Tory's Pothole Patrol, launched as part of an £830,000 investment in resurfacing roads, Cllr Kaur said: "At the moment we are not going to stop something for the sake of stopping it but we have to see whether we believe that it is value for money for the people of Southampton."

She also confirmed that St Mary's Leisure Centre is a "first priority" and will be opened once the repair works are complete.

It comes as Southampton lost out to Bradford in the UK City of Culture 2025 race. She said it was "disappointing" to have lost the bid.

Despite missing out on the title, the city will be awarded £125,000.

Cllr Kaur said: "What's really important now moving forward is that we build on and continue that momentum.

"We don't want to lose any of the energy or time that we put into this as a city so we are going to build on what we developed so far and ensure that we can still deliver for Southampton.

"It may not be at the same scale or pace as we would have liked but it's still about delivering for the city and bringing people together."

Cllr Kaur said she is aware of a number of issues affecting Southampton including mental health issues, rising crime and the cost of living crisis.

"As a council, we absolutely want to help support local residents through some really difficult times and do what we can but fundamentally we do need national change," she said.

She added: "We were promised more police officers and we will be asking those questions about whether that is enough and are the residents of Southampton getting their fair share when it comes to policing when people feel unsafe to leave their homes or walk down the street."

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