Local Enterprise Partnership

Transcription

1 West of England Partnership Joint Scrutiny Committee 7 th January 2010 Agenda item 6 Local Enterprise Partnership Purpose 1. To report further developments on the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP). Background 2. Following an invitation from Government in June, the West of England Partnership submitted a proposal to Government to form a LEP covering the West of England area on 6 th September Update on the current position 3. On 28 th October it was announced that the West of England was one of 24 successful bids across the country and one of only two successful bids in the South West (alongside Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly) to be given the green light to proceed with establishing a LEP as soon as possible. 4. The RT Hon Greg Clark has stated that the common attributes of the successful LEP proposals are: a) Strong level of business engagement and degree of support received from business b) A natural economic geography represented c) A clear vision in terms of local economic priorities articulated d) Clear demonstration of how the LEP will create the right environment for businesses and growth, over and above which would otherwise occur. 5. No specific feedback has been received, or is expected, on the West of England LEP proposal from the Government. However, the White Paper on Local Growth, published on 28 th October, does set out general details of the Government s approach to Local Enterprise Partnerships. 6. Contact has been made with a variety of Government departments, such as the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Communities and Local Government Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and the Department for Transport to raise the profile and promote the opportunities of the West of England LEP Preparation to form a Local Enterprise Partnership 7. It is recognised that there is a need to establish Interim LEP Board arrangements as soon as possible. The role of the Interim LEP Board would be to: a) Facilitate the LEPs development b) Influence the Government on the LEP s functions and capability 1

2 c) Promote the new LEP to the business community in the West of England and nationally d) Manage the transition from current partnership working arrangements 8. The White Paper on Local Growth reaffirms the Government s expectation that business representatives form half the Board (with the remaining half comprising of civic leaders), with a prominent business leader in the chair. 9. On 15 th November, the Skills and Competitiveness Board discussed the business representation on the Interim LEP Board. Potential Interim LEP Board private sector members will be identified from the key business sectors in the LEP submission, with a view to the Interim LEP Board meeting in January. A verbal update on progress will be provided at the Joint Scrutiny Committee meeting. The four unitary authority Leaders will also sit on the Interim LEP Board. Business and stakeholder engagement 10. On 10 th November, the Chair and Vice Chair of the West of England Partnership sent a letter to businesses and organisations which have supported or expressed an interest in the LEP. This letter announced the success of the LEP proposal with Government, and thanked recipients for their support in putting together and supporting the proposal. The letter also confirmed plans to establish an Interim LEP Board as soon as possible, and advised of plans to hold a conference in January, hosted by the Interim LEP Board, to inform, engage and secure the wider contribution of the business community and other stakeholders to the LEPs development. This letter is attached as appendix A. A further letter will be sent introducing the Interim LEP Board once established. 11. A half-day workshop to consider the development, priorities and delivery of the LEP has been arranged to further engage and consult more widely than was possible during the development of the LEP bid. This will take place on Monday 24 January Invitations have been sent out to organisations involved in the West of England Partnership activities, organisation and businesses which have been involved during the development of the bid, or which have since expressed an interest in becoming involved in the LEP. 12. In preparation for the establishment of the Interim LEP Board, discussions have begun between businesses and the unitary authorities to suggest what the immediate priorities for the LEP might be. The outcomes of these discussions will be presented to the Interim LEP Board once established for consideration. In addition to this, discussions between businesses and local authorities have commenced to collate the possible bids to the Regional Growth Fund from the West of England. Environmental Impact Assessment 13. There are no specific environmental implications arising from this report. Risk 14. There is a risk that delay in establishing an Interim Board could impact on the momentum achieved so far on the LEP. The mitigating action is that 2

3 communication channels are being developed and are being used to keep interested organisations informed of the progress made with the LEP. Resources (financial and personnel) 15. There are no resource implications arising directly from this report. Equalities Implications 16. There are no equality implications arising directly from this report. Recommendation That Joint Scrutiny Committee notes the progress made with the Local Enterprise Partnership. Appendices Appendix 1 Letter from Cllr John Calway and Stephen Harrison, November 2010 Author: Karuna Tharmanathar, Deputy Director, North Somerset Council. S:\WEP\WEP meetings\meetings - templates\report format - wep office.doc 3

4 Enquiries to: Peter Jackson Tel: E mail: peter.jackson@southglos.gov.uk Date: Dear Colleague West of England Local Enterprise Partnership We are very pleased to announce that the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) proposal has been successful in getting the go-ahead from the Government. Last month the Government announced that the West of England was one of 24 areas (out of a total of 62 submissions) whose plans have been endorsed. This is fantastic news for the West of England. The LEP will bring together the businesses and civic partners in the West of England to create the ideal conditions for our businesses to grow, and give national and international investors the confidence to invest here. Although we know that the West of England LEP has been successful, we are still awaiting detailed feedback on the proposal. Government officials have been in touch and will work with us as we develop our plans. Further details are set out in the Government s White Paper (Local growth: realising every place s potential), which was published on 28 October. This sets out a number of possible roles for LEPs: working with Government to set out key investment priorities, including transport infrastructure and supporting or coordinating project delivery; coordinating proposals or bidding directly for the Regional Growth Fund; supporting high growth businesses, for example through involvement in bringing together and supporting consortia to run new growth hubs; making representation on the development of national planning policy and ensuring business is involved in the development and consideration of strategic planning applications; lead changes in how businesses are regulated locally; Wilder House Wilder Street Bristol BS2 8PH The West of England Partnership is the sub-regional partnership formed by the four councils working together with partners

5 strategic housing delivery, including pooling and aligning funding streams to support this; working with local employers, Jobcentre Plus and learning providers to help local workless people into jobs; coordinating approaches to leveraging funding from the private sector; exploring opportunities for developing financial and non-financial incentives on renewable energy projects and Green Deal; and becoming involved in delivery of other national priorities such as digital infrastructure. This is a helpful list reflecting most, but not all, of the possible priorities highlighted in our September proposal. We will be continuing discussions with Government on the specific role the West of England LEP will play, and the powers and resources it will need to be effective. To take the LEP proposal forward, an interim shadow board will be established as soon as possible which will be tasked with setting up the LEP Board itself, shaping the delivery arrangements and leading further discussions with Government. As part of building further momentum the Interim Board will be holding a conference early in the new year to inform, engage and secure the contribution of a wider group of businesses and other key organisations. In the meantime we will continue to post the latest news on the West of England Partnership website at Thank you for your support to date and we hope that you will continue to support us in ensuring that we maximise the benefit to the West of England which the opportunity of the LEP provides. Yours sincerely John Calway, Chair, West of England Partnership Board Stephen Harrison Vice-Chair, West of England Partnership Chair, West of England Skills and Competitiveness Board 2