Appendix 3: Supplementary Government response
Communities and Local Government Memorandum on
Coastal Towns
PROPOSED POLICY APPROACH AND ACTIONS
Introduction
1. In the Government's response to the Select
Committee's report, we said that we would consider what more we
could do through the analysis being developed in the Sub National
Review to help ensure coastal towns, along with other towns and
cities, achieve their full economic potential. This note sets
out how the Government now proposes to:
- address coastal towns in developing its
wider approach to regeneration in the light of the Sub National
Review which gave Communities and Local Government a remit to
produce a framework for regeneration
- enhance the co-ordination at national and regional
level of policies that impact on coastal towns
- explore the issue of seasonal employment in coastal
areas as part of the new co-ordination arrangements.
2. The Government agrees with the Committee that
it is difficult to generalise about coastal towns given their
very different economic and social profiles. Coastal and seaside
towns do exhibit some common characteristics such as peripheral
location, demography (particularly an ageing population), seasonal
employment, benefit dependency (shared by many seaside and coastal
towns) which present challenges for their regeneration and economic
development. They may also benefit from some common opportunities
such as strong liveability and public realm initiatives to boost
tourism and a strong entertainment and leisure offer. However,
none of these characteristics are unique to coastal towns and
at regional or sub regional level some coastal towns may have
more in common with nearby market towns than with coastal towns
elsewhere in the country.
3. Accordingly, the challenge is to find ways of
categorising coastal towns that allows for meaningful distinctions
to be made. Notably, most recent research has tended to concentrate
on the challenges facing seaside resorts, rather than everywhere
that happens to be by the sea. Our aim is now to understand better
which of the factors explaining the poor performance of some coastal
towns are most significant.
The Proposed Policy Framework
4. Taking as a starting point the analysis already
available, the Government proposes to look at coastal towns as
part of the wider framework for regeneration and is considering
a number of issues:
(a) understanding the problems
5. The Sub National Review identified that in order
to intervene effectively to improve economic performance and to
improve the prospects of people in deprived areas, it is important
to be clear about the causes of spatial disparities, the interactions
between the characteristics of people and places, and the extent
to which they are driven by market or government failures.
6. The Government proposes to build on existing analysis
to understand the nature of the problems that arise in some coastal
towns. In relation to seaside towns, Beatty and Fothergill's Seaside
Economy report puts forward the following explanations for
poor performance:
- Decline of traditional tourist industry:
although seaside towns are now more accessible for daytrips;
and rising disposable income mean that those that do visit are
able to spend more;
- Failure to diversify:
the location of most coastal towns—except for those within
close commuting distance of major cities—does not make them
an obvious first choice location for alternative industries (to
traditional tourism) that can maintain the strength of the local
economy. Annex 2 would seem to support this;
- High levels of in-migration:
there has been a growth in jobs in all seaside towns over the
past decade but this has not always translated into increases
in employment due to in-migration by people wanting to live in
seaside towns. This is leading to continuing imbalance in seaside
labour markets.
- Traditional building stock: Many
seaside towns have large, former holiday accommodation residences
that makes them highly suitable for single-resident occupancy
dwellings. The nature of the housing benefit system tends to
drive people to such accommodation. The presence of high levels
of inactivity in these areas might, to some extent, be explained
by the nature of the benefit system driving the inactive into
areas with high levels of suitable housing.
7. The Department has commissioned a short review
of the existing evidence about coastal towns from Professor Stephen
Fothergill, an expert in the field. This will map out current
research and analysis and help to identify the gaps and issues
which will inform any further research. The Government will use
the findings of this report to inform its policy towards coastal
towns, and will share those findings with the Committee.
8. The Department is also working closely with DWP
to understand the disproportionately high rise in people claiming
sickness and incapacity benefit in coastal towns. The aim is to
look at the differences between areas and how policies impact
on social and economic changes across them. This study will look
at the employment (worklessness/ benefit dependency and skills)
situation in coastal towns.
9. The new Local Government Performance Framework
will contain a number of indicators on the economic performance
of local authority areas, including an indicator to measure the
level of benefit claimants within small areas. The Department
is working with DWP to develop neighbourhood level employment
data to help local authorities and their partners to identify
and understand the barriers to employment their residents face.
This will be an essential first step in enabling them to devise
and deliver appropriate responses that meet the needs of disadvantaged
communities within the local area. The proposed indicator will
measure the proportion of people claiming out of work benefits
within Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs)—statistical areas
containing about 1500 residents.
10. Details of further research relevant to coastal
towns that CLG plans to fund, or is considering supporting, are
listed in Annex 5.
(b) Categorising coastal towns
11. Having identified the nature of the problems,
the next stage would be to look at how they arise in practice
in particular types of place so that those which exhibit significant
problem characteristics are identified. An initial typology of
the economic performance of coastal towns, based on employment
rates, is set out below (this may be refined in the light of further
research). The three categories are:
(i) Performing Well;[12]
(ii) Maintaining;[13]
and
(iii) Below Average[14]
12. Annex 1 assesses the performance of seaside
towns against a range of key economic indicators, including employment
rate. Annex 2 contains a map of coastal towns showing
their classification according to their employment rate. Those
highlighted in blue are performing well; those in grey are maintaining
their performance vis-à-vis the national average; and those
in yellow are declining relative to the national average.
13. Annex 3 shows employment
rates in seaside towns relative to former coalfield towns, other
industrial towns and inner city deprived districts all of which
were experiencing a declining industrial base, high levels of
migration, low skills and high levels of inactivity. This demonstrates
that the performance of seaside towns is comparable to former
coalfield towns, but outperforms both inner city deprived districts
and other industrial towns.
14. On wider economic variables, the picture is
mixed:
- Seaside towns have much lower levels of inactivity
than the comparators, and this is especially marked in relation
to the deprived inner city districts and other industrial towns;
- Seaside towns have a higher skill base
than both former coalfield and other industrial towns but a lower
skill base than inner city deprived districts; this is true at
both level 2 and level 4 skills; and
- Seaside towns have a higher proportion of elderly
residents (65+) than the other groups.
c) Understanding the most effective interventions
15. In order to provide a better basis on which to
promote action, the analysis would then need to focus on the kind
of interventions that are most effective in these types of place.
Initial analysis[15]
of coastal towns that are performing well has suggested the following
lessons:
- Physical regeneration,
including that of the public realm, can act as a catalyst for
encouraging wider regeneration—for example the work
carried out by the NWDA in St Annes on Sea and Southport;
- A co-ordinated approach linking transport,
housing and commercial development is needed
if the project is to be self-sustaining—for example the
work carried out by ONE on the Seaham project;
- A Partnership approach between the public
and private sector is needed to address the multiple problems
of skills, housing, transport and accessibility
faced by many coastal towns—for example, the work carried
out by SWDA in Ilfracombe, and the work of SEEDA in Hastings and
Bexhill; and
- Urban Regeneration Companies
(URCs) can be successful in creating the partnerships to undertake
the major transformation needed in some of these towns, especially
in strengthening their commercial viability—for example
the work of EEDA with the coastal towns of the East of England.
URCs can offer better co-ordination of existing activities; a
stronger focus for local strategies on national priorities; and
a clear signal to the private sector of exactly where public agencies
should focus their efforts and crucially, their investment.
16. The framework could therefore:
- provide the basis on which Government agencies
(including the future Homes and Communities Agency), regional
and local partners can come together to develop approaches to
support regeneration in the places that most need it
- help with the development of tailored local delivery
vehicles to maximise the effectiveness of interventions and to
make best use of the available capacity (such as URCs or the City/
Economic Development Company concept).
(d) Local and Multi Area Agreements
17. Responsibility for action within the framework
will remain at regional, sub-regional and local level but Local
Area Agreement and Multi Area Agreements (MAAs) can be used to
focus action within specific coastal towns reflecting their
strengths and opportunities and their relationship with the surrounding
area.
18. MAAs will allow sub-regions to take a much more
active role in leading economic development. We expect several
coastal areas to be in the first wave of MAAs to be signed in
June 2008. MAAs have the potential to secure better outcomes for
local areas by helping to ensure there is a co-ordinated approach
to economic, social and environmental challenges where the impact
or the action is required across more than one administrative
area and require sophisticated and joined-up responses. In developing
MAAs, sub-regional partners will need to ensure consistency with
both Sustainable Community Strategies and Regional Economic Strategies.
Further Co-ordination at National and Regional
Levels
19. The Committee also raised concerns over the extent
of central government co-ordination at the national and regional
level on policies that impact on coastal towns. In parallel to
the development of the regeneration framework, the Government
proposes two further sets of measures which reflect the roles
to be played at different levels:
i) central Government providing an
overall policy context;
ii) the RDAs leading improvements to the economic
performance for the regions and well placed to ensure that coastal
areas in their regions are helped to achieve their full economic
potential, as part of wider strategies to deliver sustainable
growth;
iii) local authorities and their partners
developing bottom-up approaches to tackle their problems, building
on local assets and strengths and vision for their areas.
i) Improved national co-ordination
20. Currently, Departments share a joint regional
economic performance PSA that requires regular cross-Whitehall
working but this has not explicitly focused on coastal towns.
To encourage better co-ordination we propose a cross-departmental
working group:
i) to look at cross cutting policy themes and map
out the current framework for dealing with generic/specific issues
affecting coastal towns (which would help with some of the analytical
work) and
ii) prepare a co-ordinated policy response. A more
informed view can then be taken on whether a separate cross-departmental
structure on coastal towns is needed.
ii) Improved sub-regional co-ordination through
a coastal towns or coastal areas network
21. At present many RDAs have policies for coastal
areas and there are some notable success stories (see Annex
4). Coastal towns would benefit from learning about each other's
experiences and the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA)
is leading on development of an RDA network for sharing of best
practice on coastal town development and regeneration across the
country. Government involvement will help raise the network's
profile and encourage active participation across the RDA network.
Progress would be monitored through regular dialogue with the
RDAs to inform development of regional strategies and share best
practice across the RDA Network and with relevant stakeholders.
22. The network would be managed by SEEDA, given
their lead role on dissemination of best practice on coastal town
regeneration among RDAs, with some support from this Department
and possibly other network partners. Membership would involve
RDAs together with relevant central government departments (particularly
BERR, DCMS, DEFRA, DWP, DIUS), national agencies with an interest
in coastal/ seaside town issues (such as CABE, English Heritage)
and coastal/ seaside towns. External bodies like BURA's Seaside
Network and BRADA (British Resorts and Destinations Association)
would be invited to join.
Seasonal Employment in Coastal Areas
23. The Government recognises the concerns raised
over seasonal employment in coastal areas. This is a complex subject
with no simple solution, and can be an issue in both coastal and
rural areas. CLG is looking closely at what more can be done in
consultation with other Departments and the RDAs. We plan to use
the new arrangements to improve co-ordination at national and
regional/ sub-regional levels to explore the issue further. It
will be an important item on the agenda for the informal cross-departmental
working group on coastal areas, and for discussion by the proposed
coastal areas network to run by SEEDA in partnership with CLG.
24. The RDAs with coastal economies recognise, through
their Regional Economic Strategies (RES), the overall strategic
importance of coastal towns and the need to create sustainable
jobs and businesses in such areas through the RES and other regional
and sub-regional strategies. As part of their role in disseminating
best practice in coastal town regeneration, SEEDA will also be
looking at examples of approaches that tackle the issue of seasonal
employment at a local level.
25. We will submit a further note to the Committee
on this issue soon.
Cities & Regions
Communities and Local Government
October 2007
| Annex 1: Key economic performance (%)
|
| Employment
| Unemployment
| Inactivity
| Incapacity Benefit
| Level 2+ quals
| Level 4+ quals
| No quals
| 65+ pop
|
| Blackpool | 66.2
| 6.8 |
26.3 | 14.1
| 39.4 |
10.8 | 31.0
| 19.6 |
| Bognor Regis | 72.0
| 4.0 |
21.5 | 7.0
| 48.7 |
15.1 | 21.6
| 26.3 |
| Bournemouth | 70.5
| 4.1 |
22.5 | 7.7
| 53.4 |
18.4 | 19.2
| 20.7 |
| Bridlington | 62.7
| 9.1 |
28.5 | 13.3
| 37.0 |
11.7 | 32.7
| 23.9 |
| Brighton | 66.9
| 5.5 |
24.4 | 7.9
| 63.5 |
30.9 | 16.8
| 16.1 |
| Burnham-on-Sea | 71.1
| 4.2 |
23.1 | 9.7
| 43.5 |
12.6 | 25.6
| 26.4 |
| Clacton | 64.4
| 6.1 |
28.7 | 12.2
| 35.5 |
8.6 | 33.1
| 27.9 |
| Dawlish and Teignmouth |
68.7 | 4.4
| 25.8 |
10.3 | 47.8
| 16.7 |
23.3 | 26.5
|
| Deal | 69.2
| 4.9 |
24.7 | 8.5
| 46.3 |
15.1 | 24.3
| 21.5 |
| Eastbourne | 69.0
| 4.6 |
24.0 | 8.4
| 51.1 |
17.6 | 21.4
| 24.7 |
| Exmouth | 70.1
| 3.6 |
23.3 | 7.4
| 50.4 |
16.3 | 19.9
| 23.1 |
| Falmouth | 61.3
| 5.7 |
29.8 | 7.6
| 55.1 |
18.2 | 19.0
| 21.0 |
| Folkestone and Hythe |
70.0 | 6.0
| 22.6 |
8.9 | 46.3
| 14.9 |
24.2 | 20.1
|
| Great Yarmouth | 64.0
| 10.1 |
26.2 | 11.2
| 35.9 |
8.6 | 33.1
| 19.6 |
| Hastings and Bexhill |
67.1 | 5.9
| 25.7 |
10.8 | 45.6
| 15.0 |
24.8 | 23.5
|
| Ilfracombe | 67.2
| 8.2 |
25.1 | 13.4
| 41.1 |
11.5 | 27.2
| 19.9 |
| Isle of Wight | 67.9
| 5.9 |
25.2 | 8.9
| 46.5 |
15.9 | 23.2
| 22.4 |
| Lowestoft | 66.9
| 7.3 |
25.1 | 9.4
| 37.8 |
10.3 | 30.1
| 20.1 |
| Minehead | 72.4
| 5.1 |
21.5 | 9.7
| 46.6 |
12.4 | 23.9
| 29.5 |
| Morecambe and Heysham |
65.6 | 7.6
| 25.9 |
12.4 | 44.6
| 13.5 |
25.3 | 20.8
|
| Newquay | 68.9
| 6.8 |
23.8 | 8.4
| 47.7 |
12.3 | 22.2
| 19.3 |
| Penzance | 61.0
| 8.5 |
31.2 | 13.0
| 48.6 |
16.1 | 24.0
| 22.0 |
| Scarborough | 68.0
| 6.9 |
23.1 | 10.6
| 46.3 |
16.3 | 25.3
| 21.0 |
| Sidmouth | 72.6
| 2.4 |
22.7 | 5.6
| 52.4 |
19.8 | 19.2
| 39.6 |
| Skegness | 63.7
| 6.3 |
30.3 | 16.2
| 32.7 |
7.0 | 39.0
| 23.0 |
| Southend-on-Sea | 70.4
| 5.6 |
22.8 | 7.8
| 47.3 |
14.3 | 23.6
| 19.1 |
| Southport | 69.5
| 5.2 |
23.5 | 9.2
| 52.6 |
20.4 | 20.8
| 22.0 |
| St Ives | 65.2
| 7.1 |
27.4 | 8.4
| 49.1 |
16.9 | 23.4
| 20.8 |
| Swanage | 68.5
| 3.9 |
26.3 | 6.0
| 50.2 |
18.3 | 21.3
| 27.8 |
| Thanet | 65.5
| 7.3 |
26.4 | 9.9
| 43.2 |
13.6 | 27.0
| 21.7 |
| Torbay | 68.0
| 6.7 |
24.3 | 10.6
| 45.4 |
14.0 | 23.9
| 22.6 |
| Weston-super-Mare | 71.3
| 4.3 |
22.7 | 11.5
| 47.1 |
13.9 | 22.2
| 20.7 |
| Weymouth | 71.0
| 4.6 |
22.6 | 10.8
| 47.3 |
15.5 | 21.8
| 20.2 |
| Whitby | 66.2
| 7.0 |
26.0 | 9.7
| 39.6 |
13.0 | 31.0
| 19.9 |
| Whitley Bay | 72.0
| 4.4 |
21.5 | 6.7
| 60.1 |
27.8 | 15.4
| 19.7 |
| Whitstable & Herne Bay
| 70.7 |
4.3 | 23.0
| 6.9 |
46.5 | 15.8
| 23.0 |
22.4 |
| Worthing | 75.0
| 3.1 |
19.3 | 7.1
| 52.8 |
18.7 | 18.5
| 23.1 |
| Seaside towns
| 68.5
| 5.6
| 24.2
| 9.3
| 48.7
| 17.0
| 23.2
| 21.4
|
| England
| 69.5
| 5.1
| 23.6
| 7.4
| 51.7
| 21.2
| 23.0
| 15.8
|
Annex 2: Seaside Towns by Employment Rate
Annex 3: Seaside Towns and Comparator Areas by Employment Rate
Annex
4: Examples of good practice in coastal town regeneration
NORTH WEST DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (NWDA)
St Annes on Sea Town Centre Regeneration Programme,
Lancashire,
Located four miles south of Blackpool on the Lancashire
Flyde Coast, St Annes on Sea was created as a Victorian 'garden
town by the sea' in 1875. The town remained prosperous until the
1970s when factors including changing patterns of tourism combined
to undermine the traditional economic base of the town. By the
late 1990s a after a protracted period of decline, 60% of businesses
stated they were not confident in the town's future and one quarter
of all town centre buildings were vacant.
The St. Annes on Sea Town Centre Regeneration programme
led by Fylde Borough Council, was established seven years ago
to revitalise the town. It has achieved this through high-quality
improvements to the public realm using a strong design-led approach,
property refurbishments to recover the Victorian character of
the resort, the improvement of business and housing opportunities
in the town centre, and work on re-branding.
Funding has come from the North West Development
Agency, English Heritage and Lancashire County Developments Ltd.
- The innovative project won
an award for Best Practice in Regeneration at the British Urban
Regeneration Awards in 2005, organised by the British Urban Regeneration
Association (BURA) with support from English Partnerships.
- The project was commended for making a positive
contribution to economic regeneration, acting as catalyst for
wider regeneration and creating a self-sustaining momentum with
long-term benefits for the local community.
Southport
- Pier and Tram—Agency
investment supported a £7m restoration programme for Southport's
3,600 ft Grade II listed Pier. This included the development of
an iconic new pavilion at the end of the pier providing a visitor
interpretation centre, together with the development of a Pier
Tram, the only one of its kind in the world. The 100-seater custom-built
vehicle runs the length of the Pier. The Pier won the 'Pier of
the Year' award in 2003.
- Marine Lake—Investment
into other aspects of Southport's visitor offer have also been
made including the Marine Lake area.
ONE
The redevelopment of the historic heart of Seaham
is the largest, single project in a 10-year plan to revitalise
the coastal town following the cessation of coal mining in the
1990's. A multi million pound programme of physical regeneration
projects linking transport improvements, new housing and commercial
development opportunities on reclaimed coalfield land, together
with environmental and public realm improvements, will be cemented
by a major new retail facility.
A key regeneration policy for the region and the
Tees Valley city region is the Coastal Arc project (comprising
Hartlepool, Teesmouth and the Heritage Coast east of Saltburn),
which was identified by Tees Valley Vision as a major economic
asset.
Further developing the potential of the coast, such
as the development of the TVR site at Victoria Harbour within
Hartlepool Quays and maximising the potential of Teesport. This
transformational regeneration project will enable Hartlepool to
develop a critical mass of tourism attractions and business, office
employment and a wider choice of housing.
EAST OF ENGLAND DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (EEDA)
In general, the coastal towns within the East of
England are highly varied, ranging from some of the most deprived
areas in the region to some of the most affluent settlements.
EEDA has supported the establishment of an Urban Regeneration
Company at Great Yarmouth / Lowestoft and one at Southend-on-Sea,
invested in major public infrastructure schemes (e.g. the Integreat
scheme at Great Yarmouth and Waveney Sunrise at Lowestoft) and
undertaken master planning exercises in several coastal areas
e.g. Harwich, Felixstowe and Jaywick. With CABE and English Heritage,
the agency funded the 'Shifting Sands' event/publication on changing
the design and image of seaside towns.
In the Tendring Coast area of Harwich, Brightlingea,
Walton and Manningtree, EEDA has provided support for the regeneration
of the towns through the Market Towns Initiative, the Single Regeneration
Budget, Investing in Communities funding and delegated Sub Regional
Economic Partnership funding.
EEDA contributed £8 million to the £16.3
million Integreat scheme that is in its last year and has helped
transform the market, Marine Parade and key areas of the town
with public realm and heritage improvements. Currently, EEDA is
working to develop the proposed Outer Harbour and is also developing
with the 1st East URC a low carbon housing demonstrator
scheme at Saul's Wharf.
The Outer Harbour project is intended to strengthen
the commercial viability of Great Yarmouth's port functions and
deliver major regeneration benefits, by providing new facilities
to meet industry requirements.
SOUTH WEST REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (SWRDA)
Ilfracombe
Ilfracombe is a former thriving Victorian resort
located in a stunning natural setting within the North Devon Coastal
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town has suffered significantly
from the growth of cheap holidays in the sun and has been left
with a legacy of large former hotels and boarding houses that
have been used as houses of multiple occupation. Specific problems
for the town include low incomes, seasonal employment, low skills
base, lack of affordable housing for local people, poor transport
links and steep access to town from the sea front and harbour.
The Market and Coastal Towns Initiative (MCTI)—funded
almost exclusively by the SW RDA—is working to address these
issues and improve the quality of life for residents in Ilfracombe
and its surrounding area. The MCTI is being driven forward by
the Ilfracombe Community Alliance, a community partnership of
local residents, town, district and county councils, businesses,
police and a number of different agencies that formed in November
2000. Ilfracombe formally launched its Community Strategic Plan
in the summer of 2005.
SOUTH EAST ENGLAND DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (SEEDA)
Hastings & Bexhill
The Hastings & Bexhill Task Force is a partnership,
formed in 2001, to agree a 10-year regeneration programme for
these two South Coast towns. The Tasks Force's members are SEEDA,
Hastings Borough Council, Rother District Council, East Sussex
County Council, English Partnerships, Government Office for the
South East, Michael Foster, MP for Hastings and Rye, and Gregory
Barker, MP for Bexhill and Battle.
SEEDA used its regional perspective and credibility
to catalyse action in Hastings, plus it contributed and levered
in funds, public and private, notably £38 million from Government,
£15 million from EP for the Hastings Millennium Community,
and £10 million from the EU. A 5 Point Plan for the regeneration
of Hastings was agreed providing a comprehensive approach to improving
the urban environment, education, transport, businesses, jobs
and homes to create a successful economically vibrant town.
Partnership for Urban South Hampshire (PUSH)
SEEDA is actively working with PUSH, an inclusive
partnership of 11 local authorities, including the cities of Portsmouth
and Southampton, established to take action to improve economic
growth performance in South Hampshire (notably an increase in
Gross Value Added from 2.75% to 3.5% by 2026 and productivity
increase at an average annual rate of 2.4%). PUSH's strategy plans
for sustainable development (in line with the Regional Economic
Strategy) and the regeneration and renaissance of the cities and
other older urban areas.
Brighton
One of the best-known examples of tourist led regeneration
is the Seafront at Brighton, winner of the Civic Trust Special
Landscape Award in 2001. The strategy sought to provide physical
improvements to the public realm but also to animate the space,
proving a range of activities such as the basketball court, a
children's play area and performance space. An important part
of the strategy was to attract private investment, encouraging
new businesses to the rundown and depressing seafront by refurbishing
the archways for crafts uses, bars and cafes.
Margate
The South East England Development Agency (SEEDA)
and Thanet District Council are jointly promoting the regeneration
of a town centre site for a mixed-use development comprising residential,
major retail, commercial floor space and public realm.
The regeneration scheme will kickstart the comprehensive
regeneration of Margate as a whole, which has suffered serious
economic decline over recent years.
The Margate Renewal Partnership, made up of members
from the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), Thanet
District Council, Arts Council England, the Government Office
of the South East (GOSE), the Heritage Lottery Fund and English
Heritage, has already secured almost £10 million in funding
to bring forward key redevelopment schemes in the local area.
Chaired by SEEDA Chief Executive Pam Alexander, the
Partnership is overseeing a number of transformational physical
infrastructure, social and economic projects.
The progress of the £15m Turner Contemporary
Centre, a landmark gallery due to open in 2009, is also being
looked at by the partnership.
ANNEX 5. FURTHER RESEARCH RELEVANT ON COASTAL TOWNS
1. The main academic research on coastal towns was
undertaken by Beatty and Fothergill's, 'The Seaside Economy' report
in 2003,. But it is unclear whether different policy responses
are needed in these areas, over and above other types of area,
with a new approach to the problems of coastal towns. Some coastal
towns are more transient (areas around Dover, for example) and
have larger immigrant populations. They can be used as port of
entry into the country by migrants who start, perhaps, on benefits
but after a while may move on, and use them as a stepping stone
to other areas.
2. There are other coastal areas that have suffered
more 'structural' decline. Areas like Barrow in Furness (North
West) that are physically isolated and have suffered from decline
in industries like shipbuilding mean that there are little in
the way of alternative skilled employment for these people.
3. Many coastal towns rely heavily on tourism as
the key source of employment - and the seasonality of this means
that it is difficult for people to get permanent jobs.
4. CLG have commissioned a short review of the existing
evidence about coastal towns from Professor Stephen Fothergill,
an expert in the field. This will map out current research and
analysis and help to identify the gaps and issues which will inform
any further research.
5. This review will help inform any further work
to explore economic and social development issues in coastal
towns and what are the primary reasons for lower employment rates
and weaknesses in the local economy.
6. CLG is to fund research to identify and provide
evidence of drivers of change for tackling high levels of deprivation
within the Margate Central and Cliftonville West wards. This
will cover a wide range of complex and inter-related issues such
as reducing adult worklessness, identifying how the benefit system
creates barriers to employment, tackling poor health, improving
low basic skills, investigate ways to manage adult, and child,
out of area placements, economic migrants from various EU countries
and how local and national service providers can respond to these
challenges.
7. CLG is currently drawing up a detailed specification
for the research, which is part of the mixed communities work,
with Thanet District Council (one of the demonstration projects)
and aiming for initial funding of the study to be available by
March 2008.
8. There is an evidence gap in terms of data on homes
in multiple occupation (HMOs) and the employment status of people
who live in such accommodation. Existing data sources such as
the Labour Force Survey do not adequately cover such establishments.
This is perhaps an area for this Department to take forward in
their ongoing research into HMOs. However, the most recent data
we have is baseline data in relation to HMO licensing. This is
collected on a regional basis so does not include a breakdown
by town, and does not extend to the employment status of the occupants
of the dwellings. We do not have any plans or resources to commission
any more detailed research.
9. The British Urban Regeneration Association (BURA)
are planning to undertake research into HMOs through their Seaside
Network. The Department is seeking further details of this as
part of its effort to map current research relevant to coastal
towns.
10. Longer term there will be the findings of the
evaluation of the National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal—the
primary data collection phase includes fieldwork in 12 case studies,
three of which are in coastal areas, although these will be anonymised
in the final report. The evaluation is due to report in March
2008.
12 Defined as having employment rates above the average
for England Back
13
Defined as having an employment rate within 3 percentage points
of the average for England Back
14
Defined as having an employment rate more than 3 percentage points
below the average for England Back
15
See Annex 4 for examples of good practice in coastal town regeneration Back
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