Appendix 2: emda's response
1. Introduction
The East Midlands Development Agency (emda)
welcomes this inquiry into emda and the Regional Economic
Strategy (RES) and the associated Report published on 29 July
2009.
We are pleased that the Committee's Report recognises
emda's vital leadership role in relation to economic development
in the region, along with a confirmation of emda's effective
and efficient delivery and our overall economic impact. The Report
highlights a range of achievements, not least our quick and positive
response to the economic downturn via our associated business
support activities and our focus on priority regeneration schemes
in order to create and safeguard jobs. In addition, we welcome
the Committee's support for the regional priorities set within
the RES and our ambition for the East Midlands to be a flourishing
region by 2020. The Report highlights a real strength in relation
to our engagement with partners, our approach to consultation,
and our groundbreaking work on issues like the Index of Sustainable
Economic Wellbeing.
emda is committed to seeking
regular feedback from our regional stakeholders and partners in
order to improve how we deliver our activities and to refocus
our priorities where necessary. We have, therefore, considered
the Committee's recommendations in detail and set out below our
response to the recommendations and the issues contained within
them. We have only sought to respond to those recommendations
that were directed to emda—the remaining recommendations
will be covered in the Government's response to the Report.
2. Response to the Committee's Recommendations
2.1 emda's Marketing and Communications Activities
The East Midlands Development Agency (emda) has
a key role in driving and coordinating regional economic development.
We notice that witnesses have expressed varying levels of awareness
of its role in the region. We urge emda to improve its marketing
and communication in order to further awareness of its role, and
to make businesses better aware of the support it can provide,
particularly during the current economic climate. (Recommendation
2, paragraph 10)
emda has taken positive and effective steps to
provide support to business. We are concerned to hear from witnesses
that awareness of Business Link and its services is not as good
as it should be. We urge the Government, working with emda,
to improve its marketing and advertising in the region, to ensure
that businesses are aware of the services they can access.
(Recommendation 9, paragraph 59)
As Jeff Moore highlighted in his oral evidence to
the Committee, "we are not complacent about our profile
… Obviously, you can always do more if you have
limitless resources". Given the budgetary constraints
within which we are currently operating, we believe that we are
striking the right balance between direct delivery and marketing
and communications activities. It is essential that we focus on
our principal task of responding to the challenges posed by the
current economic climate and helping the region prepare for recovery.
We believe that we engage effectively with regional
businesses. Our recent customer perception and satisfaction survey
(March 2009), demonstrated that 64.5% of organisations felt the
role that emda plays in the region is clear, with 93.1%
of respondents having a full of partial understanding of this
role. Furthermore, 92% of respondents have an awareness of our
primary channel for business support and engagement—Business
Link—and a significant proportion (40%) of respondents had
previously accessed the service.
Business Link is the primary gateway for businesses
and individuals to access the range of support packages available
and is the brand that emda, alongside our regional partners,
market to businesses. Business Link also undertakes targeted marketing
campaigns to ensure that businesses of all sizes are aware of
the support that can be provided. We expect a high level of awareness
amongst the business community of brands such as Business Link
and feel this is the most effective use of our marketing resources,
rather than marketing emda.
During 2008-09 over 67,000 businesses used the Business
Link service in the East Midlands. This figure demonstrates the
significant level of awareness of our primary business support
gateway and our effective engagement with businesses on our business
support services.
2.2 MAINTAINING EMDA'S BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC FOCUS
emda was originally established to provide strategic
economic leadership in the region. Since its establishment it
has taken on a large number of additional responsibilities and
has moved away from its original strategic role, becoming responsible
for the delivery of a number of grants and European Regional Development
Funds. We note the concerns raised by witnesses that this
may cause emda to lose its business focus and urge it to ensure
it remains intent on its economic focus.
(Recommendation 3, paragraph 16)
emda's core aim is to
coordinate and drive forward economic development and regeneration
across the region and this is demonstrated in the Strategic Priorities
set within the Regional Economic Strategy (RES). All emda's
activities are aligned with the Strategic Priorities and Priority
Actions in the RES, which are centred on improving the region's
economic performance, thus we will always maintain an economic
focus.
Although emda's remit has expanded over the
years to include activities such as the management and delivery
of the Business Link service, the Rural Development Programme
for England (RDPE) and the European Regional Development Fund
(ERDF), we believe that these new responsibilities relate directly
to our core economic remit and represent a strong drive towards
cohesive regional delivery. Crucially, we have a wealth of experience
and a strong track record in successful delivery. As Jeff Moore
stated in his oral evidence to the Committee—"we
have been successful in providing efficient, effective delivery
of those services for Government and that has continued to broaden
our remit".
The East Midlands is eligible for approximately £209m
ERDF funding between 2007 and 2013 (subject to exchange rate fluctuations),
which when combined with the required match funding, provides
a programme value of approximately £418m—a significant
investment in the economic development of the region. The decision
to transfer the management of this programme (focused on innovation
and enterprise) to emda is a positive endorsement of our
capacity to deliver efficient and effective economic development
activity.
Despite changes to our remit and new responsibilities,
we believe that we have always maintained a strong business focus
and played a pivotal role in bringing together partners in order
to successfully deliver the actions within the RES. This has been
recognised as a key strength by the business community as stated
in Catapult's written submission to the Committee—"emda
has a good grasp of the commercial issues that are important for
sustainable business success and have added greatly to a cohesive
joined up Regional Economic Strategy … emda also act as a
facilitator in getting together different business groups and
are seen as neutral supportive territory. Some business groups
would not have come together in productive dialogue to make things
happen if emda were not in existence. They are well respected
by the business community and can therefore take this important
role".
2.3 EMDA'S ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
The Regional Economic Strategy (RES) is owned
by the region, and emda alone cannot achieve its objectives. It
is therefore vital that key partners are brought in early to develop
the RES, ensuring that they feel they have an investment in working
towards the region's goals. While some sectors have spoken of
the close working relationship they have with emda, there is a
perception that it did not consult sufficiently with some key
sectors, such as micro businesses, trade unions and the environment
sector, and some witnesses felt they were involved at too late
a stage. We urge emda to establish and maintain improved
relationships with key partners in the region, whilst continuing
to make use of the strong links it already has with many sectors.
(Recommendation 6, paragraph 36)
emda has a strong track
record of undertaking inclusive strategy development and successful
delivery with its regional partners and we are committed to building
on this approach as we move forward with the development of an
integrated Regional Strategy.
As highlighted in both our written and verbal evidence
to the Committee, the production of the third RES followed the
most extensive consultation process we have ever undertaken. emda
attended over 100 events, reaching 1,400 regional stakeholders
and partners. The consultation process resulted in 495 substantive
written contributions from a wide range of regional stakeholders
and residents from across the region.
As the Report recognises, a great deal of evidence
was submitted to the Committee that endorses our proactive and
inclusive approach to stakeholder engagement. For example, Professor
Coyne highlighted in his oral evidence to the Committee, the extensive
capacity in which the East Midlands Universities Association (EMUA)
had been involved in drawing up the RES—"we found
emda to be very proactive in seeking our advice, expertise and
support".
The good practice in our RES consultation was also
endorsed by EMUA, in their written evidence to the Committee—"The
process by which the RES was drawn up should be considered best
practice, in terms of engagement and consultation as well as development
and use of informed baseline data and evidence … Stakeholders
were fully involved and able to make comment on and shape the
strategy".
The opportunity to engage with the consultation process
was also recognised by the EEF who noted that—"EEF
and other business organisations were consulted in a number of
ways". This point was reiterated by the National
Forest Company who noted in their written evidence that they "always
found emda staff and board members accessible and has been impressed
with the breadth and depth of the consultation exercises it has
undertaken.
Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Chamber of Commerce
comprises 3,500 members and a further 6,500 affiliate members.
In their letter to the Chair of the Committee following publication
of the Report, they stated that they did not recognise the perception
that emda does not actively seek the views of businesses
and that emda is vigorous and thorough with its consultation,
stating that—"It [emda] utilises organisations
such as the Chamber of Commerce to disseminate messages and ideas
to small and medium-sized companies and the mechanism works well
… Furthermore emda has worked tirelessly to set up an effective
vehicle for direct engagement with small businesses by establishing
East Midlands Business, owned by this Chamber and the Leicestershire
and Northamptonshire Chambers. That organisation, through the
Business Link, Train to Gain and UKTI brands, informs and engages
constantly with thousands of businesses in the region".
In terms of our ongoing engagement with regional
businesses, we were surprised to hear that the Federation of Small
Businesses (FSB) felt that we tended to place emphasis on larger
businesses and "forget about the 99.2% in the small business
sector". This was the first time this issue had been
raised, despite a positive and effective ongoing relationship
with the FSB. It also appears to conflict with other elements
of their evidence which suggest that we had been keen to take
on board the views of small businesses—"emda
has encouraged our views and we have found them to be receptive
to our comments about small businesses".
emda engages with the
business community on an active and ongoing basis. As detailed
above, 67,000 businesses used the Business Link service in the
East Midlands, 70% of which had 10 or fewer employees. In addition,
Business Link helped over 14,000 individuals who were thinking
about or wanting to start a business and over 3,000 business start-ups—the
majority of which were sole traders or employed fewer than 4 people.
The East Midlands Business Forum is another avenue which emda
utilises to engage regional businesses. This group comprises representatives
from a range of business forums (IOD, CBI, FSB, EEF and the Chambers)
and provides an opportunity for emda to get direct input
from all types of businesses. This engagement has helped inform
our business support offer and ensures that we meet the concerns
and needs of businesses within the region. In addition, the Regional
Risk Finance Forum brings together key organisations from finance
and private investment and works alongside the Regional Economic
Cabinet to help unlock finance for businesses within the East
Midlands. We feel that it is this constant engagement, across
a range of forums, that assists emda in understanding the
diversity of our business community, and this is reflected in
the range of initiatives available.
We have always sought to work closely with the Trade
Unions, both through direct representation on the emda
Board and a variety of other routes. In recent times, this has
particularly focused on joint working in response to the issue
of redundancy support. A number of mechanisms are already in place
to respond to large scale redundancies and we have been keen to
ensure that Unite and the TUC are closely engaged in these. For
example, the Large Business Support Group, chaired by Jobcentre
Plus, and hosted by emda, seeks to achieve a coordinated
approach to delivering this agenda. The TUC are members of this
group. In addition, emda funds the Career Chain Project,
which focuses on providing redundancy and redeployment support—Unite
are active members of the Project Steering Group.
2.4 EMDA'S DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
The range of data and statistics that emda has
to gather is immense. While we acknowledge the large evidence
base used by emda to underpin the current RES, which it commissioned
from academics and universities, we urge emda to utilise
fully the expertise and knowledge of its regional partners on
data collection and analysis. We also urge emda to examine its
procedures so that emda can make informed decisions based on accurate
and timely data. This should ensure that emda uses a variety
of sources of information and analyses, not just the large evaluation
studies it commissions.
(Recommendation 7, paragraph 42)
emda needs to work with timely and accurate data
on which to base decisions in the current economic climate and
we urge them to improve the collection and analysis of data and
to work with regional partners.
(Recommendation 12, paragraph 72)
As Jeff Moore highlighted in his oral evidence to
the Committee, we did not commission our evidence base solely
from academics and universities. "It was produced by
our own people, using industry-standard mechanisms with experts
from outside—universities and academics.
In addition, emda actively engaged with partners
in drawing together the RES Evidence Base to ensure that it was
co-owned and trusted by the region, enabling us to develop a credible
strategy with strong partnership support. Whilst much of the analysis
was undertaken in-house, emda sought input from a number
of appropriate regional stakeholder organisations. For example,
the East Midlands Public Health Observatory contributed demographic
analysis, whilst the British Geographical Survey (based in Keyworth),
Environment Agency, English Nature, English Heritage and the Countryside
Agency assisted with development of the environmental chapter
of the Evidence Base Report (The East Midlands in 2006).
This utilisation of expertise and knowledge from
regional partners was noted by Natural England in their written
evidence to the Committee—"emda principally used
Natural England (and our founding bodies) as formal consultees
to the RES, advisers in the Strategic Environmental Assessment
and as potential providers of data to inform the evidence base".
The Waterways Trust also endorsed emda's evidence
base—"Through the Regional Economic Strategy,
and groundbreaking research, emda have identified the significant
economic value of waterways".
The East Midlands Biodiversity Trust also noted their
engagement with emda—"emda, they are a member
of East Midlands Biodiversity Partnership and are particularly
involved with our work on biodiversity data and evidence, which
will help inform the developing regional evidence base".
emda utilised a number
of partnership groups to obtain early, ongoing and inclusive engagement
of partners in the Evidence Base development. A Task and Finish
Group (comprising a range of regional stakeholders) was formed
to source contributions and to act as a sounding board. An additional
Task and Finish group to support the Strategic Environmental Assessment
of the RES was also established and facilitated the engagement
of a range of environmental partners (such as East Midlands Environmental
Link, CPRE etc.) and with Statutory Consultees (English Heritage,
English Nature, Environment Agency)—these groups were given
regular opportunities to provide ongoing comments on the validity
of the Evidence Base.
In its evidence session, the FSB stated that emda
has a tendency to use statistical evidence which is outdated,
and this has therefore been a barrier in terms of our ability
to fully understand the extent and impact of the economic downturn.
Whilst it is true that emda uses data from a range of official
sources (for example, the Office for National Statistics), and
we fully accept that this is often subject to time lags, these
sources represent only one aspect of the intelligence that underpins
emda's strategic approach.
Our evidence base is not static and is continually
updated and refined using the most up-to-date intelligence and
data—this is used to inform updates to Government on a monthly
basis. These updates summarise the latest official labour market
statistics and provide more up-to-date intelligence through reference
to recent business surveys, reports on redundancies and new investments,
and Business Support Advisors' summaries of employers' views of
current conditions. In addition, our statistical evidence is always
supplemented with survey data and intelligence gathered through
business networks—such as the East Midlands Business Forum,
from key partners (e.g. Job Centre Plus, Government Office), through
close engagement with members of the region's Economic Cabinet,
the Bank of England's Regional Agents, and directly from the many
businesses and private sector contacts we deal with on a day-to-day
basis. We also engage directly with a wider range of businesses
in our delivery of Business Link. The outcome of Business Link
interactions are recorded on a database called the Regional Business
Support information System (RBSIS), which is then used to inform
resource allocation and programme design to ensure that we are
meeting the changing needs of business.
2.5 EMDA'S DELIVERY OF THE EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
FUND
emda has responded quickly and positively to the
current economic situation. They have worked hard to support business
in the region, and we urge them to continue to work with banks
in order to make them aware of what support is available and to
urge banks to assist companies as appropriate. We note the
concerns surrounding the European Regional Development Fund and
encourage emda to examine the process to make it easier to access.
(Recommendation
11, paragraph 71)
emda aims to streamline
and simplify all our funding application processes and our general
approach has been noted by BRP Medical—"Working
with emda staff to complete the application was relatively straightforward
and follow up has been thorough. Clearly, when large sums such
as this are being distributed, it is understood that an audit
trail needs to be in place and reasonable scrutiny needs to be
applied, but this was achieved without being unnecessarily bureaucratic
or intrusive".
Our approach to managing and delivering the ERDF
programme also received support from witnesses and Cllr. Parsons
stated in his evidence session that—"I have also
been involved in European funding. It [emda] has been incredibly
competent on that".
Whilst we fully recognise that the regulatory framework
surrounding ERDF is complex, we do not believe that applicants
in this region are being treated differently than in other parts
of the country. As Jeff Moore stated in his oral evidence "The
evidence that I have seen and read is that we apply the rules
too stringently. I think in the current climate I would treat
that as a compliment rather than as a criticism. Adhering to the
rules under which our funding has been given is quite crucial
as far as I am concerned … I would say we have made approaching
£30 million-worth of investments in our universities and
we think that compares very favourably with our proportion of
the overall RDA pot".
We do not believe that we have unnecessary processes
in place in respect of the ERDF programme, however we will continue
to take a proactive approach to requesting feedback from applicants
and offering support wherever possible.
2.6 REGIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY
We are concerned that the abolition of a regional
assembly removes a dedicated
and knowledgeable regional scrutiny body. We are also concerned
that this removes a formal mechanism for stakeholder engagement.
We welcome emda's efforts to develop mechanisms in the region
to ensure that the involvement of regional partners in policy
decision making is maintained and look forward to emda's report
at the end of the year. We
will revisit the issue of regional accountability once the Assembly
has been disbanded and any new arrangements are in place.
(Recommendation 16, paragraph 101)
As set out in our written and oral evidence, emda
is accountable in many ways. We are accountable to Parliament
through the Secretary of State and other Ministers in the Department
for Business, Innovation and Skills. As with all RDAs, our annual
performance report and accounts are laid before Parliament. We
also appear before Parliamentary Select Committees and regularly
answer Parliamentary Questions. In addition, the National Audit
Office undertakes an Independent Performance Assessment (IPA)
of RDAs.
At the regional level, we are held to account by
our Board and by regional partners in a variety of ways; through
consultation exercises, attendance at partner meetings and our
Annual Public Meeting, where the average attendance is between
300 and 400 stakeholders (including a significant proportion of
businesses and business representatives).
We are currently subject to scrutiny by the East
Midlands Regional Assembly (until March 2010). This process is
conducted by the Regional Scrutiny Board and emda's performance
is assessed against a series of thematic reviews on an ongoing
basis. This process is governed by a clear protocol and supported
by quarterly meetings. We are also now subject to parliamentary
scrutiny through the new Regional Select Committee, and the Regional
Grand Committee which met for the first time on 9 September 2009.
Whilst it is true that one scrutiny process is drawing
to a close, we do not feel it is correct to link this to a loss
of stakeholder engagement. As the Report notes, we are currently
working with the Shadow Local Authority Leaders' Board and the
Regional Assembly to develop effective stakeholder arrangements
in relation to the development of a new integrated Regional Strategy—this
activity is very different to the role and purpose of current
Regional Assembly scrutiny.
2.7 UPDATE ON SUB-REGIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
We understand the concerns expressed by witnesses
over the lack of clarity for sub regional arrangements. We
look forward to clarification from emda.
(Recommendation 17, paragraph 105)
emda set out the recent
changes to sub-regional delivery in both our written and verbal
evidence. In 2001, emda agreed to fund seven Sub-regional
Strategic Partnerships (SSPs) to bring together businesses, the
public sector, and the third sector to tackle the distinct needs
of their local areas. Between 2003-04 and 2008-09 emda
has allocated £255m of Single Programme funds to the SSPs.
In line with the spirit of the Sub National Review, the emda
Board agreed, in September 2007, to contract sub-regional activity
directly with the 9 Unitary and County Authorities (9Cs) from
2009-10. This move has been positively received by the region's
Local Authorities, as it assists with the process of embedding
economic development in Local Area Agreements and Sustainable
Development Strategies.
From 1 April 2009, emda commenced
new contractual arrangements with all Unitary and County Councils
in the East Midlands, with the exception of Derbyshire County
Council, which will commence new arrangements after 1 November
2009, and Nottingham City Council, where it is envisaged that
an agreement will be reached by the end of 2009. The majority
of SSP activity and staff have now been transferred into the Local
Authorities. The emda allocation to the Local Authorities
and remaining SSPs is worth approximately £44m in 2009-10.
We recognise that changes to sub regional arrangements
in the region are ongoing and, as such, we will continue to effectively
communicate any changes to our regional stakeholders and partners.
2.8 EMDA'S CONSIDERATION OF EQUALITIES ISSUES
We were disappointed that emda's presentation
did not mention equality issues, and their success or otherwise
in fulfilling their duty to promote equality. We
would have liked further analysis assessing the impact of their
programmes, and of economic change, on diverse communities in
relation to race, gender, disability, socioeconomic background
and other areas covered by the duty.
(Recommendation 18, paragraph 110)
Achieving Equalities is one of three Structural Themes
within the RES, along with Sustainable Development, and together
they underpin everything we do. Equalities and Sustainable Development
are cross-cutting themes in our Corporate and Business Plans,
and are cascaded through our project development and appraisal
systems. In addition, the RES is subject to an Equalities Impact
Assessment to ensure that all of the activities and policies we
champion reflect the needs of all equalities groups.
The successful integration of equalities issues into
the work that emda undertakes is critical to our overall
success; indeed we cannot fulfil our role as an economic development
agency without considering the needs of people from all equalities
groups. Our approach is one of mainstreaming equalities into core
business processes i.e. all projects are required to undertake
Equalities Impact Assessments on all potential investments as
well as specific, targeted interventions where appropriate.
emda is currently consulting
on the preparation of an Integrated Equalities Scheme, which will
replace and update our current Race, Disability and Gender Equality
Schemes. This integrated scheme sets out our approach and priorities
in terms of promoting economic opportunities for all and asks
our key stakeholders and equalities groups how best we can work
together to achieve our equalities goals. Our final Scheme will
be published following approval of our Executive and Board in
December 2009.
2.9 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT CHAMPION BODY
We are concerned that no one body takes the lead
on sustainable issues in the region. We urge further discussion
in the region to establish whether that is a role best suited
for emda or another body. We also encourage that this discussion
revisits the need for the establishment of a sustainable champion
in the region, similar to that already established in other
regions in England.
(Recommendation 20, paragraph 116)
In 2006, Defra responded to a review undertaken by
the Sustainable Development Commission (the Government's Sustainable
Development watchdog) recommending that English Regions should
establish independent Sustainable Development Champion Bodies
to provide a critical friend function to regional bodies. In early
2007 regional partners initiated a review of sustainable development
coordination arrangements (funded by emda) and to determine
appropriate next steps. However, the launch of Government's Sub
National Review (SNR) in the summer of 2007 raised a number of
critical issues of relevance to Sustainable Development. In light
of SNR, it was agreed (by EMRA, GOEM and emda) that the
review of SD arrangements and consideration of a potential Champion
Body would need to fully reflect the outcomes of the SNR process.
Despite delays to the SNR process, regional partners secured funding
from Defra in 2008-09 (matched by emda and EMRA) to undertake
independent bespoke research and consultation to determine how
to best take forward sustainable development issues.
This work included desk-based research, a review
of UK best practice, interviews with regional stakeholders and
consultation events. The original assumption had been that stakeholders
would desire a fully independent Champion Body—however,
stakeholders clearly expressed a view that sustainable development
should be fully embedded within future arrangements as opposed
to be being transferred into another organisation (Embedding
Sustainable Development in Regional Strategy in the East Midlands,
GHK, May 2009).
In terms of how we are taking these issues forward,
it is clearly early days. However, in relation to Sustainable
Development:
- Emerging plans for structures
to support the Regional Strategy include a Sustainable Development
Advisory Group. This will involve statutory and non-statutory
stakeholders and will provide technical Sustainable Development
input as well as an ongoing Sustainable Development critical friend
function;
- We expect that this Group will have a key role
in supporting emda and the Local Authority Leaders' Board
in undertaking the various Sustainable Development appraisal/assessments
that the Regional Strategy will be subject to: Strategic Environment
Assessment, Sustainability Appraisal, Habitats Assessment and
Equality Impact Assessment; and
- Regional stakeholders, led by emda, have
secured funding from Defra (again matched by emda) to develop
a regional approach to determining sustainable economic growth
within environmental limits. The Government's consultation on
a Draft Policy Statement for Regional Strategies (BIS/CLG, August
2009) demonstrates that the forthcoming Regional Strategy will
be required to deliver the outcome of sustainable economic growth.
As such, the work we are leading will ensure that Sustainable
Development issues are fully integrated in the strategy design
and development process. Regional stakeholders will be fully involved
in the development and finalisation of this work.
Regional stakeholders have clearly stated their preference
that Sustainable Development should be fully integrated within
Regional Strategy arrangements. emda agrees that the mainstreaming
approach is the right approach to create a truly flourishing,
sustainable and resilient East Midlands. We will continue to work
with stakeholders to make this a reality in the region's new arrangements
from April 2010. For more detailed evidence of emda's embedded
approach please refer to our response to recommendation 28.
2.10 EMDA'S DELIVERY OF THE RURAL AGENDA
We agree that the interests of rural parts of
the East Midlands should be a mainstream concern for emda. However,
this should not mean that rural areas do not receive targeted
resources. emda must also ensure that its support is suitable
for areas that are "semi-rural", with towns and
villages interspersed with countryside, and that such areas do
not fall through the gaps.
(Recommendation 23, paragraph 133)
As outlined in both our written and verbal evidence,
we do not seek to spread our funding equally across all parts
of the region and this was reiterated by Jeff Moore in our evidence
session on 27 April 2009—"we are not about making
sure that each of the 42 or 44 districts in the region gets one
forty-second, as it were, of our total budget". emda
endeavours to prioritise activities that will deliver the greatest
impact or tackle specific geographic needs and challenges within
the region.
To achieve our vision of the East Midlands becoming
a 'Flourishing Region' by 2020, it is essential that all
investments fit within agreed strategic priorities and are targeted
appropriately across a range of spatial areas and this approach
has been endorsed by Groundwork, who stated in their written evidence
that—"emda have developed a clear strategy/policy
framework in their consideration of urban, rural and coalfield
issues and done so through an open engagement process. If resource
allocation is consistent with those frameworks and the priorities
that they have identified then I remain satisfied".
As outlined in our written evidence, mainstreaming
delivery of rural activities means that we now consider the needs
of rural communities and businesses in the context of all our
Single Programme investments, which makes it impossible to disaggregate
our investments by rural and urban classification. This approach
has been endorsed by our partners and in particular, when asked
whether any of the witnesses would argue for a specific percentage
of overall funding to be spent in rural areas, Cllr. Parsons stated—"No—this
was unanimous". Further, in their written evidence,
Lincolnshire Enterprise stated that—"The abandoning
in the 2006 Flourishing Region RES of the separate Rural and Urban
strands in the 2003 Destination 2010 RES was therefore welcomed
as it provided the opportunity to develop policy and interventions
to meet the needs of all the region's businesses and communities
irrespective of whether they have an urban or rural base".
In addition to mainstreaming rural activities, emda's
Rural Team works across the organisation in the development of
our policies, programmes and projects to ensure rural issues are
appropriately considered at the earliest stage. This approach
was welcomed by our partners, as demonstrated by Lincolnshire
Enterprise—"The intent to ensure that all activities
were "rural proofed" was also welcomed as a means to
ensure that the specific needs of rural communities—particularly
the challenge of providing accessible services—were built
into interventions".
In July 2009, emda published a piece of research
entitled 'working positively with rural estates' which sought
to identify the scale and nature of estates, land and premises
in the region, as well as how they are already contributing to
the priorities in the RES. In launching the research Helen Woolley,
Regional Director, Country Land and Business Association, stated
that—"I very much hope the other Regional Development
Agencies take a leaf out of emda's book and instigate similar
research in their regions so a national picture can emerge".
Further that, "emda's study into the potential benefits
of the public sector working more positively with rural estates
will improve our ability to support our members in fulfilling
both these roles".
emda is also responsible
for delivering the socio-economic elements of the Rural Development
Programme for England (RDPE) which amounts to approximately £60m
of EU and DEFRA funding, between 2007-13. The funding is aimed
at improving competitiveness, collaboration and diversification
in the agricultural and land-based business sectors and their
associated supply chains, as well as enhancing opportunity and
quality of life in rural areas.
In addition to ensuring that the correct mechanisms
are in place to ensure that our policies, programmes and projects
are inclusive of rural communities and businesses, emda
has a successful track record of working successfully at the sub-regional
level. As set out above, we allocate approximately one third of
our funding to the sub-regional level in order to ensure that
decisions on local investments are made at the correct spatial
level and that the needs of local areas continue to be considered
and addressed on an ongoing basis.
emda also seeks to influence
the work of other partners and stakeholders in the region through
our role as a core partner of the East Midlands Rural Affairs
Forum (EMRAF). emda is charged with leading and reporting
back on the implementation of three of the seven priorities within
the East Midlands Rural Action Plan, which was developed under
the auspices of EMRAF.
Examples of emda activity in support of Rural
Action Plan priorities include:
- Ensuring that the summer 2007
flood relief grant scheme for small businesses was fully extended
to rural areas, including land-based businesses;
- Supplementing the regional business support service
to fully encompass land-based business sectors. Supporting the
delivery of RDPE 2007-13 and helping develop the capacity of Business
Link to engage fully with land-based sectors;
- Ensuring that Business Link delivery is fully
engaged with the Post Office Network Change Programme to help
mitigate the impacts and assist business adaptation; and
- Developing a rural evidence base document to
underpin development of the Rural Action Plan.
emda has
supported a wide range of projects across a spectrum of rural
communities and businesses. A small selection of these are set
out below:
- emda
is funding a rural micro-business support and community renewal
programme in the East Midlands area of the Peak District National
Park. The programme is designed to complement the services available
through Business Link, RDPE and other locally available programmes.
'Live & Work Rural' will demonstrate that the principle of
being able to live AND work in a rural community is a real possibility;
- emda's £5m Waterways
Investment programme aims to reinvigorate the region's waterways
and realise their economic potential through schemes located near
waterways. A total of 22 projects have been contracted to date,
covering a wide range of areas, from land remediation for future
employment use to infrastructure improvements to stimulate wider
developments; waterways transport schemes, restoration projects
and riverside mixed use developments;
- A market town benchmarking website has been developed
by Welland Market Town Management using funds derived from the
Welland SSP and will assist in the development of the 14 market
towns in the area. The website allows participating towns to enter
data on various key performance indicators, such as car parking
occupancy and business confidence in order to assist communities
to better understand where they stand in a range of issues; and
- A grant has been awarded for the construction
of a 3.5m gallon storage reservoir at Silver Mist Nurseries located
in Boston, Lincolnshire. This reservoir will feed a brand new
state-of-the-art water irrigation system which will be used to
irrigate plants and vegetables that will be used to supply 48
vegetable grower businesses in the region.
2.11 THE EMBEDDING OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
emda's resources alone will not achieve the objectives
of the Regional Economic Strategy. It is therefore vital
that key partners work together to ensure that a common vision
is shared. It is also important that the knowledge and expertise
of key partners in gathering and analysing data is utilised. Contributing
to sustainable development is one of emda's statutory functions.
While it has led the way in the development of the Index of Sustainable
Economic Welfare, the sustainability ethos needs to be further
embedded in emda.
(Recommendation 28, paragraph 142)
Contributing to Sustainable Development is one of
emda's five statutory functions as embodied in the RDA
Act and reflected in the collective mission of RDAs "to
transform England's regions through sustainable economic development".
As such, we seek to support developments which balance economic,
social and environmental considerations leading to a flourishing
East Midlands characterised by sustainable economic wellbeing.
Loughborough University note in their written evidence—"In
the area of sustainability, emda has played a key leadership role
in the region … Indeed the development of the low-carbon
energy cluster at Loughborough, and highlighted during the recent
visit of the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Business,
are a clear example of the great benefits of the sustained and
strategic intervention that emda has deployed in areas of special
opportunity".
The UK Sustainable Development Strategy (Defra, 2005)
establishes the context in which Sustainable Development is delivered
in the East Midlands. Its principles are fully embedded within
the current RES and further articulated in our measurement of
the RES vision using the Regional Index of Sustainable Economic
Wellbeing (R-ISEW). Furthermore, five of the ten Strategic Priorities
demonstrate how our regional economic ambition embeds national
sustainability priorities: energy and resources; environmental
protection; cohesive communities; economic inclusion and economic
renewal.
The national Sustainable Development principles cascade
from the RES down through our Corporate Plan and project development
and appraisal systems. Any organisation seeking funding from emda
must demonstrate how they will deliver against Sustainable
Development (SD). From a corporate perspective, emda has
an Environmental Management System (EMS) which seeks to reduce
our environmental impact whilst improving our corporate efficiency.
It includes a number of environmental improvement targets to be
achieved by 2010-11:
- 5% reduction in the carbon
emissions arising from our offices;
- 20% reduction in business miles; and
- 10% reduction in waste from our office activities.
As well as discharging our SD responsibilities in
developing the RES, emda has developed a number of additional
subsidiary strategies and action plans which deliver against SD—key
examples include emda's Economic Inclusion Development
Plan, the Business Support and Regional Innovation Strategies
and our Statutory Equality Schemes focused on race, gender and
disability equality. We have also worked with regional partners
in the development of other regional strategies, policies and
action plans to ensure that economic and SD principles are fully
embedded.
The National Forest Company noted that—"We
are currently working with emda on two projects: the RISEW scoping
study (see above) and a project to investigate the potential for
carbon markets in environmental services (PES), which could contribute
to developing sustainability approaches in the new regional plan.
Both of these projects may expand our collective understanding
of how the region's environment sector might contribute to the
economy and be incorporated in the Regional Strategy".
In their written evidence EEF endorsed our approach—"emda
has demonstrated a commitment to sustainability not only through
the delivery of business support services to encourage businesses
to reduce waste and improve efficiency, but also in its approach
to physical developments e.g. a requirement for all new buildings
to meet BREEAM standards and the on-going redevelopment of one
of the most toxic sites in Europe; the former Avenue Coking Works.
We feel that emda continues to demonstrate a commitment to the
sustainability agenda".
We fully support the Committee's focus on sustainable
development and will continue to maintain and further strengthen
our approach in this area.
2.12 HOW EMDA IS TAKING FORWARD THE SUB-NATIONAL
REVIEW
The Sub-National Review means another period of
change for emda. It will result in additional responsibilities
and the need to build working relationships with new bodies, and
to develop new working methods. As it moves forward, it is imperative
that it develops and maintains close working partnerships in the
region. However, the dissolution of the Regional Assembly removes
a knowledgeable regional scrutiny body and a formal mechanism
for stakeholder engagement. emda's efforts to develop mechanisms
in the region to ensure the involvement of regional partners in
policy decision making is welcomed. As emda moves forward,
it is imperative that it develops and maintains close working
partnerships in the region.
(Recommendation 29, paragraph 143)
As stated in both our written and verbal evidence,
and set out above, emda has a strong track record of undertaking
inclusive strategy development. This was identified as a real
strength by the National Audit Office in their 2007 Independent
Performance Assessment of emda which stated "emda
undertook a wide and inclusive consultation for its RES. The majority
of stakeholders we spoke to felt they had played a role in the
development of the RES and their suggestions had been acted upon".[1]
For clarity, emda has not commenced with drawing
together a new Regional Strategy. We await the outcome of the
Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill's
passage through Parliament and for further guidance from Government,
which will follow the Bill, before we commence any formal preparatory
work with the Local Authority Leaders' Board.
The process we aim to adopt for the new Regional
Strategy will place stakeholders at the very heart of our strategic
development processes. In line with the Government's requirements,
the region (emda, EMRA and Local Authorities) submitted
a Change Management Plan (CMP) at the end of March 2009 which
set out the principles and ways of working that will deliver SNR
implementation in the East Midlands.
The CMP indicated that the next six to twelve months
will see emda, the Regional Assembly and the shadow Local
Authority Leaders' Board engaging in a number of crucial activities
to prepare the way for the first Regional Strategy. The first
core activity is an open consultation with stakeholders that aims
to identify arrangements for stakeholder engagement in the development
of the Regional Strategy (RS). In response to this, emda and
EMRA recently held a stakeholder event (on 2 July) to begin
shaping arrangements for the development of the RS. This event
was well attended with over 80 stakeholders from a range of organisations
across the East Midlands present.
emda has always prided
itself on its approach to partnership working, and our partners
also recognise this, for example, Cllr Parsons stated that "I
will say this of emda … it will listen to me—there
is never a question. If I ask to be heard, I am heard".
Professor Coyne reiterated this point by stating
that—"Our engagement with emda has been strong
and effective, and has grown. We have been welcomed in decision
making and emda has been receptive to our ideas … I want
to leave the message that we are well aligned with an organisation
that we see doing a very effective job, that harnesses and uses
its resources well, that presses all of us to leverage advantage
and that does not lose sight of the end game, which is the delivery
of an economic strategy that improves the social and economic
condition of the region".
We intend to continue with this approach as we develop
our plans to jointly develop and implement a new Regional Strategy
for the East Midlands, with the region's Local Authorities.
Bryan Jackson
Chairman
East Midlands Development Agency
29 September 2009
1 Independent Performance Assessment: East Midlands
Development Agency (emda), Page 6, National Audit Office,
2007 Back
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