Memorandum from Lancashire County
Council (NW 18)
INTRODUCTION: LANCASHIRE'S
RESPONSE TO
THE CURRENT
SITUATION
Lancashire has responded promptly to the challenges
of the current economic situation.
At the end of 2008, we set up a Business Assist
team to co-operate with our partners in the private, public and
third sectors to build a county-wide team that gives real advice
and support on a host of issues to both businesses and individuals.
We trained contact centre employees to direct callers to people
who could help with debt relief, welfare rights, trading standards,
business credit and more. Our credibility with organisations like
JobCentre Plus and the Learning and Skills Council and our commitment
to serving the customer means we can act as a vital information
service for all of Lancashire.
We have held two town centre drop-in events
for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and the public to receive
information on public sector services, grants, loans, training
schemes and so on. We're planning on event in each Lancashire
city and borough and we're making use of existing community assets
like libraries and children's centres to get the right information
to the right people in the right way.
Specifically, our practical business support
measures now include:
— Our selection by the Department of Communities
and Local Government to be a national pilot authority on "providing
timely information". Lancashire is the only local authority
to design its proposal specifically to get information to the
public on how to cope with the downturn.
— A range of business support services,
most notably through Trading Standards, Lancashire Adult Learning
and Lancashire County Developments, Ltd, our economic development
department.
— Free membership of a Chamber of Commerce
to all firms with an investment from Lancashire County Developments,
Ltd.
— The County Council's own business loan
product, Rosebud has also responded to the recession by approving
£874,000 to 6 separate companies just in February
2009 safeguarding a further 90 jobs and creating a further
10.
— A new 10-day payment rule so that businesses
receive payment for their services as soon as possible.
— A new campaign from our Trading Standards
department to stop loan sharks from targeting vulnerable families
and cold callers, and to combat internet fraud.
— A new approach to Business Start Up Advice
is about to be launched although details on the procurement process
for providers of the Intensive Start Up Support service have been
delayed. The Multi Area Agreement groupings in Pennine Lancashire
and Fylde Coast are using this Start Up contract as a way to provide
a consistent advice service across their area, using the LEGI
models as a framework. In addition it is understood that DCLG
have agreed that the previous LEGI postcode boundaries should
now be relaxed. The County Council is also providing funding on
this contract across all 12 districts through the agreed
MAA groupings.
INQUIRY TERMS
OF REFERENCE
The effect of the economic situation on the region;
including the effect on different sectors and on different sub-regions
The Lancashire claimant count has almost doubled
over the last year. The April monthly claimant count in the Lancashire
County Council area increased by 96.3 percent on the same
month in 2008. This figure is greater than the increase in the
wider Lancashire sub-region, and greater than both the regional
and national percentage increases. The month-on-month percentage
increase in Lancashire's claimant count (3.7%) is also higher
than the sub-regional, regional and national increases.
The effectiveness of the Northwest Regional Development
Agency in assisting businesses in the current economic downturn
In addition to Lancashire's sub-regional response,
we are working with the North West Development Agency and Business
Link to offer:
— A £10 million High Growth business
support programme.
— A new £4 million Innovation
Voucher Scheme to help up to 1,000 businesses.
— Dedicated Access to Finance support within
Business Link Northwest.
— A £140 million Venture Capital
Loan Fund.
— A £40 million package of support
to stimulate investment in priority skills development.
Lancashire companies are already benefiting
from these offers, notably the Transitional Loan Fund and Business
Investment Award, which have supported four Lancashire firms to
the tune of £885,000—safeguarding more than 300 jobs
and creating the opportunities for a further 40 jobs in due
course.
A new approach to Business Start Up Advice is
about to be launched, although details on the procurement process
for providers of the Intensive Start Up Support service have been
delayed. The Multi Area Agreement groupings in Pennine Lancashire
and Fylde Coast are using the contract as a way to provide a consistent
advice service across their area, using the LEGI models as a framework.
In addition it is understood that DCLG have agreed that the previous
LEGI postcode boundaries should now be relaxed. The County Council
is also providing funding on this contract across all 12 districts
through the agreed MAA groupings.
The response of the Joint Economic Commission,
established by the Regional Minister in November 2008, to the
economic downturn
Lancashire County Council welcomed the formation
of the North West Joint Economic Commission and we look forward
to hosting their future visits to Lancashire.
We share the JEC's emphasis on employment. Lancashire
County Council has introduced several nationally-recognised job
creation and development schemes that are addressing the county's
skills shortage at this critical time.
WorkStart is a 30-day public sector work
trial in partnership with Jobcentre Plus and Lancashire Adult
Learning that helps lone parent and incapacity benefit recipients
into the workplace. Since April 2008, 59 people have taken
part in a WorkStart placement. Thirty-eight of these have secured
long-term employment at the county council, with other public
sector partners or in the private sector.
Recruitment of apprenticeships has increased
from 16 in 2006 to 270 today. We now expect apprentices
to complete NVQ level 3 rather than level 2 and are
working with student services to help apprentice's access level
4, which exceeds our skills pledge requirements.
For young people not in education, employment
or training, we created Future Horizons to equip people
aged 16 to 18 with the skills and knowledge they need
to apply for our apprenticeship scheme. Future Horizons provides
employability qualifications, basic and life skills, career information
and advice, and a structured work placement at the county council
(or a partner organisation)—an essential stepping stone
in securing an apprenticeship
The Regional Minister met with several participants
in these programmes during a visit to Lancashire County Hall this
month.
4However, we were disappointed that Lancashire was
not specifically included in the list of newly prioritised capital
projects announced by the JEC last December, nor in the list of
long-term strategic projects announced at the JEC's first meeting.
But we remain keen to assist if capital projects can be adapted
further to help stimulate the economy and the level of investment
in Lancashire.
The capacity of the Government Office for the
North West, government agencies such as Business Link, Learning
and Skills Council, and Jobcentre Plus, and other partnerships
between Government agencies, local government and the private
sector, to respond effectively to the economic downturn
Overall, we have been able to work effectively
with central government agencies. For example, our workforce development
programmes have been delivered in partnership with other public
sector organisations and we are proud of our track record in working
together.
As all partners have been affected themselves
by the recession there are limited resources available and it
is therefore imperative that we work together to make more effective
use of the resources we each have to hand. There is still more
that we can do however, to make sure we are working together and
sharing information to ensure that our collective actions are
delivering the best outcome for Lancashire citizens.
The usefulness of Government initiatives such
as Real Help Now, in providing support and enabling access to
finance, for businesses in the north west
We share central government's view of communications
as a key element in the public sector response to businesses and
the public.
— Our award-winning Trading Standards service
has launched a new web site Money Matters to give the public and
business advice on dealing with debt, maximising revenue streams
and getting the best deals across a range of good and services.
— We are also creating an online portal
for the public and business to access information on a wide range
of issues to support them through the recession. It will include
useful links and telephone numbers and other contact details,
including information from district councils, PCTs other partners
as well as a whole host of financial management information.
— Our Welfare Rights Service is targeting
the recently-unemployed to assess their benefits entitlements,
especially for older people.
— We are developing an online portal for
members of the public and business to access information on a
wide range of issues to support them through the recession. It
will include useful links and telephone numbers and other contact
details, including information from district councils, PCTs other
partners. as well as a whole host of financial management information.
The site will be launched in the next few weeks and will also
link into regional websites developed for the same purpose.
Whether the approach of regional Government and
its agencies during the current economic situation strike the
right balance between short term need and planning for the future.
Lancashire County Council has been impressed
by the speed with which the government set up the regional Joint
Economic Commission and the wider national response to the economic
downturn. We take our community leadership role extremely seriously
and are spearheading the public sector's response to the recession
here in Lancashire, just as the national government has sought
to unite public and private elements to tackle the economic situation.
This short-term response goes hand-in-hand with
a wider effort by central government to streamline long-term regional
and local policy following the Sub National Review and its attendant
guidelines and legislation. Lancashire County Council is fully
involved in these processes. We remain fully committed to working
with our central and local partners, and the private sector, to
support Lancashire's economy.
Most importantly, any discussion of distinctions
between short-term action and long-term planning is overshadowed
by the need to examine the central-local government relationship
itself. Greater freedoms and flexibilities for local authorities
would give local actors the tools they need to tackle issues
as they arise in their own particular local form. As the Communities
and Local Government Select Community stated this week in their
report "The Balance of Power: Central and Local Government"
radical reform of central government is needed if Britain is to
truly reach its full potential. The Chair of the committee, Dr
Phyllis Starkey stated that "local authorities clearly know
their communities better than Whitehall does, particularly for
instance when it comes to local health inequalities, policing
needs or tackling the local impact of the economic recession.
Given the extent to which communities differ, local authorities
should have the flexibility—whilst respecting reasonable
national minimum standards—to vary their priorities to better
reflect local aspirations".
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