Economic Development

Barnsley MBC

Economic development service

In 2023, the Economic Development service at Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council has delivered £100m+ of capital projects, business support & enterprise programmes, skills & employability initiatives, and infrastructure improvements to transform Barnsley town centre and the wider borough. The service has been instrumental in delivering the Glassworks, a retail-led regeneration scheme that has created a vibrant, attractive destination town centre, the Market Gate Bridge, a critical piece of connective infrastructure that improves access to regeneration projects, including the state-of-the-art youth zone, and highway infrastructure improvements along economic growth corridors into the borough.

Barnsley MBC

Supported employment service

Our mission is to help everybody to unlock the benefits of learning and working, no matter their background or starting point. We help people to overcome their barriers, so helping them to explore and develop skills and employability. In doing so, we're showcasing how inclusive economic development can benefit everyone. Our Supported Employment team has produced many success stories for people with learning difficulties, disabilities, autism, and neurodiversity. By collaborating with partners and businesses, we're paving the way for inclusive employment practices in the region. It's incredible to see the impacts for Barnsley people, employers, the economy, and our communities.

Durham CC

Delivering innovation-led growth

2023 marked the critical year for the development of County Durham’s economy – the council adopted a long-term strategic vision focused on innovation-led growth, launched a joint-venture partner procurement for Durham Innovation District, and invested £62m in the expansion of NETPark – the nationally important North-East science park that is home to three National Innovation Centres and three National Catapults. These developments exemplify the council’s ambition and commitment to drive transformative economic growth, building on the thriving innovation eco-system that has placed County Durham at the centre of the globally significant semi-conductor, space and satellite, and life science sectors.

Funding London - Greater London Authority

Fostering Economic Development Through SME Investment

Funding London plays a pivotal role in supporting early-stage, high-growth SMEs and diverse founders, creating over 12,600 jobs. With a focus on addressing the funding gap, it has deployed over £150M to London-based SMEs, attracting £1B of private sector leverage. We partner with best of breed organisation to deliver high quality outputs and outcomes. Our long-term vision is to create an evergreen fund by reinvesting returns. The work we do has been and will continue to align and support the Mayor’s economic development strategy in order to create a fairer, more inclusive economy.

Haringey LBC with Policy in Practice

Reduce barriers to work with data led employment campaigns

Many young people in Haringey are likely to face barriers to accessing advice, support or employment. For parents, high childcare costs stop them from getting work or increasing working hours. In order to overcome these barriers to employment, LIFT was used to get clarity on households’ employment status, household composition and benefit entitlements. This identified families who were eligible for free childcare, and young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs). The result is 70% of eligible families taking up the free childcare entitlement for two year olds, and 95 NEETs have taken part in employment and upskilling training.

Islington LBC

LIFT: leading inclusive futures through technology

LIFT (Leading Inclusive Futures through Technology) was launched in March 2021 by Islington Council, in partnership with Camden, Hackney and Tower Hamlets. The three-year programme aims to build a more inclusive knowledge economy, helping residents to get jobs and training in tech, digital, creative and sciences, and supporting businesses and start-ups in these sectors to launch and grow. It is the first such scheme in the UK to focus on the thriving ‘knowledge economy’, and focuses on developing the talents of underrepresented residents, especially women and Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.

Liverpool City Region CA and Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Recruitment: a prescription for success

LCRCA initiated and supported a series of large-scale recruitment events providing an immediate innovative solution to the critical recruitment and workforce development needs for Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (LUHFT). Initially, LUFHT required over 200 additional Health Care Assistants to support the staffing of the new £1billion Royal Liverpool Hospital as well as the wider reconfiguration of services across other sites. In the time available, different approaches were needed to attract and engage new talent. 642 people were recruited via ‘on the day’ job offers across 4 events transforming the Trust’s approach to recruitment, retention, and progression.

Surrey CC

Economy & growth team

How do you kickstart a county economy? While on the surface Surrey appeared to be thriving, the absence of a coordinated strategic approach to economic development contributed towards slowing rates of growth. That was until Surrey County Council embedded growing the economy sustainably as one its four corporate priorities and invested in developing a small agile team to drive a coherent economic strategy for the whole county. This place-based approach – with partnership and people at its core - is starting to deliver results, with Surrey now well on the way to establishing itself as the UK’s leading regional economy.

Tees Valley CA

Transforming Tees Valley

Tees Valley faces major economic inequality but unparalleled opportunity. With devolved responsibilities for business investment, support, employment and skills, Tees Valley Combined Authority has taken a multi-pronged approach to drive economic regeneration, create jobs and transform Tees Valley. Its current expansion of one of the UK's most lauded public-private partnerships, to drive SME business engagement, complements multibillion-pound investments in the clean industries and jobs of the future. Work to futureproof UKSPF funding as a responsive and flexible tool to meet business needs, while growing a skilled workforce is promoting growth and making sure no one is left behind.

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