Date: Thu 16th September, 2010
Venue: The Reynolds Suite, Holiday Inn Telford, St Quentin Gate, Telford International Centre, Telford, TF3 4EH
Number of Guests Attended: 80
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More than 80 local businessmen and women attended our event at Telford’s International Centre. Unsurprisingly local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) were on everyone’s minds and the subject dominated the discussion.
Cllr Eric Carter, cabinet member regeneration housing and prosperity, at Telford & Wrekin Council told the audience that he believed the Marches LEP bid - made up of Telford & Wrekin, Shropshire and Herefordshire councils - had a good chance of succeeding. “I think the strength of our bid is that it represents three unitary authorities. Those three authorities have a number of things in common. They are predominantly rural - although there is an urban element to it in Telford – and tourism is one of the common areas. What we are about is delivering for our business community,” he said.
Tom McCabe, director of development services, Shropshire Council, agreed: “We are looking at an enterprise-led way forward. There is a good history of entreprenuership across the area.We have got a large base of small businesses so we won’t simply pander to the whim of three or four big players. The business boards have been very useful as they are grounded in their own areas. Hopefully that buy in will impress ministers.”
Speaking on behalf of business, Keith Greetham, chairman of the Southwater Event Group - which owns the International Centre - said: “From my perspective what we are looking for is a shared vision between the public sector, private sector and universities. This location has got huge numbers of advantages and we shouldn’t try to be something we’re not. If LEPs are a key part of that I would like to see them bring some enabling money to the table.”
And Ralph Early, director of the West Midlands Regional Food Academy and head of food at Harper Adams University College, made the case for universities being involved in any successful LEP bid in the region.
“Education needs to work very closely with the LEP. If you look around the world at where economies have been successful much of that success has grown out of universities and has continued because of the links between business and universities,” he said.
