The West of England is a powerhouse of the South West economy. But how are the big strategy decisions taken in a region that takes in four unitary authorities? Chloe Rigby finds out.
The West of England is among the UK’s
most economically successful city
regions. The area, which includes the
cities of Bristol and Bath, has the highest
GDP per person outside London and the
highest proportion of graduates in the
workforce in England.
The subregion has a thriving knowledge economy and is known as a centre of academic excellence, with four universities whose strengths mirror the region’s leading position in 21st century industries such as IT, aerospace and the creative industries.
John Savage, of GWE Business West, describes the West of England as “the most successful city region in England outside London”. Over the past 25 years economic prosperity and successful regeneration work have made the area, with its million-strong population, a force that looks to compete on a global stage for inward investment and economic growth. But there are still problems to be tackled. Significant areas of deprivation include parts of South Bristol, which lags behind in terms of development and access to employment. And across the subregion congestion is a problem, and there’s a shortage of affordable housing.
The area, says Terry Wagstaff, chief executive of the West of England Partnership, is a “natural economic area.” Yet since 1996 it has been controlled by four local authorities. The former, and unpopular, county of Avon was abolished that year and replaced by the unitary authorities of Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
Many business people see this administrative arrangement as illogical – but it’s unlikely to be reversed.
“It’s not the ideal solution, but we have worked hard with the four local authorities in helping them, being involved and working together,” says Savage.
Historically there have been criticisms from the business community that any decisions affecting more than one of the unitary authorities have been slow to come. One prime example was the proposed tramline from Bristol to South Gloucestershire. The £200m project foundered in 2004, despite promised government funding, on a disagreement about the route between the two councils.
That sort of criticism is met by the authorities working together, says Wagstaff. The partnership was founded in 2005 by the four authorities as a mechanism for them to work together on decisions affecting the subregion. It brings together the four councils to shape strategy in areas including transport, spatial planning, infrastructure investment, housing, skills and competitiveness.
“These go to the heart of the matter,” says Wagstaff, “because they all point towards increased economic competitiveness, providing quality local jobs and housing that people can afford, while making sure we’re taking account of climate change in any work.”
He adds: “It’s doing the things that are best done together but avoiding those things better done at a local level.”
Councillor Charles Gerrish, chairman of the partnership's joint transport executive and a Conservative member of Bath & North East Somerset Council, says: “We work at strategic decision-making whereas individual councils deal with more local issues. Local decisionmaking about Keynsham, for instance, will be handled by the unitary authority as quickly as anyone else.”
Bath and North East Somerset Council’s strategic director for development and major projects, John Betty, adds: “It’s not a statutory or structured partnership; it’s a partnership of choice by the four unitaries with a view to recognising that the West of England as defined is effectively an identifiable economic identity, with travel to work distances and boundaries that make sense.”
In 2009 the four authorities signed a multiarea agreement with partners including the Homes & Communities Agency (HCA), the Learning and Skills Council and the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA). In exchange for a commitment to work together to create homes and jobs in sustainable communities, and to reduce congestion, improve skills and reduce unemployment to regenerate communities, they gained freedoms including easier and more flexible access to resources.
“The four unitary authorities, along with other partners, are working on the big issues such as transport, economy and housing. We aim to improve the quality of life for our residents by increasing the flow of money around the area by attracting business and investment which leads to growth,” says Councillor John Calway, chairman of the partnership and the Conservative leader of South Gloucestershire Council. “Working with government, we support local businesses through our skills and competitiveness board, which is employer-led.”
The board includes the leaders of the four unitary authorities, plus the leaders of the other political groups. These elected members sit with economic and social partners such as Savage of GWE Business West and Stephen Harrison, South West chairman of accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
But while the business community, universities and other social organisations are closely involved, the power lies with the politicians from the unitary authorities.
ForWagstaff, they “have the statutory responsibility and powers.” Every strategy starts with a full evaluation of the evidence and options. From this basis the proposals are drawn up and evaluated with partner organisations and consultation is undertaken. Work with government departments and agencies is essential to come up with an approved plan or investment. “The unitary authorities are fully involved on statutory plans and investment proposals,” he adds.
Areas where the partnership has so far seen results include agreement on an infrastructure investment plan with the HCA. This will include £60m a year for five years to invest in infrastructure to enable housing development in areas including Western Riverside, Bath, the fringes of Bristol, and North Somerset sites such as RAF Locking at Weston-super-Mare.
Tony Bray, area director for Gloucestershire and the West of England at the South West RDA, says that area has been a real success. “Those decisions aren’t easy. Partners have got together, agreed a process and taken that through their individual decision-making processes as well as the partnership.”
Betty agrees. “The ability of the four unitaries to put together a cogent story for the HCA for the next three to five years on its investment plan for the West of England and pick and agree priorities, and then for all four cabinets to sign off those priorities in three months, was a success given the potential for tension,” he says. “Everyone wanted to act for the greater good.”
Funding worth £450m has also been secured for a transport infrastructure plan that is intended to deliver significant improvements to the region’s bus and train services.
The partnership has also set up a skills and competitiveness board with nine major employers, chaired by Stephen Harrison of PwC, that works with four local universities and five colleges of further education to ensure the development of relevant skills in the workforce that match the requirements of the region’s employers.
When it comes to decision-making, the councils may disagree over allocating resources, says councillor Mark Bradshaw, chairman of the partnership’s scrutiny committee and a Labour member of Bristol City Council.
But “by having a strong, united and evidenced position, the partnership has been able to secure resources for infrastructure, jobs and housing and for tackling deprivation as a priority in the South West.”
So how does the business community feel about the partnership now? According to Ned Cussen, partner in the Bristol office of King Sturge, the partnership is the “logical answer,” and doing a “sterling job” given that the decisions that affect the region must be agreed by four authorities.
Rebecca Pritchard, government and infrastructure advisory partner at Grant Thornton in Bristol, adds: “The partnership has made important strides in working together to address cross-boundary issues, which are important to the growth and prosperity of the subregion over the next decade, in areas such as transport, waste and housing.”
Bradshaw believes this perception is shifting because of the government backing and money for the partnership’s proposals. “Businesses understand that tackling common challenges, such as transport and skills, needs to be across the city region,” he says. “Greater clarity is still needed over the working of the partnership to reinforce this.”
But Savage still believes that making decisions through four unitary authorities means the region is too slow to respond.
“We’re in danger of losing the latest offer on transportation funding simply because we’re not quick enough,” he says. “It will have a time limit created by the Treasury’s needs to reduce spend. So people who have well worked-up ideas that can be acted on quickly will squeeze in but those who haven’t simply won’t. The Treasury will stop spending in a big way.”
That danger is recognised by Wagstaff: “We are working hard with partners to retain that programme as public expenditure comes under pressure.”
The partnership has already set up a briefing with the coalition government for July to set out with partners the strong economic case for continued investment and more local powers. But there’s a feeling that much has still to be achieved.
GWE Business West, which is working on a 2050 Vision to present the business view of how Bristol and the wider area will develop in the next 40 years, suggests that by the century’s mid-point there will be 1.5 million people here. “Where are the 250,000 extra jobs to go with that population going to come from? What sort of companies, what do they do, what sort of skills do they need?” asks Savage.
By 2026 Greater Bristol will need 92,000 jobs to meet the jobs requirement for the area, according to calculations by King Sturge.
“Where is the land where we can provide that? It’s not just identified. In terms of the wellbeing of us and our kids in the future, if they need jobs, where will they be? And where will the housing be? While housing gets talked about and is high on the list of priorities, the employment thing is nowhere near.”
The business community is impatient for the region to make faster progress with strategic development. But, says Wagstaff, that’s natural.
“Business is more impatient because business is driven by fewer people,” he says. “It’s complicated. More organisations and people are involved in developing public policy and investment. But that impatience is good because it really spurs us to get on with things.”
Also in: June 2010
-
The west needs to be heard
So we have a new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government. With the deal done and the dust beginning to settle, what will Cameron and Clegg be able to do with their lumped-together majority?
-
Fit and ready
If you are minded to sell, how do you ensure you get the best price for your business? Kurt Jacobs talks to the experts about how to do right by the company you’ve built.