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Renaissance House, Centre Park, Warrington, WA1 1QN Tel: +44 (0)1925 400 100 Fax: +44 (0)1925 400 400

www.nwda.co.uk

Learning from theNWDA’s Experience

June 2011

Business,People & Places

Contents

Foreword

1. What We Did and How We Evolved

2. Timeline of Key Developments

3. Strategic Leadership and Partnership

4. Securing Investment

5. Delivering Effectively

6. Scrutiny, Assessment and Results

7. Looking Ahead

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ForewordFor nearly 12 years, the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) has been working hard to invest in projectsand activities that make the biggest impact on the regional economy – the transformational actions. We have learneda lot over this time about what works and does not work. Business, People, Places: Learning from the NWDAʼsExperience is designed to help share our experience, good practice and learning, for the benefit of leaders, policymakers and practitioners in the post-RDA economic development landscape. There will be a follow-up document,which we will publish before our closure in March 2012, which will set out how key activities will be taken forward onceNWDA has gone and where further information can be found.

Business, People, Places: Learning from the NWDAʼs Experience is not designed to celebrate the achievements of the NWDA –that was the purpose of Making Big Things Happen issued in 2009 – but to capture what has happened in the North West overthe past few years and provide a flavour of the thinking behind our activity and our evolution. We hope it provides a clearpicture of the important learning gained by the NWDA as we tried over the decade or so of our existence to improve the NorthWest for businesses, for people, and for places. It reflects the views of a large number of people, inside and outside theAgency, who have been involved in different ways in the activity of the NWDA and have knowledge, experience and learning tocontribute.

From the outset, the Agency sought to be a learning organisation, ready to experiment and try new approaches but alwaysseeking to evaluate and review how things worked in practice so that the lessons learned could be built into future work. Overour lifetime, we have learned how to work as a public body led by a private sector board and chair, with staff drawn from thepublic, private and third sectors, and with a wide range of partners and stakeholders of varying resources and outlook. Wehave learned how to invest to create the most impact, using project evaluation as the tool by which project experience andresults can be analysed, learned from and, most importantly, built into future decisions.

We learned the importance of a medium to long-term focus on economic development, as well as how essential a multi-disciplinary approach is, breaking down the silos that separate, for example, skills training from enterprise support orinfrastructure development. One very significant lesson from our experience of economic development is that there are multiplefacets to what makes places fulfil their potential, and that a single issue approach will invariably fail.

Promoting sustainable economic development was in our brief from the outset; the first Chair of the NWDA, Lord Thomas, set aclear aspiration that, as the worldʼs first industrial region, the North West should be the first to apply the principles of sustainabledevelopment. Over the years, we pioneered new approaches to integrating environmental considerations fully into ouractivities. We also learned how important it is to build into our work considerations of equality and diversity, because only wheneveryone has a stake will a place be truly successful. As a result, major projects such as MediaCityUK now have a commitmentfrom all stakeholders to provide local employment opportunities.

We also sought from the outset to ensure that rural areas benefitted from being part of a wider regional approach to economicgrowth, recognising the interdependencies between urban and rural areas as well as the need to address specific ruralchallenges and opportunities. Over time, our approach developed from running bespoke rural programmes to ensuring thatrural considerations were embedded in our mainstream programmes.

The North West is now viewed regionally, nationally and globally as a better place to live, work, visit and do business. Aroundthe North West, places, people and business organisations are more confident, more market oriented and have plans for growththat would not have been possible a decade ago. Independent assessment of our work by PricewaterhouseCoopers has shownthat for every £1 invested, more than £5.20 of economic impact was generated. The economic development community in theNorth West has grown in knowledge and expertise, and many of our staff and our partners will go on to make a difference toinvestment, leadership and delivery in other organisations.

We know that successful economic development and place-making will continue in the North West. Our region has immensepotential – to achieve this potential we will need to continue to see the big picture, including: addressing the opportunities andchallenges of climate change; recognising the value of infrastructure; collaborating to bring forward major initiatives; andcontinuing the skills and enterprise transformation that will drive sustainable wealth creation for future generations. Theevidence-based work we led with the Regional Leaders Board to develop Future North West: Our Shared Priorities, which setsout the key strategic issues looking ahead 20 years, will provide a sound platform for the region moving forward.

We would like the lessons we have learned to be available to everyone involved in economic development, regeneration and thebig issues facing our places in the coming years. The NWDA was not perfect and the job is not finished. But we believe theAgency has made an important contribution to the economic development of the North West over the last dozen years, and wehope new players will be well placed to capitalise on these assets, learning and ways of working. After all, while institutionalarrangements may alter, the issues, challenges and opportunities for this part of the UK do not.

Robert HoughChairman

Mark HughesChief Exectuive

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June 2011

Our reponsibilities

Under the 1998 Act, each RDA had five statutory purposes:

• To further the economic development and regeneration ofits area;

• To promote business efficiency, investment andcompetitiveness in its area;

• To promote employment in its area;

• To enhance the development and application of skillsrelevant to employment in its area; and

• To contribute to sustainable development in the UnitedKingdom where it is relevant to its area to do so.

The Act stated that “A regional development agencyʼspurposes apply as much in relation to the rural parts of itsarea as in relation to the non-rural parts of its area.”

RDAs were required to produce a strategy setting out howthey propose to discharge these purposes. The first NorthWest Regional Economic Strategy was produced in 2000,the second in 2003 and the third in 2006. In 2010, NWDAand 4NW (the Regional Leaders Board) jointly published anew integrated strategic framework for the region, FutureNorth West: Our Strategic Priorities, which sought, for thefirst time, to consider economic, social, spatial andenvironmental issues together and recognise theirinter-relationships.

Since 1999, the RDA remit has significantly broadened, andthe chart above shows the key transfers of functions intoRDAs by central government over time.

Particularly important was the establishment of Single Potfunding in 2002, which pooled the contributions ofgovernment departments and allowed RDAs flexibility onhow that funding was allocated. Some new responsibilitiescame with associated budgets, and collective RDA budgetsrose from under £1bn pa in 1999 to £2.3bn in 2007-08.Since 2006, however, increased responsibilities camewithout associated new finance and, in real terms, theoverall RDA budget fell between 2006 and 2010. RDAbudgets in 2008 equated to c. 0.7% of all public sectorspend in regions.

What We Did and How We Evolved

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The NWDA was established by the Regional Development Agencies Act of 1998, and was formally launched on 1 April1999. Across the country, the nine RDAs took over English Partnerships' land holdings and some of its regional staff,Single Regeneration Budget programmes, some Countryside Agency functions and some DTI inward investmentresponsibilities. RDAs were given an explicit remit to increase the economic competitiveness of their regions.

Transfer of Functions into Regional Development Agencies

NWDA income grew to a peak of £540m in 2010, whichincluded £100m from the European Programme to establishthe North West Urban Investment Fund.

Evolution of Activity

A large proportion of the Agencyʼs budget in the earlieryears was made up of the Single Regeneration Budget(SRB) and other inherited funding regimes. NWDA broughttogether regeneration, land and property developmentfunding and staff to develop a coherent approach to thedevelopment and delivery of physical economicdevelopment projects.

NWDAʼs five Area Offices (which were later superceded bySub-Regional Partnerships) worked with local partners,particularly local authorities and private sector developers,to ensure that wide ranging SRB-funded physicalregeneration projects also tackled social and economicdeprivation challenges. At its peak in 2001/02 and 2002/03,the SRB programme was worth around 60% of the totalNWDA budget of £270m. After 2003, as SRB drew to aclose, the NWDA used Single Pot funding to continuesignificant investment in capital physical developmentprojects via Urban Regeneration Companies (URCs) inManchester, Liverpool, West Cumbria, Blackpool andCentral Salford, and major development schemes such asKingsway and Liverpool Science Park.

Over time, the focus of activity broadened to cover supportfor priority business sectors, strategic skills development,and the visitor economy. Exploiting the legacy of thesuccessful 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchesterinfluenced how the NWDA planned and prioritised itsinvestments, and is recognised as the point at which NWDAsought seriously to engage with the business audience topromote the benefits of the North West. Taking on theManufacturing Advisory Service reinforced this businessfocus. The North West Science Council established in 2001was the first attempt nationally to link knowledge creation byuniversities to knowledge transfer to, by and from business.

The impact of the 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreakon rural businesses and communities in Cumbria and otherparts of the region led to the NWDA launching the innovativeRural Renaissance programme in 2002 to develop the ruraleconomy.

Regional Economic Strategy

We led the development of successive Regional EconomicStrategies (RES), to provide an agreed framework forpriorities and action. With each iteration, we sharpened ourfocus, became more evidence-based and gained greatertraction. The 2006 RES was recognised as a significantstep forward, both in the inclusive way it was developed andalso the prioritisation of regional action, with theidentification of transformational actions that would makethe biggest impact.

By this stage, the Agency was developing a clear sense ofevidence-based priorities for the region, and was seeking toensure that its own investment addressed these strategicpriorities through its corporate plans. Strong programmeand project management systems had been developed toensure that funding proposals had a strategic fit with theRES, had clear outputs, benefits and outcomes, and weresuccessfully delivered. These systems also enabled theAgency to proactively intervene in projects to re-orientatethem – business start-up support is one example of aproject that started slowly and required ongoing support toget back on track. The Agency sought to organise itselfinternally, through establishing Board sub-committee andother governance arrangements, to develop expertise andcapacity in key areas such as enterprise, climate change,tourism and Europe.

Sustainable Development

Over its lifetime, the Agency progressively raised its gameon building sustainability considerations into the heart of itsactivities and decision-making. This went far beyondsustainability appraisal of strategies, plans andprogrammes. A groundbreaking piece of work in 2003demonstrated that the environmental economy made asubstantial contribution to regional Gross Value Added(GVA) and jobs, as well as contributing to regional imageand quality of life to support wider investment. This led tothe creation of Natural Economy North West and theNewlands land regeneration and Regional Parksprogrammes to develop environment-led investment. TheAgency also sought to exercise leadership in responding tothe emerging climate change and resource use agendathrough developing the first regional climate change andsustainable consumption and production action plans.

Equality and Diversity

From its inception, the Agency has been committed tofurthering equality and diversity, both as an employer and asan investor, recognising the strong economic case ofensuring everyone has access to opportunity. This led to usdeveloping ever closer relations with the voluntary,community and faith sectors. In 2008, we brought thistogether as a Single Equality Scheme, to go beyond ourlegal obligations and make sure that equality was promotedand discrimination challenged in everything the Agency did.Internally, we improved our systems and processes andconcentrated on developing our workforce, ensuring weemployed people from the widest pool of talent. Externally,we supported our partners through training and thepromotion of best practice. We also recognised that we hadto understand more about where we work, so the SingleEquality Scheme committed us to learning more about ourregion and its demographics to help us deliver services thatmore accurately reflect the diversity of the North West. One

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aspect of this was the Women in Work Taskforce report,which improved the understanding of the gender balance inemployment in the region and provided a number ofpractical solutions for tackling the barriers to womenachieving leadership positions across all sectors in theNorth West.

Supporting Rural Areas

Our approach to rural issues also evolved substantially. The2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak highlighted thevulnerability of the rural economy, as well as reinforcing thepoint that, while farming and tourism are importantmainstays, the rural economy is much broader and thatthere are significant but subtle economic interdependenciesbetween rural and urban areas. We moved over time fromdelivering major rural programmes such as RuralRenaissance, to a more sophisticated approach of ensuringthat rural needs and opportunities were embedded withinmainstream Agency programmes covering businesssupport, skills, regeneration, climate change and the like.Project Access to deliver broadband to Cumbria and otherrural areas is a prime example. The Agencyʼs influencingrole in bringing forward innovative approaches to uplandcommunities and the contribution that the food and drinksector makes to rural economies also increased during thistime.

Developing Strong Relationships

Throughout its life, NWDA worked closely with otherregional bodies covering the public, private and thirdsectors, particularly Government Office for the North West(GONW), and the Regional Assembly, which became 4NW –the Regional Leaders Board. By 2008, the NWDA wasworking jointly with 4NW to lead the development of a newIntegrated Regional Strategy, RS2010. The impetus for thiswas the 2007 Sub-National Review of EconomicDevelopment, and the North West was the first region in theUK to work to combine economic and social, spatial(planning, housing, and transport) and environmentalimperatives in this way. Although the statutory requirementfor Regional Strategies was subsequently withdrawn by theCoalition Government, the evidence base and earlier workwas used to underpin Future North West: Our StrategicPriorities, launched in 2010.

Equally, we saw the benefit in collaborating on issuesacross the three northern regions, primarily through TheNorthern Way established in 2004. This was an importantand effective forum for developing cross-regionalapproaches on key strategic issues like transport, innovationand energy. The Northern Way provided a credible voice onpan-northern issues, an important influence on nationalgovernment and an effective coordinator of thinking, viewsand evidence across the North.

From the start, NWDA sought to work closely with localpartners, first through our Area Offices and then byestablishing Sub-Regional Partnerships (SRPs). From 2005onwards, the Agency actively encouraged the developmentof sub-regional strategies and plans that would resonatewith the RES and influence a wide range of funding streams(including the Agencyʼs) and decision-making processes atregional and national level. By 2010, NWDA wasdeveloping Joint Investment Planning – a jointly managedevidence-based approach to determine how local prioritiescould match regional objectives and agree the priority

interventions to deliver against them – with sub-regionalpartnerships and others, often based on a Multi-AreaAgreement (MAA) footprint. Similarly, the Agency has overmore than a decade significantly resourced the developmentof capacity by a wide range of partners, including within thefaith, community and voluntary sectors, enabling thedelivery of projects through these capacity-funded partners,and maximising the amount of European funding that theregion can access through matched funds.

Understanding the Evidence

We progressively developed broader and moresophisticated ways of measuring the impact of our activitiesand regional progress. When established, RDAs werecharged with improving the economic competitiveness oftheir areas. In 2002, the then government set itself a newand challenging Public Service Agreement (PSA) target togrow all regions but also to reduce the gap between them:

“Make sustainable improvements in the economicperformance of all English regions

and over the long term reduce the persistent gap in growthrates between the regions.”

Understanding the components of the GVA ʻgapʼ wasimportant to design the right policy interventions andinvestment to tackle the issue. The NWDA carefullyexplored this, largely through the independent RegionalEconomic Forecasting Panel (REFP), and identified threeequally important influences:

• labour markets performing differently; through levels ofunemployment, the number of people engaged in economicactivity, and the number of hours worked;

• different acceptable earnings in different parts of thecountry, i.e. the wage for the same job will be less in partsof the North West than in London; and

• differences in the proportion of jobs in various levels ofoccupations: for example, lower versus higher level servicejobs; and the weight of high and low productivity sectors inthe regional economy.

Given the complex and longstanding nature of the causes ofthe GVA growth rate gap, policies designed to tackle itneeded to be multi-dimensional. Thus Regional EconomicStrategies prioritised several factors which together wouldact, over time, to improve the GVA growth rate of the region.The 2006 RES, in particular, marshalled activity designed toachieve three major drivers.

• Improve productivity and grow the market.

• Grow the size and capability of the workforce.

• Create the conditions for sustainable growth and privatesector investment.

Section 6 looks at the latest data on the targets adopted forthese measures.

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Measuring Sustainable Development

As noted earlier, as sustainability considerations rose up thepolitical agenda, the NWDA increased its efforts toencourage sustainable development, with the aim ofachieving high levels of social and economic well-beingwithin environmental limits.

Since 2007, the NWDA has worked with other RDAs and theNew Economics Foundation to develop a broader suite ofmeasures beyond productivity and employment to coverenvironmental impacts, household income, social wellbeingand quality of life. The Regional Index of SustainableEconomic Well-being (R-ISEW) was developed as a basketof indicators providing a measure of how much a regionʼseconomic activity contributes to, and detracts from, well-being, and how sustainable this activity is. By monetisingsocial and environmental issues, it brought them into asingle analytical framework with economic ones, allowing usto explore trade-offs, and to assess whether economic well-being was really increasing sustainably in a given region.The most recent results (2010) show the North West asranking third in the list of nine regions, performing aboveaverage on several important components drivingcompetitive advantage: strong international trading position;high level of public expenditure; high level of volunteering;lower income inequality; low air pollution; reduced long-termenvironmental damage; and lower levels of commuting.

Timeline of key developments

Year NWDA Legacy Timeline

1999 Northwest Regional Development Agency opens for business on 1 April

RDA Act 1998

2000 • First North West Regional Economic Strategy launched in January• Funding for 20 schemes under Single Regeneration Budget• Envirolink Northwest incorporated in January 2000

2001 • NW Regional Science Council established • NWDA joins Burnley / Oldham Task Force • Regional Centre for Manufacturing Excellence established • £30m programme to address Foot and Mouth Disease business impacts• Regional land reclamation programme launched

The Agencyʼs budget for 2001/2 had increased to £292m.

While it is challenging to summarise concisely a 12-yearhistory, we hope the above paragraphs give a flavour of howthe NWDA developed over its lifetime. RDAs had an explicitremit to increase the competitiveness of their regions. Anobserver of the economic landscape of the North West in2011 would, we believe, acknowledge that this hashappened, and that our investment activity has beencatalytic and positive in its effect. As is said in theForeword, the North West is now viewed regionally,nationally and globally as a better place to live, to work, toinvest in, to study, and to visit.

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2002 • £100m regional Rural Renaissance plan launched• NWDA funding secures Jodrell Bankʼs future• Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) transfers to NWDA• £15m Science Fund launched • Transfer to NWDA of Grant for Business Investment finance product (then known as Regional SelectiveAssistance) • Manchester hosted the successful 2002 Commonwealth Games

In 2002 the NWDA undertook Englandʼs largest Compulsory Purchase Order – to regenerate numerousderelict cotton mills and other derelict buildings in Ancoats, Manchester, into a thriving business andresidential area fit for the 21st century, whilst preserving its rich cultural heritage.

2003 • Barrow Task Force established• £34M funding for National Bio-manufacturing Centre (NBC) in Speke, Liverpool• Strategic responsibility for tourism transfers to the RDAʼs: establishment of sub-regional tourist boardsand publication of Regional Tourism Strategy.• Coastal Resort Plan launched• Newlands 1 programme agreed • NWDA invests £8.8m in first phase of Mersey Waterfront Regional Park• Second Regional Strategy RES 2003 launched• Northwest Energy Council established – the first of its kind in the UK• Regional European Priorities agreed• ENWORKS appointed to deliver the NW Waste Management project

At this time NWDA employed 304 people across all activities and geographical locations during 02/03.Agency's total resources had grown to £307m for 2002-03.

2004 • Project Access developed to increase broadband access in Cumbria and North Lancashire• InfoLab 21 launched at Lancaster University• NWDA becomes lead RDA for skills development• Major Events Strategy launched• NWDA launches NW Automotive Alliance (UKʼs first regional auto cluster organisation)• University of Manchester, the UKʼs largest single site university, created by the merger of UMIST andManchester Victoria University, assisted by the NWDAʼs major investment in Project Unity.

April 2004 was NWDAʼs 5th anniversary: by then NWDA had helped to create or safeguard 132,000 jobs;created 8,006 new businesses; reclaimed nearly 3,000 hectares of Brownfield land; and levered in £1.8bnof private investment.

2005 • NWDA supports Carlisle businesses affected by floods• NWDA-funded Liverpool Waterfront arena and wider work starts • Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008 announced• £50m investment in Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus• Blackpool Masterplan developed• Transfer to NWDA of Grant for Research and Development responsibilities

Agency launches initiatives to improve the long-term sustainability of farming and develop more of theregion's market towns as enterprise hubs.

2006 • RES 2006 launched • Northwest Climate Change Action Plan launched • Northwest Composites Centre launched in Manchester marking a new era in lightweight aircraft design• NW Statement of Skills Priorities 2007-10 issued• Natural Economy NW programme launched with £3m investment• NWDA-funded Joule Centre for Energy R&D opens

In June 2006 NWDA received the highest score possible following an Independent PerformanceAssessment carried out by the National Audit Office.


2007 • Business Link Northwest launched• Rural Development Programme for England transfers to RDA management: NWDA to run NWprogramme of £75m over five years.• £23.5m portfolio of investment to implement Climate Change Action Plan initiated• Liverpoolʼs Cruise Liner terminal opened and QE2 visited• University of Cumbria opened• Construction of Liverpool Science Park commenced• Forestry Commission and NWDA invest £36m in Newlands 2 Programme• NWDA invests £11m in second phase of Mersey Waterfront Regional Park• Works begins on Burnley Campus• European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) transfers to RDA management • Britainʼs Energy Coast: A Masterplan for West Cumbria is issued

Liverpool hosted the 2007 Turner prize, the first time the prize was presented outside London. Governmentlaunches its Sub-National Review of Economic Development, starting the process of developing the NorthWestʼs Integrated Regional Strategy.

2008 • Joint Regional Economic Commission drives regional response to recession and reports weekly tocentral government• Access to £10m of working capital immediately made available, with a further £9.7m of NWDA and ERDFfunds available via the Small Loans to Business Scheme.• New High Growth Business support programme initiated.• 2008 Liverpool European Capital of Culture achieves significant popular and cultural success • NWDA establishes NW Tidal Energy Group• NWDA publishes the ʻEconomic Value of Green Infrastructureʼ report• NWDA invests in Mersey Multimodal Gateway• Innovation Vouchers scheme introduced• NW Equality and Diversity conference takes place

Project ACCESS evaluated as a success, supplying broadband internet connections across Cumbria, anarea of market failure.

2009 • £100m Northwest Urban Investment Fund (JESSICA) announced• £35m Business Start-Up programme announced• NWDA becomes lead RDA for Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC)• Blackburn and Burnley HE Campuses open• NWDA supports Cumbrian businesses affected by floods• North West Manufacturing Strategy and Action Plan launched • NWDA invests £9.5m in Manchester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) • NWDA invests in £30m package to address climate change• NWDA Board approves designation of 36 strategic regional sites• NWDA publishes Single Equality Scheme

Evaluation shows major events supported by the NWDA, including 2008 Liverpool European Capital ofCulture, and Manchesterʼs Paralympic Games, have contributed £150m to the North West economy duringthe last five years.

2010 • £185m North West Fund (JEREMIE) launched. This evergreen growth investment fund is the largest inthe UK and one of the largest of any region in Europe• Major investment in Blackpool Tower and Winter Gardens• Future North West: Our Shared Priorities, the UKʼs first integrated regional strategic framework launchedand transferred to Regional Leaders Board• UKʼs first Sustainable Consumption and Production Action Plan published • NWDA Legal Team wins the In-House Public Sector Team of the Year Award from The Lawyer publication• NW Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services Strategy launched• Atlantic Gateway Strategy launched• Social enterprises benefit from £0.5m NWDA grant, part of larger Small Loans for Business funding• Almost 250 small business owners graduated from LEAD programme • Sport Sector Strategy and Action Plan 2010-2020 published

Six months after the Cumbria floods, over 200 businesses had been offered over £1m funding. CoalitionGovernment announces far-reaching changes in economic development policy, which will lead to theclosure of NWDA in March 2012.

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Strategic Leadership &PartnershipFor almost 12 years, the NWDA sought to provide strategic leadership to ensure that the right action is taken andthe best investments made to develop a sustainable and prosperous regional economy. This has involvedworking with a wide range of private, public and voluntary sector organisations, very often investing to developcapacity and expertise in people and organisations, to agree and address the key opportunities and challengesfacing the North West.

Through leading three successive Regional EconomicStrategies, and more recently Future North West: OurShared Priorities, we developed evidence-based strategicpriorities and transformational actions to address them.This secured consensus about the key issues facing theNorth West, allied to a cohesive framework to design,deliver and monitor action. An external assessment of theimpact of RES 2006 showed that this approach catalysedactivities that would not otherwise have happened or beenprogressed as quickly.

The Agency provided strategic leadership across a wholerange of issues, priorities and places. It is impossible toprovide a complete list and may be invidious to mention justa few, but NWDA has worked across a significant range ofactivity: from developing our science and innovation offer totackling barriers to disadvantaged groups entering theworkforce; from developing our leading manufacturingsectors to assisting NW businesses to deal with economicshocks; from promoting Cumbriaʼs energy coast toregenerating Liverpoolʼs waterfront; from attractinginternational investment into the region to securing majorinternational events; from leading the UKʼs first regionalclimate change action plan to transforming EastManchester.

Effective leadership means not just establishing clear,

MediaCityUK will:

in additional net value to theNorthwest economy

creativeand relatedbusinesses

people

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ambitious yet realistic goals. Equally important is securingcommitment to effective action to deliver the outputs andoutcomes sought. Focusing on the things that canpotentially make the biggest impact is critical. The Agencyworked hard to develop and invest in transformationalprojects such as MediaCityUK capable of making a majorimpact on the regional economy. This included influencingnational-level organisations, as well as key private sectorcompanies, to make major investments in the North West.

Effective strategic leadership must be supported by a strongand pragmatic approach to partnership working. During itslifetime, NWDA has been committed to working inpartnership across the whole range of our activities, whetherlevering in private sector investment, working with sub-regions or building true engagement with communities inareas of regeneration priority. The vast majority of NWDAinvestments have been delivered by other organisations andtherefore supporting and building capacity in partners hasbeen crucial. In addition, the internal multi-disciplinarynature of the NWDA enabled programmes and projects todraw on a deep mix of skills, attempting to dispense withany “silo mentality” approach to economic development.This broad church approach to economic developmentprovided a good way of delivering real value. The NWDA invested significantly in capacity building,funding a wide range of strategic partnerships including sub-

What have we learned?

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regional partnerships, business groups and third sectorinterest groupings. The rationale for this investment was toimprove our investment decision-making and prioritisation,by expanding the involvement of knowledgeable,representative people and bodies. To take one example,the NWDA has delivered the Regional Tourism Strategythrough capacity-funded Tourist Boards. As a result, theregion has developed national recognition for its investmentin tourism development programmes, for its marketing ofdestinations, for improving the quality of life offer andattracting a prestigious array of major events, including theTurner Prize, Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008and the Paralympic World Cup in Manchester.

Similarly, the NWDA sought to maximise the economicpotential of important sectors and clusters. For example,the North West is not only the countryʼs largest food anddrink-producing region, it is also home to the UKʼs highestconcentration of food and drink manufacturing businesses.NWDAʼs work with the North West food processing industry,through Food NW, has delivered practical help to bringtogether businesses and make the most out of high-growthmarkets, support investment in training and qualitystandards to increase productivity and provide help to enternew markets, both national and overseas.

We are proud of our achievements but, as indicated earlier,this document is intended to be a vehicle for passing on ourexperience, knowledge and lessons learned. We havesought to do this by using a number of short case studies tohighlight key learning points and good practice. Some ofthese are based on highly successful investments.However, sometimes it is by not quite getting things right, ortaking the long way round to achieve an end, that the mostimportant lessons are learned.

The most important strategic leadership and partnershiplessons learned, which the Agency would wish to pass on,are:

• Strong leadership must be underpinned by a compellingand easily understood vision and strategy, as well as partnercommitment to act and invest to achieve a shared interest insuccess.

• A well managed and open engagement process is vital tosecuring buy-in to strategic objectives and developingeffective partnership working based on trust. This requiresmaturity from all partners, recognising that often there isoverwhelming benefit in committing to work alongside widerinterests to pursue collective goals rather than those ofparticular interest groups.

• Strategic leadership needs to be dynamic, responding tochanges in the regional, national and global environment.Bravery is needed in identifying and seizing opportunities,aiming high and taking calculated risks.

• Bold and mature decision-making is required,underpinned by sound evidence, to focus on those activitieswith the greatest potential impact and return on investmentand backing realisable ambition and scale.

• Many economic, social and environmental issues do notrespect political and administrative boundaries and effectivearrangements to co-ordinate and collaborate acrossboundaries are essential.

• Policy needs to further strengthen connections betweenurban and rural areas given the interdependencies betweenthem, in labour and housing markets, in supply of water andother commodities, in labour, housing and leisure markets;in the supply of water, energy and other commodities, andon questions of food security, carbon capture andsustainability.

• It is essential to understand the art of the possible, andmanage expectations of partners by communicating clearlywhat can and cannot be done within the existing regulatoryand financial framework. Early and informedcommunication keeps trust in place and managesexpectations.

• Ownership and formal accountability for delivery ofstrategic priorities must be clearly identified, to ensuregenuine traction leading to successful outcomes. It isessential that strategic leaders “walk the walk as well as talkthe talk” in following through on the commitments they havemade, and not be side-tracked into other areas.

jobs

supported

cost savings

• Long-term investment in developing the capacity andcapability of partnerships is essential to build the expertise,knowledge and experience to underpin effective delivery. Amulti-agency approach, including creating dedicated teams,can bring together diverse skill sets, knowledge andnetworks to improve collaborative working, as well asallowing economies of scale and opportunities forspecialisation.

• A broad partnership of stakeholders is often vital at thestart of a new and emerging programme: however, overtime, it is important to break the issues down and revisegovernance arrangements accordingly.

• Go with the best ideas, even if they were not “inventedhere”.

• Care should be taken at the outset to ensure thatappropriate metrics are in place, or developed quickly, toenable outcomes to be evaluated and compared fully.

Key learning points:

•A strong shared long-term vision and strategy is critical toprovide a framework within which investment and jointworking can take place. Effective partnership workingneeds to be based on a shared interest in success, withsenior level representatives able to commit theirorganisations to effective action to support shared goals, aswell as strong personal relationships.

• The major initial investment in land purchase levered infurther private and public sector investment to allow thecreation of a large-scale business science park. In a 2008evaluation by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the initialinvestment by the Agency of £675,000 was found to havegenerated by then 5.1 times more net revenue (i.e. £3.47m),and 33 full-time jobs (i.e. a cost per job of around £20,000).The evaluation made the key point that a long-termtimescale is needed to realise the potential of Daresburyand that job growth on the site is expected to reach 10,000over 10 years.

• Managing the project provided complex challenges for theNWDA. In the early days, the Agency was competent in thedelivery of physical assets, but needed to recruit the rightpeople to contribute to the business development aspectsnecessary for success. Over time, the Agency needed tostrengthen its internal governance and clarify lines ofresponsibility, because this was a complex project requiringdifferently skilled individuals, part of different internal teams,to work together.

• Ambition and scale, as well as focusing on what theregion is really good at, is critical in pursuing opportunitieson a global stage – the corollary is to be honest inrecognising where the region cannot realistically hope tocompete.

Looking to the future:

The Daresbury Campus is a 600-acre development site forinternational calibre science facilities. It has a 20 yearbusiness vision to create approaching 15,000 jobs, withfacilities for both major corporate research and 300-400SMEs. A joint venture company has been formed withcommercial partner, Langtree, to manage the site. NWDAʼsassets on the Campus will be transferred to Science andTechnology Facilities Council, which will, with HaltonBorough Council, hold the public sector interest.

CASE STUDY: Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus

Following the loss of the major £600m ʻnext generation light sourceʼ project from Daresbury in 1999, the North Westfaced a serious threat to future investment in its science and innovation capability as well as the closure of theDaresbury site. Through a comprehensive and proactive response, led by the Agency working closely with local andnational partners, a number of initiatives have been undertaken to re-position Daresbury Science and InnovationCampus as a world-leading science and innovation hub.

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• Aim high – the programme set out to create anoutstanding regional park that will become a local, nationaland internationally renowned location.

• Create a strategic vision with a clear selling point. TheʻWindows on the Waterfrontʼ strategy clearly outlined theareas of focus for investment and action, directing partnersto the key spatial priorities and the roles they needed to play.

• Manage the partnership of local stakeholders through auniting shared vision – Mersey Waterfront sought to becomethe ʻleading edgeʼ of the City Region. A series of high valueprojects emerged, which would not have happened withoutthe collective banner and support of the Regional Park.

• Having a broad partnership ensured universal support forthe waterfront from six local authorities, whilst the views oflocal people were at the heart of the programme throughʻPeopleʼs Panelsʼ engaged to critique and challenge projectideas.

• Learning from international case studies accelerated theprogramme delivery. Making key linkages with the EmscherPark in Germany and using its 20 years of experienceshortened the time to develop the approach and catalyseideas into action.


Through strategic leadership, funding support and buildingrelationships, a major impact is being made on the MerseyWaterfrontʼs economic, ecological, cultural and aestheticvalue. This work will create a long-term legacy, transformingand reconnecting those areas that have been overlooked.

Commencing in 2003, this was the first coherent effort to capitalise on the coastal and waterfront assets of the wholeof Merseyside. It sought to harness waterfront assets in a more coordinated and strategic way, to drive economicgrowth across the Liverpool city region. NWDA investment of £20m led to the creation of a partnership-ledenvironmental and economic development programme totalling £91m. The Mersey Waterfront programme has had acatalytic effect in securing further large-scale regeneration particularly within Liverpoolʼs World Heritage Site,including the restored Canal Link through to the Albert Dock, and the Museum of Liverpool due to open in 2011.

CASE STUDY: Mersey Waterfront

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jobs


• Developing capacity and capability to allow sectors tocompete internationally requires a long term programmebased on global standards, with a consistent vision andstrategy underpinned by robust evidence and private sectorbuy-in.

• Using the expertise of manufacturers to train and mentortheir supply companies provided an excellent means ofbuilding capacity in the latter from which all benefit.

• Improving capacity and capability is an essential step toimproving collaborative activity and risk sharing.

CASE STUDY: The North West Aerospace Sector

The region has the largest aerospace sector in the UK, with two world-class advanced manufacturing companies –BAE Systems and Rolls Royce, plus Airbus just over the border in North Wales, as well as associated supply chains.Through the NW Aerospace Alliance, the NWDA has sought to develop the capability of aerospace supply companiesbased in the region to compete for large-scale global contracts through an aerospace supply chain developmentprogramme. This has enabled 38 companies to develop manufacturing capability to world-class levels, as well ascollaborating effectively to bid for work for supply contracts for global companies.


The first phase of the programme has been up and runningsince 2007, with the second phase (ASCE2) moving intoimplementation. ASCE2 (which has funding secured untilDecember 2013) aims to secure a competitive base of world-class companies in the North West aerospace sector, bydriving forward five priorities – skills provision, innovation,shared services, commodity groups and extendedenterprise. It is expected to help the North West aerospacesupply chain compete in a global industry, which will help inwinning valuable contracts with the main manufacturers andopen up new markets such as autonomous systems.

CASE STUDY: Britainʼs Energy Coast

West Cumbriaʼs historic economic performance has been driven by the dominance of the nuclear industry and therestructuring of older manufacturing industries such as steel and shipbuilding. Between 2000 and 2005,manufacturing declined by 28% and public administration by 13%, with the growth focus on business services andtourism-related activities. The Agency, working closely with GONW, supported local partners to work alongsidenational government to develop opportunities around the delivery of critical elements of emerging national strategiesto address both climate change and energy security. Following a Memorandum of Agreement between theGovernment and Cumbrian partners in 2005, a Masterplan was produced setting out how West Cumbria could betransformed by developing its nuclear and renewable energy offer, providing net growth to the UK economy.


• The importance of a strong and ambitious long term visionand buy-in from local, regional and national partners,particularly coordinated support from national government onkey interventions required by various governmentdepartments.

• Investing in local capacity and capability to undertake thedetailed assessment and planning to underpin thedevelopment of the Masterplan was of critical importance inensuring the quality of the final product.

• The commitment of nuclear industry partners to align theirfunding to link in with other funding sources, and workcollaboratively to meet an agreed set of objectives, wascritical.

• A stronger focus on the spatial priorities emerging from thestrategic Masterplan would have been useful.

• Developing the specific and highly recognisable “BritainʼsEnergy Coast” trade name provided an important focal pointin committing the concept to the wider public and privatesector.


The Masterplan is a key reference document in guidingfuture prioritisation of investment and activity. Further work isneeded to identify the actions/projects required to deliver theagreed outcomes.


• Clear and decisive leadership in responding to emergingnational priorities is critical.

• A broad partnership of stakeholders is vital at the start of anew and emerging programme: however, over time, it isimportant to break the issues down and revise governancearrangements accordingly.

• For emerging new areas of work, there are significantadvantages in working collaboratively, including economiesof scale in research and evidence, the ability to share bestpractice and the opportunity for partners to focus on differingpriorities whilst remaining aware of the entirety of theprogramme.

• Communication and engagement is critical to deliveringthe scale of cultural change needed: work at the regionallevel needs to complement national activity and beconsistent with that of local organisations.

• The creation of a dedicated multi-agency team to deliverthe plan assisted significantly, through bringing togetherdifferent skills, networks, and building a consultative andopen approach by all stakeholders.

• Managing large, interconnected change programmes,such as the CCAP, is complex and challenges existingperformance management systems. Care should be taken atthe outset to ensure that appropriate metrics are in place, ordeveloped quickly, to enable all outcomes to be evaluatedand compared fully.


The profile of climate change in the region has beensignificantly raised through the CCAP and the Agencyʼsinvolvement, and the opportunities in moving to a low carboneconomy have been recognised at local level. During theremainder of its life, the Agency will seek to ensure that thelegacy from the four years of the CCAP is maintained andopportunities for cross border collaboration are explored.

CASE STUDY: The Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP)

Climate change is one of the most significant issues impacting on the prosperity of our businesses and communities.The region will need to decouple growth in the economy from growth in carbon emissions to achieve our share of thenational target of 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050, adapt to unavoidable climate change from historicalemissions, and seize the £30bn opportunity for jobs and growth from the new low carbon economy. The North Westbecame the first region to develop a holistic CCAP in 2006, led by the NWDA with partners from the private and publicsectors. Supported by the multi-agency Climate Change Unit, the CCAP has transformed activity across the region,from a ʻnice to doʼ to a ʻmust doʼ. Since 2006 the CCAP has engaged over 250,000 householders, businesses andorganisations; leveraged over £100m in low carbon investment, and was evaluated to have created almost 500 jobsand over £40m of additional GVA.

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• The importance of targeted investment in key industrialclusters and sectors, including support for the nuclearindustry in the region and capacity funding for industry-focused and cluster organisations, such as NW AerospaceAlliance, Bionow and Chemicals NW.

• Just how much of a premium businesses place on rapidand effective reaction to economic crises and shocks,particularly in providing immediate access to finance:examples include combating the effects of the post-2008recession; the successive floods in Cumbria; and Foot andMouth disease affecting rural economies and communities in2001.

• The value of investing in skills programmes designed toincrease the availability of the right workforce for businessgrowth.

• Maximising the business opportunities from major events,for example NWDAʼs marketing and organisational workaround the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002developed the regionʼs confidence and profile, laying thegroundwork for subsequent developments and investmentincluding MediaCityUK. Similar activity by NWDA supported

CASE STUDY: Working in Partnership with Business

Many business representative organisations, including the NW Business Leadership Team, Chambers of Commerce,Confederation of British Industry, Institute of Directors, Private Sector Partners, the Federation of Small Businessesand the Engineering Employers Federation, have worked closely with NWDA over its lifetime. Strong relationshipswere vital to the NWDA obtaining informed business advice and views on issues and priorities across the wide rangeof Agency activities, as well as informing the development and delivery of Regional Economic Strategies.


• The initial Agency investment, allied to an ambitious visionand statement of intent, catalysed action to develop theproject. Seeing the big picture, as well as the scale of whatcan be achieved, secured investment to develop a world-class university.

• Significant economic benefits can be realised through thepromotion of a world-class university – in relation toenhancing GVA levels, competitiveness, overall image andperception within the national and global economies. Fromevaluation evidence, it is clear that Project Unity gave asignificant boost to inward investment in the North-West, aswell as promoting further economic benefits such asincreased visitors and the development of an innovative newbrand for the region as a research and science-basedeconomy.

CASE STUDY: Project Unity

Project Unityʼs driving objective was the creation of a world class, leading research intensive university recognisednationally and internationally amongst the top tier of university institutions. The University of Manchester is now theUKʼs largest university, rated third in “research power” behind Oxford and Cambridge and has moved rapidly up theinternational scale. Working with HEFCE in 2004, the Agency made a major £34m investment to support the merger ofthree Manchester universities. In addition, the Agency made a total investment of £100m over the last six years − thelargest investment by any RDA into any university in the UK. The Agency was able to influence and ensure that theNorth West secured a powerhouse for world class academic research, maximising regional economic impact withimproved linkages with the regionʼs businesses and growth sectors.

• Recognise impact – the scale of Project Unity had animpact reaching far wider than simply within the physicalboundary of the new University. Local people havebenefitted through the creation of employment opportunitiesand from the enhancements to the local built environmentthat Project Unity has delivered through its Estates StrategyProgramme, creating a material uplift in the quality of thephysical environment with potential knock-on effects onresidential property values and having a catalytic effect onthe regeneration of the Oxford Road corridor.

• Once in a lifetime opportunities must be seized andmanaged risks taken to make the biggest potential impact onthe regional economy. Recognising this and having theconfidence to back these projects in a substantial way iscritical.

Looking to the future:Manchester has now moved into the top 40 of the WorldʼsUniversities. It aims to be in the top 25 by 2015.

Liverpool European Capital of Culture in 2008 and assistedexploitation of the economic benefit of that award.


As the new economic development landscape emerges, itwill be important to ensure that the learning from strong andeffective relationships with private sector representativebodies is passed on.

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generated


• The importance of taking a strategic focus on how theskills profile of the workforce determines the ability of theeconomy to grow and firms to succeed, and embeddingskills within plans for economic growth and development.

• Major capital investments to fill gaps around the region inthe provision of higher education, and a need for investmentin the post-16 learning and skills infrastructure is importantbut also needs to be reinforced with programmes to changethe culture of learning.

• Supporting colleges and other skills providers to becomemore responsive to employers, developing programmes(including the award-winning Higher Level Skills Partnership)and capacity building higher education colleges to respondto employer demands.

• Recognising the regional lag in leadership skills andcapacity led to investment in a Leadership and ManagementProgramme which targeted over 9,000 individuals in theregion. Developing the leadership and management skills ofindividuals significantly impacts on the confidence,performance and growth of businesses.

• Integrating skills delivery and employment opportunitiesinto the planning for physical developments: for example,One Central Park in Manchester was located where it coulddeliver most opportunity for local employment.


The work led by the Agency on skills will provide animportant foundation for future Local Enterprise Partnershipactivity in this area, including plans to continue theLeadership and Management Programme. As the CoalitionGovernment looks to the future, with businesses andindividuals contributing more to the provision of skills, wecan be assured that the work we have undertaken withpartners across the Region will leave a legacy of learningand good practice, for successor bodies to build upon.

CASE STUDY: Regional Skills Investment

Evidence illustrated clearly the significance of skills shortages for its key industries. The 2006 Regional EconomicStrategy recognised that inadequate skills were a major constraint on economic growth, particularly a relatively poorlyqualified existing workforce, and the numbers of young people leaving school with little or no qualifications. NWDAprioritised a set of investments designed to improve the availability of skills to companies located and locating here; toenable North West people to access employment in high productivity sectors; and to help businesses understand thevalue of investing in their workforce, releasing the potential for growth. Leading the North West Regional Skills &Employment Board to bring key stakeholders together helped make best use of public investment and avoidduplication.

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• Effective leadership during and after crises necessitatesacting quickly to tackle short-term recovery issues , throughbusiness advice and support and easily accessible ʻfast-trackedʼ funding, to provide a sure footing from which longer-term recovery can be planned confidently.

• Strong leadership secured the buy-in and commitment of arange of stakeholders, catalysing the creation of sub-regional rural partnerships. Local delegation was vital foreffective delivery and an essential part of improving thecapacity of rural areas to respond to new investment. TheNW Rural Strategy Group provided strategic direction andimproved leadership capacity across the rural North West.

• Rural areas contribute significantly to the economic outputof local areas and the region as a whole: investment ineconomic growth cannot ignore the impact that ruralbusinesses and communities have on the overall characterof an area.

• It is essential to make strong links between specific ruralprogrammes and other major investments that impact onrural communities such as the £20m ʻProject AccessʼCumbria Broadband Network and the Newlands landreclamation initiative.

• In the longer term, “mainstreaming” the rural agenda sothat rural needs and opportunities were dealt with by non-rural specific general policies and programmes, for examplecovering skills, housing, transport, education and health wasessential to the development of the regionʼs rural areas.


The national programme RDPE (Rural DevelopmentProgramme for England) will continue under themanagement of Defra, with transfer taking place in July2011. However, it is not clear what mechanisms will deliverwider stakeholder involvement, which was a key learningpoint from our involvement in successful rural projects in thelast decade. Growth will need to be generated in ways whichrecognise that communities, the environment and theeconomy must work in an integrated, mutually-supportiveand ultimately, sustainable way if rural areas are to retaintheir character, their communities, and their environmentalquality.

CASE STUDY: Rural Renaissance

Following the 2001 Foot and Mouth outbreak, which had major impacts in Cumbria and parts of Cheshire andLancashire, the Agency led the development of a £100m programme to support the recovery and growth of the ruraleconomies of the North West. Rural Renaissance was developed by a region-wide partnership and marshalled a rangeof key investments into key food sectors, improving the rural tourism offer, market towns, rural skills and modernisingfarming. This investment resulted in 9,000 jobs safeguarded or created; 1,800 businesses created; 240,000 m2 of newbusiness floor space created; and 17,000 businesses assisted to develop supply chains and enter new markets.

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• Stakeholder engagement – sub-regions are very different,as was reflected by SRPs in their establishment, make-upand roles. A consistently critical issue was the extent towhich local authority partners bought into the role andfunction of SRPs. This varied from sub-region to sub-regionbut those SRPs which built on existing sub-regionalarrangements generally had the greatest support from localauthorities. Those perceived as NWDA constructs, were lesswell received and had more difficulty in establishing theircredibility, particularly amongst local authority partners andalso sometimes within the private sector.

• Intelligence/evidence base – this proved to be a majorstrength of SRPs. The development of a detailedunderstanding of sub-regional economies, underpinned by arobust evidence base, provided a strong foundation foridentifying sub-regional opportunities and weaknesses andagreeing strategic priorities.

• Strategic leadership – notwithstanding some initialscepticism from local authorities about their value, SRPsexercised their strategic leadership function ever moreeffectively over time. SRPs did help to better define strategicpriorities and provide an effective link between nationalGovernment, NWDA and sub-regional partners on strategiceconomic development matters.

• Planning/prioritisation – supported by the development ofstrategic economic intelligence and robust evidence bases,SRPs were generally able to produce strategic andprioritised sub-regional economic strategies and plans andsupported sub-regional dialogue on related strategicpriorities and other sectoral issues. There was some conflictand uncertainty about the divide between SRPsʼ strategicand delivery roles with a consensus emerging that SRPsshould focus on strategic issues rather than delivery. Somepartners also wished to protect direct relationships with theAgency and other organisations. Development of an MOUwith clear objectives relevant to all partners (not just funders)may help avoid this.


The advent of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and thedevelopment in the North West of sub-regionally basedproposals both reinforces and builds upon the SRPapproach.

CASE STUDY: Sub-Regional Economic Partnerships

The NWDA recognised early in its life that sub-regional engagement was essential to develop and deliver policies andactivity which supported achievement of regional objectives consistent with local need and opportunity. The Agencyinitially established sub-regional Area Offices to lead on this approach, but then encouraged the establishment ofpublic and private sector Sub-Regional Partnerships (SRPs). SRPs led on the production of prioritised sub-regionalstrategies and plans to support RES objectives. SRPs were also intended to provide a strong, coordinated andcoherent link between local, sub-regional, regional and national levels in the development and delivery of economicdevelopment policy and initiatives, working closely with and supporting NWDA.


• Intensive and continuing one-to-one support to businessesis essential to maximise the identification of resourceefficiency opportunities and to implement them effectively.

• ʻOne to manyʼ support is not effective: awareness raisingalone does not lead to behavioural change, particularly inSMEs, due to a complex set of market failures as well aslack of capacity and tipping points for action.

• The use of local advisers, familiar with local companiesand sectors and economic conditions, is critical.

• By combining support for energy and resource efficiency, itis possible to work with smaller companies and still achievethe desired return on investment, which would not bepossible if these issues were separated.

• A strong focus on businesses with high potentialenvironmental impact is a better approach than looking atparticular sectors, which limits the customer base.

• The agenda is not owned by a single group ofstakeholders, so strong working relationships with localauthorities and other business support providers are criticalto ensure referrals and prevention of duplication/reinvention.


Support to businesses on environmental risk and resourceefficiency continues to be important, as a fundamentalbuilding block of the low carbon economy, and will, in future,need to be considered by LEPs alongside other localeconomic priorities. The Economic Solutions Group tookover ownership of ENWORKS in April 2011.

CASE STUDY: ENWORKS

The award-winning ENWORKS service was established in 2001 to streamline the provision of advice to North Westbusinesses on environmental matters. This included improving skills and knowledge on environmental management,seeking to decouple environmental degradation from economic growth and making environmental practice profitable.As understanding of the risks posed by climate change, resource scarcity and security of supply continued to grow,the services offered by ENWORKS developed to ensure their continued relevance to business with a clear focus onmeasurable outcomes. More than 10,000 North West businesses have been supported, and independent evaluationshave shown that ENWORKS has helped businesses generate £122m of cost savings each year, reducing carbonemissions by 681,000 tonnes, saving 4.7m tonnes of water and diverting 388,000 tonnes from landfill.

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Strategic leadership on economic development andregeneration will be driven primarily by Local EnterprisePartnerships in future. Future North West: Our SharedPriorities is an evidence-based statement of strategicpriorities for the region over the next 20 years. Itsdevelopment was led by 4NW and NWDA, supported bythe five sub-regions and a wide range of private, publicand private sector partners. The aim was to promotesustainable and mutually reinforcing economic growthfrom which all parts of the region can benefit. Withoutsuch agreed high-level strategic priorities, competingregional interests and priorities could stifle growth andrestrict progress throughout the region.

Given the changes in the sub-national economicdevelopment landscape, the NWDA stood down from thisprocess at the end of 2010, handing Future North West tothe Regional Leaders Board to take forward.

Future North West identifies key issues which cross local orsub-regional boundaries and where a collaborative approachis needed or where action in one area can benefit others. Assuch, it can help inform and steer the new LEP-based policyand institutional landscape on the key challenges andopportunities facing the North West over the next 20 yearswhich it makes sense to tackle across local areas. Facedwith competition from across the UK for scarce resources, itwill be a great advantage to have a set of priorities forinvestment across the North West that all can agree uponand work collaboratively to address.

Particular focus will need to be given to the 12 “Big TicketIssues” identified in Future North West as critical toachieving aspirations to develop a world-class sustainableeconomy, attractive to private investors and with an excellentquality of life. They are:

1. Develop the enterprise capabilities of our people througheducation and skills.

2. Develop our world-leading advanced manufacturing,biomedical and digital and creative industries.

3. Develop our world-class research, science and innovationcapability, particularly at Daresbury.

4. Develop our low carbon energy offer, especially in nuclearand marine renewables, for example through the EnergyCoast initiative.

5. Develop Next Generation Access digital connectivity.

6. Improve rail connectivity across the North West and tackletransport pinch points, especially the Northern Hub andsecuring High Speed Rail access.

7. Improve international connectivity via Manchester Airportand Liverpool Superport.

8. Reduce levels of ill-health, health inequalities, poverty andworklessness.

9. Increase the number, and quality, of private and thirdsector jobs and social enterprises.

10. Develop our sport, culture and quality of place offer,based on our world-famous places, heritage andenvironmental assets, particularly Manchester, Liverpool,Chester and the Lake District.

11. Enhance our natural environment and resolve emergingpinch points in our critical (utilities) and green infrastructure.

12. Ensure high-quality, energy efficient and affordablehousing in the right locations.

In many respects, the need for all areas and interests tocollaborate on the “Big Ticket Issues” and underpinningthematic and spatial priorities set out in Future North West isas strong in the new sub-national economic developmentpolicy environment as it ever was. Future North Westderives its authority not from being a statutory plan but as anevidence-based, stakeholder-backed statement of the mostimportant priorities for the North West on which local areascan collaborate for mutual benefit. As such, the Agencybelieves it should carry substantial weight in influencingfuture strategic choices and decisions.

Moving Forward

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Securing InvestmentThe Agency has worked tirelessly to secure private and public investment to grow the regional economy. Thisincluded obtaining match funding of Agency money for specific projects, securing European funding, financingessential transport and other infrastructure and securing direct investment by overseas companies. The NWDA’sknowledge of the North West economy, and what drives economic growth, enabled the Agency to identify andpursue opportunities to secure carefully targeted investment where it could make the biggest impact.Independent evaluation showed that NWDA investment levered in £5.20 for each £1 spent.1

Working alongside local authorities, urban regenerationcompanies and sub-regional economic partnerships, theAgency was able to encourage investment to regenerateareas and places facing substantial socio-economicchallenges: from East Manchester to Barrow and WestCumbria; from Liverpool Waterfront to Pennine Lancashire;and from Blackpool to Salford Quays. Places across theNorth West have successfully revitalised themselves, usingAgency funding alongside other finance to secure targetedinvestment to create and take advantage of newopportunities. For instance, at the interim evaluation stage,the Ancoats area of Manchester had levered in £320m ofprivate sector investment based upon £70m of NWDAinvestment.

Over the past 12 years, the NWDA and its partners haveexperienced how difficult securing major investments can be,and how organisations must be prepared for a sustainedmedium to long-term effort to yield results. The North Westof England is the only region in the EU to have launchedboth a JESSICA and a JEREMIE fund, utilising ERDFfunding of almost £300m. This is a significant legacy for theregion, both funds being ʻevergreenʼ or reinvestment

vehicles that will move government assistance away fromgrants towards a repayable investment that can fund futureprojects. Both projects took two-three years of intensivework, requiring deep expertise, working within immenselycomplex regulations, to gain HMRC approval, establishapproval from the European Investment Bank, and obtainbridging loans to secure ERDF funding.

Other examples of activities to stimulate and encourageprivate investment include targeted support in the mostdisadvantaged areas, which has been provided through theGrant for Business Investment (GBI) scheme. Designed tosupport sustainable investment and job creation, the Agencydelivered some £42m of grant funds securing £348m ofprivate sector led investment between 2004 and 2010,creating or safeguarding more than 11,000 jobs.

Another key challenge for policy makers and economicdevelopment practitioners has been to shape a strongeconomic case for investment into environmentalimprovements. 'Green' issues might be very attractive, it'soften argued, but where are the economic benefits? Whatdifference will they make to jobs, health and the economic

1PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2008: RDA average leverage £4.10.

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strength of areas struggling with deprivation and socialproblems? Research funded by NWDA and commissionedvia Natural Economy Northwest2 for the first time put arobust economic benefit case for green infrastructure's rolein economic prosperity and stability, with a direct grossvalue added (GVA) calculated at £2.6bn, supporting109,000 jobs in environmental and related fields.

The NWDA has dedicated significant resources to attractingmobile investments (i.e. investments where the companywas choosing between several locations in the world) to theregion. As a result of intensive work on both inwardinvestment (with companies not yet in the region toencourage a first investment) and investor development(with companies already in the region to encourage re-investment) a number of major international companiessuch as the Bank of New York, Quinn Glass and Maerskchose the North West to locate significant projects, andcompanies such as Jaguar Landrover, Westinghouse andWaters chose the region for major reinvestments.

Over the Agencyʼs lifetime, over 900 investment projectsfrom companies with HQs overseas have been secured,creating/safeguarding over 85,000 jobs, making the regionthe number one in the UK for attracting foreign directinvestment outside of London and the South East. We havelearned that it is the quality of specialised knowledge aboutsectors, and their specific needs and opportunities, which iscritical to underpin successful inward investment activity.Operating these two activities in silos, or by differentorganisations, will be less successful compared to whereinvestment discussions are properly informed by deepsector and cluster knowledge.


The most important learning points that the Agency wouldwish to pass on, which are amplified in the case studiesbelow, are:

• The importance of an evidence-led vision and strategy inproviding a long term, secure framework to encourageprivate investment cannot be overstated.

• Upfront public sector investment in site assembly,infrastructure – physical and sectoral – and local capacity isessential to secure private sector investment further downthe line.

• A long-term and coordinated approach by partners,including dedicated teams to manage activity, reaps majordividends.

• The attractiveness of the North West as a place forinternational investment should not be understated, butrequires a sustained, proactive effort to raise the regionʼsprofile and market it to potential investors.

• Investing in green infrastructure, including remediatingbrownfield land, can produce multiple benefits – economic,environmental and social – which improve the attractivenessof places to live and invest in. Green infrastructure andenvironmental improvement programmes such as Newlandscan be crucial to making places work and achieving realregeneration.

• Focusing on genuinely strategic sites ensures thatresources, capacity and investment are directed towards themost attractive, viable and sustainable locations.

• Paying attention to good branding, such as MediaCityUK,is critical to driving successful initiatives that signal theirscale and importance to the marketplace.

• Good communication and transparency with potentialinvestors, about the requirements necessary to obtain publicgrants, is necessary to ensure these obligations are factoredinto business timescales.

• Investing in the innovation and research capacity of theNorth West can improve the regionʼs competitive position inattracting high quality national and international investment.

• Good international relations are important to secureinvestment for the region, to supplement leads secured fromnational bodies such as UKTI. But it is also essential toencourage investment by existing businesses – the majorityof investment comes from companies that have alreadymade a commitment to the UK.

• Financial brokering services have an important role insupporting businesses to become investment-ready andselect the most appropriate financial products.

• Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs) can be a veryuseful tool in securing land for sites but are best used as alast resort. Consideration must be given to making availablesufficient resource to manage the CPO process.

• Great care is needed with “overage” clauses imposed onthe public sector. If at all possible, such clauses should beavoided. If an overage clause is unavoidable, theagreement should include a mutually agreed and binding“arbitration” procedure to be applied if there is subsequentdisagreement or challenge when the site is sold on.

• Care is needed in establishing area-based investmentframeworks for European programmes. They can bevaluable in guiding applicants on the key activities to beinvested in, but need to be reviewed and updated to avoidbecoming over-restrictive.

2See www.naturaleconomynorthwest.co.uk/green+infrastructure.php

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CASE STUDY: MediaCityUK

In 2004, a major opportunity emerged to assist the BBC with its decision to relocate some of its activities outsideLondon. Salford successfully bid for this, based on a vision for a new century city - MediaCityUK - where the presenceof BBC would attract a host of other technology and media companies. The Agency worked closely with the BBC,helping to broker site selection and manage relationships, liaising with Peel Media (the site owner) and other publicsector partners, acting as mediator between developer, local authorities and the BBC at key points to ensure therelocation was agreed and actually materialised. Since 2006, MediaCityUK has been a significant investment for NWDA(£45m), ensuring that both the physical environment and the support offered to businesses help position the venturesuccessfully as a global focus of innovation in the digital and creative Industries.


• MediaCityUK used the BBC move as the opportunity todevelop real global scale and reach for the digital andcreative sector, driving growth in employment and GVA.

• Branding has been critical to signal the scale and ambitionof the initiative.

• Benefits have been achieved by embedding public andprivate sector partnerships. At the outset, all partnersentered a Strategic Framework Agreement which identifiedaims and objectives and how they might be realised. Aprogramme of activities was agreed and delivered via astructured approach targeting the business sector, peopleand communities and infrastructure requirements.

• Sector development expertise focused on markets inwhich the North West has global potential, including IPTV,digital marketing and computer games. The emphasis hasbeen to improve the resilience and skills base across thewhole supply chain for these activities as the basis of aproposition to attract new investment both from internationalcorporates and innovative small to medium-sizedbusinesses.

• In a sector where rapid adoption of new technology byboth producers and users brings about continuing disruptionto and reinvention of markets, the public sector cannot hopeto be responsive enough to determine all the measuresrequired to support the creation and growth of newbusinesses. The sector strategy therefore focused onremoving the barriers to, and reducing the costs of,accessing and developing talent, technology and workingcapital, particularly for SMEs, and on engaging partners fromindustry and academia to offer specific innovation andcommercialisation support.

• The MediaCityUK Strategic Framework Agreement wasinnovative in that it created a shared commitment tosupporting economic inclusion in deprived communities ofSalford and beyond, delivering a diverse employee base,and opening up the doors to new talent in the regional digitaland creative industries workforce.

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Phase 1 of MediaCityUK is a 37 acre site, with the BBC andUniversity of Salford as its anchor tenants. It will nowencompass the relocation of ITV and the creation of the newCoronation Street set on a site in Trafford next to theImperial War Museum, connected to MediaCityUK by a newiconic pedestrian bridge funded by NWDA. Phase 1 ofMediaCityUK will attract over 1,000 businesses and create15,500 jobs by 2015. Peel Media has invested more than£700m in development to date, and the site offers potentialto expand to 200 acres in future, a substantial legacy for theNorth West.

CASE STUDY: Newlands

Launched in the summer of 2003, Newlands was a unique NWDA and Forestry Commission initiative to reclaim andregenerate large areas of brownfield land, working in partnership to make a real difference to local economies,communities and environments.

Newlands helped to make the North West an even more attractive place for investment, developing projects basedaround key gateways as well as close to major cities and conurbations. Newlands regenerated housing areas andplaces, bringing back to life abandoned, contaminated sites including tips and disused coal pits. It also highlighted thedifficulties which arise from past decisions to locate landfill sites too close to housing developments.


• Newlands has highlighted the value of investing in theenvironment to secure socio-economic benefits, providingthe foundation for the strong case now being made forinvestment in green infrastructure to deliver multiple benefitsincluding combating climate change and enabling futuregrowth.

• An evidence-based approach to site selection, the PublicBenefit Recording System, enabled sites to respond to localeconomic and social needs, tackling some of the worst areasof neglected land and transforming them into thriving,durable, community woodlands.

• A long-term, coordinated approach allowed the planning,assembly and delivery of sites to be realised through anagreed seven year secured programme of funding. Thisallowed a dedicated team to be created to manage theportfolio of activity, so ensuring that lessons learned on onesite were transferred to the next.

CASE STUDY: Bionow

Bionow was funded by the NWDA to promote the North West's major strengths and capabilities in the biotechnology,pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Development work led by Bionow has secured substantial increases in GVA,jobs and foreign direct investment for the region. Over the past seven years, the regional biomedical cluster has grownby 66% in terms of numbers of companies, 34% in terms of employment (now around 26,000 in total) and over 19%growth in GVA.


• Establishing an evidence-led vision and strategy – andsticking with it – is essential to provide a long termsustainable framework to secure private sector investment.

• Investing in the national standard infrastructure required(buildings, laboratories, access to finance etc.) to supportbio-medical research is an important prerequisite forencouraging global businesses to invest in the North West.

• Sector organisations can play a valuable role in raising theprofile at home and abroad of the assets and opportunities inthe North West and add significant value to the regionʼssector proposition for potential foreign direct investment.

• Employing commercial development managers in keyresearch establishments to boost capacity, increasecommercial awareness and forge stronger links with theprivate sector can reap dividends.

• Partners combined their key assets to create a jointapproach to tackle the problems: NWDA provided leadershipand funding security which has been matched by ForestryCommission expertise, experience and its ability to own andmanage land assets over the long term.


Newlandʼs flagship project can be found just off the M6 atPreston, where the Brockholes Woodland and WetlandReserve has been created to generate economic value,provide jobs and manage a nature reserve of over 100hectares through the Lancashire Wildlife Trust. It isfocussed on the countryʼs first ʻBREEAM Outstandingʼ ratedeco-visitor centre, which will provide revenue streams tomanage the reserve in the future, leaving a legacy of valueand assets in local ownership.


Bionow is seeking to transform into a company limited byguarantee, allowing the organisation to ensure the continuedgrowth and development of the biomedical community basedon excellence, and enabling the North West of England tocontinue to be among Europe's top 10 biomedical locations.The recent $200 million investment by the Bill and MelindaGates Foundation into the Liverpool School of TropicalMedicine to fund vital globally-important research intomalaria, offers serious encouragement.

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CASE STUDY: Leveraging Investment into Place-Making

Land assembly and regeneration have improved investment prospects in the North West. The burden of risk has beenshared and reduced by NWDA involvement, bringing confidence to invest in areas experiencing market failure. TheNWDA has successfully remediated contaminated land and consolidated small plots with disparate ownership intocommercially viable sites. The success of developments has been shared with both the private and public sectorgaining from the uplift in land values. To give two examples:

a. One Central Park is a strategic site to the north east ofManchester city centre, within an urban area of employmentand regeneration need. The NWDA worked with New EastManchester URC, Manchester City Council and the Homesand Communities Agency to assemble a single site from thevarious private ownerships through the Agencyʼs compulsorypurchase powers and develop a masterplan. Followingdecontamination and demolition works, the site wastransformed into a high quality business park in partnershipwith developer ASK:Goodman and has so far attractedFujitsu, Greater Manchester Police, British Cycling, NHS,together with numerous small businesses within the OneCentral Park incubator centre. A new transport hub includinga Metrolink tram station has been built in Central Park,improving its sustainability and attractiveness to privatesector investors.

b. Mersey Multi-Modal Gateway (3MG) is a large masterplanfor a logistics site near Ditton in Widnes. It has been brokendown into a series of projects funded by a range of partnersincluding the NWDA. The initial 3MG Eagle projectremediated 48 acres of contaminated land, bringing it backinto economically productive use. This early intervention bythe NWDA was an important catalyst that brought in otherinvestment and began the transformation of the area. Whenfully completed, 3MG will comprise around 200,000 squaremetres of modern rail served warehousing (distributioncentres) and an Intermodal rail terminal together with highquality connections to the strategic highway network.


• The drive for more sustainable development provides anexcellent opportunity to secure investment in brownfield landinside the urban core that is supported through local plansby local authorities, including integrating facilities such astransport links into master plans to ensure sustainability.

• Focussing on a limited number of genuinely strategic sitesensures that resources and investment are concentrated onattractive and sustainable locations.

• Close working with urban regeneration companies in areasof severe deprivation proved important, enabling localcommunities and local knowledge to influence and achievetransformational change.

• The level of detail required to ensure value for money forpublic grants caused delays to capital projects and led toaccusations of inefficient, bureaucratic processes. Early andcontinuing communication with partners to ensuretransparent processes can ease tensions and an increase inproject development/approval capacity could reduce the timetaken to start on site.

• Arrangements for grant ʻclaw backʼ have not always beenrobust enough and opportunities have potentially been lostto maximise grant reclaim from developments which havebeen sold off or had a significant change of use.

• Whilst CPO capability is a powerful tool and allows morecontrol over a project, it is best to only use it as a last resort.Supporting others to act directly allows for better partnershipworking and is a less antagonistic approach.


The unstable property market has tested the resolve of theprivate sector to continue to invest, particularly in more riskyventures or where additional private investment is needed topay for infrastructure. The £100m Northwest UrbanInvestment Fund, an ERDF-funded JESSICA initiative, is alasting legacy from the NWDA, potentially delivering millionsof pounds of investment through a recycled fund that willalso move government assistance away from grants towardsa repayable investment that can fund future projects.

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CASE STUDY: Ancoats Regeneration Programme

Ancoats provides an example of a place-based regeneration initiative which has significantly transformed an areaʼsprospects. A part of Manchesterʼs proud heritage, it has seen its derelict historic buildings restored to their formerglory, creating hi-tech new office space and modern residential accommodation alongside exciting new vibrant urbanspaces.


• Strategic leadership was needed to bring together adiverse range of stakeholders to help deliver the vision,including the urban regeneration company New EastManchester (which had incorporated Ancoats Urban VillageCompany), Manchester City Council, the Homes andCommunities Agency, Ancoats Buildings Preservation Trust,English Heritage, and a host of developers, local businessesand tenants and residents.

• Regeneration was only possible because the NWDA ledon an innovative Compulsory Purchase Order in 2002, whichbrought together 197 different land ownerships under onesingle body: the first time a Regional Development Agencyhad ever utilised such powers, and pioneering the process.

• Public sector investment in upfront infrastructure worksand project viability support can generate significant follow-on private sector investment. The £70m invested by NWDAis well on the way to returning £320m private sectorinvestment.

• Holistic regeneration was assisted by the development ofdetailed design standards, which were contained withinsupplementary guidance.

• It has been very helpful to run business and residentforumns to support community engagement in theregeneration effort.


The long-term vision for Ancoats is to continue to create asustainable mixed use community in which people can live,work and play. A management company, including keystakeholders both residents and businesses, will be formedto ensure successful delivery and ongoing stewardship ofthis vision.

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CASE STUDY: Accessing Business Finance

Access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is recognised as one of the biggest barriers to theirformation, survival and growth. This was reflected in the 2006 Regional Economic Strategy, and led to thedevelopment of a dedicated Business Finance team within the Agency in 2007, and subsequently to the launch of theFinance for Business Strategy (FfB) in the following year. The FfB strategy used the NWDAʼs and Business Linkʼsunderstanding of SME needs to identify areas of market failure, and sought to underpin different aspects of accessingfinance, intervening only where the private sector could not or would not help. The Business Finance portfolio ofproducts has enabled business owners to secure finance through the entire spectrum of needs, from the smalleststart-up to major growth requirements.

Products in the portfolio designed to overcome thebarriers and gaps included:

• The Access to Finance Service, launched in 2008 throughBusiness Link, has engaged 3000 businesses,enablingSMEs to access £72m in private and public funds.

• Small Loans for Business provided £21m in loans ofbetween £3,000 and £50,000 for SMEs with viable businessplans that were unable to secure high street lending due toperceived risks during the economic crisis.

• Grant for Business Investment provided support forsustainable investment and job creation in the mostdisadvantaged areas. It has provided £42m in grant funding,securing £348m of private sector investment between 2004and 2010, creating and/or safeguarding more than 11,000jobs.

• Grant for Research and Development supportedtechnological innovation. It provided £48m in investmentbetween 1999 and 2010, investing in projects where theprivate sector was reluctant to invest due to the risksassociated with technical and scientific uncertainty.

• North West Business Angels supported SMEs tounderstand and access informal equity of up to £500,000.

• The North West Fund (formerly North West VentureCapital Loan Fund) is a £185m fund providing debt, equityand mezzanine finance up to £2 million for businesses in keysectors and established SMEs.


• The development of a financial brokering service (throughBusiness Link) has enabled businesses to understand howto become more investment-ready and make appropriatechoices of financial products. The service provided a crucialrole in combating the effect of the economic downturn.

• The NWDA implemented a user-friendly Access to Financewebsite, along with an online support application, which isunique at a regional level and made accessing financeeasier for businesses and advisors.

• The Agencyʼs grant processing, evaluation andmanagement team integrated specialist skills to handling

different grant products in a single team, rather thanseparate process functions. This enabled balancedassessments of individual applications against schemecriteria and regional priorities.


A Finance for Business advisory paper developed from theoriginal Finance for Business Strategy will be made availableto assist interested organisations, including Local EnterprisePartnerships when considering this area of businesssupport.

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CASE STUDY: Operating In a Global Market Place

The 2006 RES identified the need to adopt a proactive strategy to ensure the North West maximised the opportunitiespresented by globalisation. The North West International Business Forum took the lead in developing anInternationalisation Strategy and Action Plan. The Strategy set out clear objectives to develop the regional sectorsidentified in the RES as being internationally competitive, through investment in sector-focused international trade andforeign direct investment programmes. It also aimed to maximise the regionʼs international potential in terms ofscience and innovation, research and development and education, and target countries that were strategicallyimportant to the North West. These objectives were supported by a coordinated effort to promote the North Westʼsassets internationally and to enhance the regionʼs international connections.

Between 2006 and 2010, the region improved itsinternational performance. In 2009/10 the region hadattracted 179 foreign direct investment projects with anassociated 13,500 jobs. The North West rose from being theseventh largest exporting English region to become thesecond most significant exporter of goods. This investmentalso provided some of the best returns of all NWDAsupported projects with the international trade programmeproviding a net GVA return of £23 for every £1 spent, and theinward investment programme returning £29 for every £1spent.


• The approach added value by ensuring intensiveassistance for key regional sectors, extending assistanceand international trade to a wider range of companies.

• The regionʼs global inward investment network helpedUKTI achieve their national targets and also helped theregion achieve its international potential. The networkprovided direct access to overseas companies andsignificantly increased the number of successful investmentsin the region.

• The development of the Northwest Investment Board andthe associated Sector Investment Groups, which included allsub-regional partners, helped to attract new overseascompanies and supporting existing investors.

• The multi-disciplinary structure of NWDA helped inwardinvestment by integrated work on developing the right sites,premises, and facilities. The inward investment offer of theregion is now strong because of our clear focus on the enduse of each site. which started at the first stages andcontinued throughout the development process.

• Similarly, the focus on priority sectors highlighted thebenefits of internationalisation for the firms in these sectors,and the development of strong offers around R&D, trade andinvestment which could then be marketed effectively by theoverseas sales teams.


A national programme to attract foreign direct investment,managed by UKTI and delivered by PA Consulting, is beingestablished from April 2011. Strong links by Local EnterprisePartnerships to this programme, and knowledge of theopportunities within industry in the North West, will need tobe developed.

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CASE STUDY: European Regional Development Fund 2007 – 2013

The management of the ERDF Programme for North West of England for 2007 – 2013 was formally delegated to theAgency by the Government. The Programme has four main priorities, all of which are focussed on making thebusiness base of the North West more competitive, by increasing the number of businesses and jobs, and thereforeincreasing GVA in the region. More than £443m has already been committed to projects operating throughout theregion, giving an overall total of some £850m worth of project activity, aimed at creating businesses and jobsthroughout the region. These projects are contracted to assist over 28,000 businesses, create 7,500 new businesses,and create some 36,000 jobs in the North West. Funded projects have included improvements to Lime Street Gateway,Blackpool Tower and Winter Gardens, Lowther Castle, and Jodrell Bank.


• The long-term strategic focus of the Programme wasrobust and flexible enough to cope with the impact of therecession and economic changes within the region, allowingsome key additional investments in order to assistbusinesses to survive and grow.

• Developing the new systems, processes and expertise forsuccessful delivery of the Programme was a significantchallenge, and the time to ʻbed inʼ new processes should notbe underestimated.

• The integrated nature of the cross cutting themes (Equalityand Diversity and Environmental Sustainability), robustContract Monitoring and Management and IrregularitiesManagement used by the Programme, have had a majorimpact on delivering value.

• The cost to recipients in terms of time, training, systemsetc to successfully complete ERDF processes must berecognised and must be communicated upfront to thoserecipients, particularly for small and medium-sized firms andthe third sector.

• The development of Investment Frameworks for eachaction area has proved to be both a benefit and a constraint.While the programme regulations do not require thedefinitive demarcation between Action Areas (only Priorities),they have proven valuable in guiding potential applicants torelevant key actions and activities . However, they need tobe reviewed regularly and updated to ensure that theProgramme does not become unduly restrictive.

• As the only region in the EU to have set up both aJESSICA and JEREMIE initiative, there have beensignificant lessons learned in developing governance modelsacceptable to both national government, regionalstakeholders and the European Commission.


The ERDF Programme will move to the Department ofCommunities and Local Government in July 2011. However,£183m remains in the Programme budget to be committed toprojects after the transfer.

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CASE STUDY: Innovation Vouchers

Made available by the Agency through Business Link, and co-financed by the ERDF programme, Innovation Voucherswere designed to enable small and medium-sized businesses to buy specialist support from universities and otherknowledge-based institutions to help in the development of new products, services and processes. They weredesigned to make it easier for businesses to access knowledge-based experts, develop new skills and knowledge to beretained in the businesses and improve businessesʼ ability to exploit new ideas. Over 1,000 companies have beenassisted over two years, with 80% of those maintaining collaboration with their specialist advisors.


• Be clear about the problem before designing solutions –the emphasis on funding potential investors in innovativeproducts and services, rather than the knowledge-basedinstitutions directly, provided the incentive for business toseek to collaborate with universities on new ideas.

• Universities are important but not all knowledge rests withthem. Four times more R&D is undertaken in the privatecompared with the public sector, so it is essential to ensurethat university R&D adds value to this, and supports theprivate sector in access.

• Investing in innovation capacity and capability can make asubstantial impact on the regional economy, and thecompetitive position of the North West, by supportinginvestment in developing new products, ideas and services.


Several local authorities are looking at continuing withInnovation Vouchers, and the Technology Strategy Board willconsider the principle for future investment.

Moving ForwardIt will be important to take the learning from NWDAʼsexperience into the new sub-national arrangements beingdeveloped by the Coalition Government to support economicdevelopment following the abolition of RDAs.

Open, strategic collaboration will be essential to provide theright spatial footprint to attract and influence the large-scaleinvestment necessary for the regional economy to continueto grow and prosper.

Equally important will be collaboration by LEPs to work withnational bodies delivering functions around innovation,foreign direct investment and sectoral development,including the science and low carbon economy. Joint workingto address key infrastructure requirements – roads, rail,energy, water, waste, broadband – which cross localboundaries will be essential to provide a top qualityenvironment for securing investment by private companiesand others in the region.

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Delivering Effectively Underpinning our work to lead and catalyse action, stimulate investment, and drive economic growth, are somepractices that have been vital to successful delivery. The sections below focus on five particular aspects.

• Responding quickly to crises and shocks, both environmental and economic. • Utilising project and programme management skills. • Using evidence as the basis for policy and investments. • Marketing the North West • Mainstreaming considerations of equality and diversity.

Rapid response to crises and shocks

During the life of the NWDA, the region has experienced anumber of crises and shocks, such as the flooding inCumbria in 2005 and 2009, Foot and Mouth Diseaseoutbreaks in 2001 and 2006 and, most significantly, theeconomic recession which started in 2008 as a result of theglobal banking crisis. The Agencyʼs response to these crisesand shocks provides the opportunity to identify someimportant learning points.

Using the lessons from our earlier experience of leadingbusiness recovery from the Carlisle flooding in 2005, wewere able to respond swiftly and effectively to the 2009flooding across Cumbria, which particularly affected theCockermouth and Workington areas. A £1m programme ofsupport for affected small businesses was put in placeimmediately. This was aimed at helping them to recover andincluded business advisers dedicated to help with recoveryaction planning, funding to provide alternative premises andmarketing campaigns to offset the impact of negative presscoverage on the visitor economy in Cumbria.

The most important learning points that the Agency wouldwish to pass on are:

• The importance of putting in place tailored financialsupport to businesses affected by natural disasters, crisesand economic shocks, and getting it to them quickly – thiscan prove the difference between them staying in or goingout of business.

• Good, prior business intelligence is critical in ensuring thatresources are targeted on areas of greatest need.

• Whilst the search and rescue phase of an emergencysituation is planned for and dealt with by first responderorganisations such as the police, fire and health services,plans for the recovery phase should also be developed toenable relevant organisations to act quickly andappropriately. The recovery plan should identify key roles,responsibilities and communication protocols so that allorganisations involved understand their role, can managecommunications, make relevant resources available andbrief staff required.

• The provision of specialist business advisors to helpaffected businesses plan their recovery is a vital first step inachieving the survival of the business, protecting both jobsand provision of services in areas damaged by disaster.

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CASE STUDY: Business Linkʼs Response to the Recession

The Agency took the lead in coordinating the regionʼs response to the recession and early in the downturn identifiedkey areas of support that could be provided to businesses in the North West. These included:

• Using Business Link as the primary access channel for public sector funded business support.

• Provision of Innovation Vouchers to assist small and medium enterprises access support in developing newproducts or services.

• Establishing within Business Link a team of independent finance specialists (Access to Finance Team) to supportinvestment readiness activity.

• A Transitional Loan scheme was rapidly put in place providing access to working capital of between £50,000 and£250,000. This made available £10m in the region and went on to support 49 businesses in safeguarding some 582jobs.

• An additional £9.7m of NWDA and ERDF funds, made available through Small Loans for Business, provided loans ofup to £50,000.

Business Link delivered over 10,000 business health checksassisting businesses to identify the steps needed for survivaland growth. In partnership with the regionʼs Chambers ofCommerce, The Manufacturing Institute and UK Trade andInvestment, some 30 workshops were held to highlight stepsbusinesses should consider taking during the recession andthe support available. Business intelligence gathered byBusiness Link through its interactions with businesses andsupplemented by information provided by commercial datawas used across the region as a source of evidence forinforming operational and strategic planning.


• A single point of contact to source support was a greatbenefit to both companies and support providers.

• Business intelligence allowed evidence-based prioritisationof resource allocation to areas of greatest need.

• Access to finance was a key issue and the availability ofspecialist independent advisers enabled both businessesand financial institutions to resolve issues.


Whilst the regional advisory service at Business Link is toclose there will be a continued need for evidence-basedintelligence to inform decision-making. The availability offinance for small and medium enterprises continues to be anissue and this can in part be resolved through thedeployment of independent specialist advisers that are seenby both the companies and finance providers as “honestbrokers”.

Programme and project management

At inception, the Agency inherited a series of programmesand funding streams with disparate systems, processes andproject management arrangements, offering little flexibility inrelation to establishing investment priorities.

In 2002, with the establishment of the RDAʼs Single Pot, theAgencyʼs activity began to extend from predominantly localbased physical and social regeneration projects to projectsand activity across the broader spectrum of economicdevelopment − including enterprise, business support anddevelopment, skills, and tourism, as well as regeneration.

This widening scope led the Agency to deliver morecomplex, bigger and riskier programmes and projects andrequired the development of a strong Project andProgramme Management culture. The multidisciplinarynature of the NWDA was a complicating factor: it has alwaysbeen a challenge to strengthen governance arrangementsinternally, to allow mixed teams to work on a project whilstensuring clear lines of reporting and management.

Throughout its life, NWDA has progressively increased therigour of its project and programme management.

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• Emphasising the development of robust business plansincluding a thorough review of options.

• Establishing governance, risk management and planningappropriate to the scale and complexity of a projectthroughout its lifecycle.

• Using a well-resourced legal team to provide expertisethroughout the lifetime of a project helps deliver best valuefor money.

• Developing an appraisal system that provides a goodbalance between rigour and speed.

• Making investment decisions based on benchmarks (e.g.from evaluations of previous projects and from othersources) to ensure maximum return on the public sectorinvestment.

• Being robust about managing project delivery includingcontrolled project closure on completion.

• Recording lessons learned throughout the project lifecycle.

• Ensuring that a strong communications plan, both internaland with external partners, is part of the project.

CASE STUDY: Complex Business Start-Up Programme: Project Management

An example of how specialist project management can achieve benefits for the region is the second Business Start-Upprogramme, known as ISUS: Intensive Start-Up Support. This represented an innovative co-funding and co-procurement approach with local authorities. It provides a regional programme that achieved economies of scalethrough intensive, targeted support to business start-ups from under-achieving groups and areas in the North West,coordinated by a dedicated project management resource.


• The model packaged up to £35m Single Programme andEuropean Regional Development Fund (ERDF) money,stripping out complex separate procurement processes, andprovided local authorities with opportunities for joint projectdesign, co-funding, and co-procurement.

• The value of learning from the evaluation of thepredecessor start-up project, which recommended improvedpartner involvement in the design and delivery of ISUShelped shape the programme.

• Where local authorities co-fund, the co-commissioningmodel allows them to effectively define the priorities andtargets for the programme to ensure local needs are beingaddressed.

• The total public sector spend cost is significantly lowerfrom competitive tendering of suppliers, and the efficiency ismuch greater, because 43 local authorities no longer havemultiple funding/procurement processes. The project wasresource intensive for the NWDA to design and implement,but provided a cost effective solution for the region as awhole.

• The flexibility of the funding model was utilised to add-inover £1m of Department of Work and Pensions money tosupport the long-term unemployed who might be thinking of

starting their own business. A further £300,000 from theChild Poverty Unit was channelled through the project totarget and support single parent families into starting theirown business.

• ISUS was slow to generate results in its initial stage. Theproject highlighted the variable delivery capacities of localauthorities/suppliers and the extensive project managementsupport that needs to be provided to partners to enable themto ʻhit the ground runningʼ. Whilst partner engagement wasextensive, on-going communication and practical supporthas been required to achieve the necessary performancelevels.

• There were complaints from suppliers about the amount ofpaperwork involved in operating the programme. NWDAtherefore worked with suppliers to remove any unnecessarybureaucracy and undertook further capacity building andtraining.


The project has ERDF approval and a Panel of start-upproviders in place until after the NWDA closes in March2012. The project will now close in December 2012 but theNWDA is discussing with partners any opportunities totransfer value from this project for the benefit of any futurestart up programmes.

In addition to strong governance systems, a key lessonlearned is the importance of a clear definition of projectobjectives and deliverables, influenced by the results ofearlier project evaluations. This ensures that the learningand experience from previous projects informed and shapedthe design and commissioning of new projects.

The Agency has gained a great deal of experience indeveloping, commissioning, appraising, monitoring andevaluating projects and programmes. The Agency developedand delivered an ambitious training programme to supportProject and Programme Management, both within theAgency and by its partners. In the last few years, nearly2,000 learning opportunities (i.e. person training days) wereprovided to individuals on the Agencyʼs systems andprocesses, project management techniques, appraisals, andevaluation.


• Adopting a project lifecycle process, ensuring that allproposals go through rigorous stages of development,appraisal, delivery and evaluation.

• Always establishing a clear project rationale andobjectives, with measurable outcomes.

• Establishing an evaluation plan at the outset, undertakingindependent evaluations of activity and acting on findings isintegral to shaping future priorities.

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Using evidence

An important part of the NWDAʼs strategic effectiveness hasbeen a greatly strengthened research and evidence function.For eight years the Regional Intelligence Unit (RIU) hasbeen hosted by NWDA, and closely integrated into the workof the Agency and the region.

Establishing the RIU enabled the region to build aknowledge base, co-ordinate and develop a region-wideintelligence network, establish consistency of methodologyand standards, develop new datasets and intelligence wherethere were gaps and develop evidence for regional levelissues and priorities. A key lesson has been the importanceof a separately managed evidence base, with wideinvolvement by stakeholders which generates mutualunderstanding and increases the likelihood of buy-in to theeventual strategic priorities. Thus, by the time we turned in2008 to developing the Integrated Regional StrategyRS2010, following the recommendations of the Sub-NationalReview of Economic Development, the evidence baseavailable to the region was credible and extensive andranged across the full remit of economic development,spatial, environmental and socio-economic issues. This wasused to underpin the development of Future NW: OurShared Priorities.


• The value of independent, expert advice and challenge inreviewing evidence, economic performance and ensuringrobust forecasting – in addition to the Regional EconomicForecasting Panel case study below, the Agencycommissioned a peer review by academics of the RS2010evidence base.

• The importance of bringing together from the outset allrelevant partners to develop research projects and ensurethat results and learning are widely disseminated andapplied.

• It is essential to establish clear objectives for research toensure the right questions are being addressed – “wouldnʼt itbe nice to know” is not sufficient.

• Economic issues can no longer be considered in isolationfrom environmental and social ones – only by consideringthe inter-relationships between all three can the principles ofsustainable economic development really be understood andapplied.

CASE STUDY: Regional Economic Forecasting Panel


• Having the Panel led by a private sector chair, withDirector-level membership derived from some of the mostsignificant firms in the North West, provided externalperspective and challenge on the regionʼs performance. ThePanel was able to challenge conventional thinking and raiseissues that others might ʻpoliticallyʼ not be able to.

• The Panel added substantial value by using existing data,or commissioning work where data did not exist, andapplying authoritative analysis, econometrics and sectoralknowledge to translate this for the region and its long-termeconomic development.

• It is essential to ʻget beneath the dataʼ to understand thecritical factors that are driving economic performance, and toidentify future challenges and opportunities critical for thecompetitiveness of the North West.

• The process was sufficiently flexible to adapt to and reflectdeveloping policy areas such as spatial aspects of growth(e.g. city regions), environmental forecasting, Europeancomparisons and functional economic geographies.

• Both geographically and politically, the Panel had noaffinities or alliances with any part of the North West, whichensured consistent independent advice and decision-making.

• The Panel played a valuable ʻcritical friendʼ role to theNorth Westʼs five Sub-Regional Economic Partnerships(SRPs), providing ʻcheck and challengeʼ as the SRPsdeveloped their baseline and aspirational forecasts.


It will be important to look at how expert, independent adviceand challenge can be provided in the new LEP-basedeconomic development landscape.

Established in 2003, the Panel was an independent body which met quarterly to develop short-term (three year) andlong-term (20 year) economic forecasts for the North West each year, and provide leadership on critical issues thatinfluenced the regionʼs economic performance relative to the UK average. The Panel was identified as a nationalexample of good practice by the National Audit Office in 2010.

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CASE STUDY: Regional Major Events


• Evaluation of major events supported by the NWDA hasshown that these occasions have a significant impact on theeconomy and image of the region by attracting additionalvisitors and generating national and international mediacoverage. An evaluation showed that major eventssupported by the Agency between 2004 and 2010 generatedover £100m GVA.

• Co-ordinated long term planning for major events whichhave a good fit with other local, regional and nationalstrategies is essential to ensure maximum benefit is securedand appropriate financial planning is in place. It also helpsdifuse potential regional competition.

• To ensure the evaluation of major events is conducted byall partners in a consistent manner, NWDA worked with anumber of national organisations (including UK Sport andVisitBritain) to develop an on-line resource

(www.eventIMPACTS.com) to provide strategic guidance oneconomic, environmental and social impact analysis. This isnow freely available to all event organisers.

• To maximise the economic impacts, the development oflocal supply chains should be nurtured and encouraged,subject to following appropriate procurement processes.The NWDA has developed a Major Events Supplier Directoryand a Supply Chain Analysis Toolkit which will beincorporated into the Event Impacts website.


The region has gained considerable experience over the lastdecade in bidding for and staging major events, and needsto build on this. For example, it is important that the NorthWest continues to take a proactive approach to opportunitiesand activities linked to the London 2012 Olympic Games andParalympic Games to ensure that the potential benefits aremaximised.

Following the success of the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002, the power of major events to contributesignificantly to the region's economic, tourism and image objectives was recognised. The need for a Regional MajorEvents Strategy was included in the 2003 Regional Economic Strategy, and its development was led by the NWDA andcompleted in 2004. Since that time, the NWDA has played a key part in its implementation,securing events includingthe Tour of Britain Cycle Race 2004 onwards; UEFA Womenʼs Football Championships 2005; the inaugural ManchesterInternational Festival 2007; FINA World Swimming Championships 2008; Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008;Lakes Alive Performance Arts Programme 2009-11; the regional contribution to the London 2012 Olympic/ParalympicGames; and Rugby League World Cup 2013.

Promoting the North West

The NWDA made an important contribution to how theregion, and its constituent parts, perceives and sells itself,and sought to change perceptions of the North West held byimportant external audiences.

These changes in spirit and ambition, though less tangiblethan physical regeneration, are critical. Around the NorthWest, places, people and business organisations are moreconfident, more market oriented, and have plans for growththat may not have been possible a decade ago. All parts ofthe North West are now covered by Local EnterprisePartnership bids and Greater Manchester became the firstCombined Authority in the country, knitting together theconstituent 10 local authorities. Perhaps more importantly, interms of rebalancing the economy, is the fact that the privatesector sees the North West as a place to invest and makemoney. Partners work together better, and can point to atrack record of successful delivery rather than failure.

NWDAʼs representation of the North West, and advocacy ofthe regionʼs assets and opportunities, was shaped andstrengthened by Regional Economic Strategies. Explainingthe region, and its opportunities and challenges, to thoseoutside the North West – both in the UK and abroad - hasbeen vital in securing not only new public funds and majorcapital investment, but also significant shifts in policy thatenable the North West to exploit its assets. Marketing theNorth West as a business and inward investment locationcan have a major positive impact. As one of the largestregions in Europe, we need to be aware of how thesignificant advantages of a common market and labour poolcan deliver success and growth for our businesses.

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CASE STUDY: Delivering the Visitor Economy


• The development and positioning of strong destinationbrands and a consumer focused approach was essential toimprove the awareness and image of the region and itsdestinations.

• Tourist Boards have sought to add value to local authorityagendas with some success but there remains a need toreduce duplication and improve understanding of how thevisitor economy fits with local authority agendas and deliveryof services, particularly around place shaping andmanagement.

• By working in collaboration, neighbouring destinationshave been able to cluster together for greater impact – forinstance spreading the impact of European Capital ofCulture 2008 beyond Liverpool city centre.

• Prioritising and resourcing tourism data and intelligencehas resulted in a rich evidence base and source ofintelligence for both public and private sectors, which shouldbe protected and built on going forward.

• Identifying priorities is critical, and a balanced scorecardmethod of assessing proposals and selecting those to becontinued has proven to be effective.

• The importance of seeking to influence, from an earlystage, the development of investment programmes to ensuremaximum benefit for the region and a good fit with localpriorities.

• The visitor economy has benefitted greatly from being anintegral part of a strategic economic development agenda. Ithas added value to the delivery of regional economicobjectives.


There is clear evidence that the regionʼs five Tourist Boardshave produced significant strategic added value benefits,that the volume and value of tourism to the region hasincreased and that there is significant economic income(GVA) derived from tourism. There is a continued need forstrong strategic leadership for the visitor economy at thesub-national level.

RDAs were given strategic responsibility for tourism in 2003 and the regional tourism strategy led by NWDA concludedthat there should be a more market-focused approach to destination development and marketing. As a result, theʻAttack Brandsʼ of Chester, Liverpool, Manchester and The Lake District, along with the ʻDevelopment Brandʼ ofBlackpool, have been the focus for growth in the North Westʼs visitor economy. Five sub-regional Tourist Boards wereestablished, which provided critical mass to add strategic value within their local areas whilst also being able to delivera range of effective services and better engagement with the private sector.

CASE STUDY: European Policy


• One key facet of regional work in Europe is to influenceEU policies to obtain the maximum benefit for the region.The North West was active in revisions to the StructuralFunds Programmes for 2007-2013, to ensure the EUcontinued to include a Competitiveness objective, whichallowed our North West priorities to continue to receivestructural funds to support regional growth.

• Europe has an extremely wide programme of assistancefor its member nations: viewing this whole set ofopportunities in addition to the structural funding can enablepartners in the region to access new finance, new markets,broader networks, and learn from best practice.


Influencing work early on to align new Europeanprogrammes with our local, sub-national priorities will beimportant. Work to design Europeʼs post 2013 StructuralFunds programmes starts shortly, as will capacity building forparticipation in R&D programmes. Continued participation inEU projects will remain critical to ensure funding andinfluence.

In 2003, the North West set itself a challenge, to be “recognised as a leading European region, a significant influencerof EU policies, and a region actively engaging its stakeholders in the EU agenda”. This objective was importantbecause, while recognising the importance of European Structural Funds (ERDF, ESF and RDPE) to places in the NorthWest, it sets out a case for activity in a wider arena. For example, work on the EU Framework Programme, the mainEuropean mechanism for funding collaborative research and development to support the knowledge economy,supported North West participants in more than 70 projects. The previous 2000-2006 Framework Programme (FP6)drew €80m into the North West. Participation in Interreg Projects added €140m to North West projects and theirpartnerships.

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3The Women & Work Task Force was officially launched at the second Northwest Equality & Diversity Conference, in Liverpool on 11 November 2009, and met for aperiod of six months to consider the barriers to women achieving leadership positions across all sectors in the North West. The resulting report can be accessedfrom www.nwda.co.uk/areas-of-work/building-communities/equality--economicinclusion.

Equality and Diversity

The NWDA has made a strong commitment over the past 12years to strengthen its approach to ensuring that the benefitsof economic growth and greater investment are felt by all insociety, not just the already prosperous. On a number offronts the Agency has worked to understand and roll outequality and diversity considerations throughout the Agencyand with partners, and adopt practices that embed inclusioninto investment decisions.


• Recognising and capitalising on the valuable diversity ofthe North West's people and communities is essential tosecuring economic goals, developing an entrepreneurialculture, boosting productivity and creating jobs.

• Unless equality and economic inclusion challenges andopportunities are addressed, the benefits of economicgrowth will not be shared across the region and by all peopleand communities, and will not therefore be sustainable.

• Broad principles can be diluted unless implemented viasystems and processes such as Equality ImpactAssessments, training on an organisationʼs EqualityScheme, and using procurement processes which championequality and diversity.

• Investing seed money in grassroot groups can have adisproportionately positive strategic influence effect.However, a scattergun approach to funding without a guidingpurpose does not work.

The NWDAʼs Single Equality Scheme (2008-2011) is theprimary way the NWDA strengthened its approach toequality and diversity across the organisation. The Schemehas an annual implementation plan which is monitored andreported on alongside the annual business plan. Internally,equality champions have worked to increase the knowledgeand awareness of all staff and improve the impact ofinvestment in achieving equality goals.

Performing Equality Impact Assessments of all project andprogramme investments was a significant step forward inenabling equality and diversity considerations to becomeembedded in project design and execution. The NWDAimproved over time in ensuring that equality and diversityconsiderations were part of all major project planning. Forexample, MediaCityUK, one of the largest programmes ofNWDA, included a commitment by all partners to ensure thatlocal employment opportunities are generated for the peopleof Salford, that training and employment assistance isfunded to allow these opportunities to be accessed, and thatdiversity is encouraged in the BBC workforce and the widerset of companies.

A good proportion of the Agencyʼs equality and diversityinvestment has been through support for enterprise. TheNorth West Enterprise Strategy included an Intensive Start-Up project aimed at groups that experience specific barriersto starting up a business. The Agency has supportedfinancially a number of projects to develop enterprise withinunder-represented groups, especially women, the black andminority ethnic community, and the over-50s, and to driveforward a higher level of enterprising culture amongst allgroups.

The NWDA led on the regionʼs objective of wideningeconomic participation and tackling discrimination in thelabour market, particularly though the establishment ofMigrant Workers North West and 50:50 Vision (The NorthWest Forum on Ageing). Other important investmentincluded major support for the health and biomedical sector,and action to sponsor health initiatives as an employerthrough the Healthy Workplaces Strategy.

The Women and Work Task Force considered the barriers towomen accessing leadership positions in the public andprivate sector and civil society and made a series of practicalrecommendations to address them, including arecommendation that companies should target a level of30% female participation on Boards3.

NWDA was a key partner in the development of the regionalarchitecture for equality and diversity, and worked at asenior, strategic level with the Government Office for theNorth West, the NW Regional Leaders Board, and theRegional Health Authority. The North West Equality &Diversity Group (NWEDG) will continue to exist as anindependent forum providing leadership, expertise andadvocacy for equality in the region. Responsibility for thesecretariat of the NWEDG will be taken forward by VoluntarySector North West.

Our focus has also been on supporting best practice andpolicy changes, especially through the Agencyʼs participationin Celebr8, an annual series of events to highlight thecontribution of all groups to the region, including a number ofpolicy symposia. The NWDA also made a substantialcontribution to an annual North West Equality conferenceand Disability Awareness Day.

In 2009, the Regional Compact set out guiding principles forhow the statutory sector should engage with the voluntarysector, and included recommendations around procurement.This work is being taken forward in part by the LocalAuthorities and the Equalities and Human RightsCommission.

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Scrutiny, Assessment and ResultsA key element of delivering effectively is to be seen and proved to have done so, and this section considers how theexternal scrutiny and assessment of NWDA has been conducted. Furthemore, as the Agencyʼs overriding purposewas to improve the North West economy, it looks at changes in the main economic indicators adopted by the region astargets in the Regional Economic Strategy 2006.


Receiving independent assessments, critical friend reports,and independent evaluations significantly improved NWDAʼsdecision-making. The annual RES Assessment monitoringlooked at achievement against the regional priorities andgave an assessment of the progress of the regionaleconomy in addressing long-term challenges.

The key learning points that the Agency would wish to passon are:

• It is essential to understand the integrated nature ofregeneration and economic growth, where the outcome canonly be achieved with good communication and jointplanning between the functions of skills, site/premisesdevelopment, transport planning, environmental protection,enterprise support, and many other aspects. It is indelivering this integrated, multi-expert approach to economicdevelopment that the NWDA was able to achieve realimpact.

• It is important to recognise that the economy of the NorthWest, and its individual constituent places, has dramaticallychanged over the past twelve years, catalysed by significantpublic sector investment and prioritisation. This change hasbeen delivered by focussing on how to create the conditionsfor growth and further investment, how to give confidence tothe marketplace and how to work with the private sector.

• The need to look externally and to represent strengths andopportunities both nationally and internationally to clearlydefined audiences including policy makers and the privatesector.

• As an organisation, we found it of vital importance toproduce rigorous annual Corporate Plans that were alignedwith the Regional Economic Strategy, plus an annualCorporate Improvement Plan designed to build a learningfeedback loop into NWDAʼs decision-making.

• Independent evaluations of projects and investmentsmean that returns on investment can be carefully calculatedand compared to established benchmarks. Throughevaluations and a clear feedback loop from theseconclusions into new decisions, NWDA was able to take anincreasingly rigorous, evidence-based approach toinvestment choice.

Scrutiny and assessment

The NWDA has been committed to continuous improvementand external assessment of its work, and this has beenconducted in several different ways: scrutiny from within theregion; independent audits; and our evaluation programme.

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Regional Assembly role

The Regional Assembly, which became the RegionalLeaders Board in 2008, has been a key partner and criticalfriend to NWDA throughout its existence. For most of theAgencyʼs life, the Regional Assembly performed a formalscrutiny and evaluation function, focusing on theperformance of the Agency in the exercise of its functionsespecially in relation to the Regional Economic Strategy.The Assemblyʼs Review and Scrutiny Group comprisedtwelve members: five local authority representatives from thefive North West sub-regions, with good all-party politicalrepresentation; and seven social, economic, andenvironmental partners. The Assembly published threereports, in 2005, 2006, and 2008 containing evidence andrecommendations for improvement, all of which wereconsidered carefully and then implemented.

Independent audits

Over the past decade, there have been three independentaudits of the work of the NWDA – the 2006 and 2010National Audit Office Reports, and the 2009 Impact report byPricewaterhouseCoopers. These important externalreviews of our activity found that the Agency performed at ornear the highest possible rating on each measure surveyed.

The 2006 Independent Performance Assessment of theNWDA, undertaken by the National Audit Office, found thatthe Agency scored 20 points out of a maximum of 24 (shownin table opposite). The NAO found that NWDA performedstrongly overall, (the highest possible rating), highlighting:

• “There is a shared vision and ambition for the region thatis well developed.”

• “There is good leadership both within the Agency andacross the region”

• “The Agency has set a very clear budget allocationthrough the development of its Strategic Investment Plan(SIP).”

The 2009 Impact Report, carried out byPricewaterhouseCoopers on behalf of the Department ofBusiness, Innovation and Skills, delivered the mostsignificant assessment yet of the net impact of RegionalDevelopment Agencies. The 270 evaluations undertaken –

Theme Assessment Score

Ambition Performingstrongly

4

Prioitisation Performingstrongly

4

Capacity Performing well 3

Performancemanagement

Performing well 3

Achievement(doubled)

Performing well 3 (6)

Overall score Performingstrongly

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including 63 for North West projects – provided stakeholdersand the RDAs themselves with a robust analysis of thedown-stream effects of their expenditure. The headline resultfound that for every £1 invested by NWDA in the North Westeconomy an overall return of £5.20 in economic impact wasachieved. This was higher than the average RDA return oninvestment (ROI) figure.

This Impact Report concentrated primarily on the impact ofjob creation and safeguarding. The NWDA used this newevidence to develop and implement performancebenchmarks in order to appraise new investments and alsoto compare against subsequent evaluations.

In May 2010, the National Audit Office published a secondIndependent Performance Review of NWDA. Theirapproach to assessment differed from the 2006 Review butagain found that the NWDA was performing strongly overall.A summary of the the questions and NAO Assessment isshown in the table below.

Question Assessment

How effectively has the RDA prioritised the development/deliverof programmes and projects that offer high value addedbenefits for the region in the economic downturn and in

preparation for the upturns?

North West Development Agency has demonstrated strongperformance against this descriptor.

How effectively is the RDA implementing improvement plans? Northwest Development Agency has demonstrated goodperformance against this descriptor.

How effectively has the RDA implemented improvements inperformance management processes and procedures to reflect

the lessons of evaluation?

Northwest Development Agency has demonstrated strongperformance against this descriptor.

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Project Evaluation

The NWDA has developed an increasingly sophisticatedapproach to evaluation, with a well-resourced and robustprogramme (for example, over 60 evaluations in 2008alone). Evaluation captured the lessons from the delivery ofprojects and programmes, and enabled a betterunderstanding of the true impact of investment, i.e. Returnon Investment (ROI), Value for Money, and Strategic AddedValue; and how to generate and measure non-GVA (GrossValue Added) impact. Most lessons learned from the casestudies are supported by evaluation evidence.

Evaluation has been improved in a number of ways,including by obtaining primary evidence throughbeneficiary/stakeholder surveys, and by quality assuring allevaluation to industry standards. The results of rigorousproject evaluation have been used to:

• Improve monitoring data and systems to target delivery ofprojects, strengthening both delivery and relationships.

• Improve project design and decision-making throughintroducing a ROI Assessment as part of the projectappraisal and evaluation process, in which the forecast andactual ROI for each project is compared with ROIbenchmarks.

• Provide robust evidence to inform future investmentdecisions.

Investors in People (IiP)

A further external validation took place annually with the IiPassessment, a national quality standard awarded toorganisations which demonstrate best practice peoplemanagement and development. In 2010 NWDA achievedthe Gold Award standard, only given to those organisationswhich are able to demonstrate excellence in the way theydevelop and support their staff. To secure the award, NWDAmet a total of 178 different standards, including 39 coreaccreditation standards. Only 10% of nationally IIP-accredited organisations achieve IIP Gold status, placingNWDA alongside fewer than 200 other companies.

Results and Impact

The NWDA has been responsible for significant public sectorexpenditure over the 12 years of its life, and NWDA reportsto central Government on the direct outputs (e.g. jobs)delivered from this investment, and communicates topartners in the region via the Annual Report. Below we givethe outputs generated by NWDA investments, from 1999-2010. It is also important to recognise that the economy ofthe North West, and its individual constituent places, hasdramatically changed over the past twelve years, catalysedby significant public sector investment and joint effort toprioritise transformational activity. We therefore provide theperformance of the North West economy on six headlineindicators adopted by NWDA's Regional Strategy AdvisoryGroup as the key markers for the progress of this region.

1999-2010 Lifetime Northwest Development Agency Gross Output Performance

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Output Jobs created orsafeguarded*

EmploymentSupport/Number ofpeople assisted toget a job

NewBusinessesCreated

Businessesassisted/supported

Hectares ofbrownfield landremediated

Public and PrivateSector Leverage£M

1999/00 26,440 N/A 2,333 N/A 1,203 674

2000/01 34,520 N/A 1,380 N/A 600 600

2001/02 27,087 N/A 3,229 N/A 530 322

2002/03 16,764 N/A 603 N/A 488 N/A

2003/04 12,910 N/A 736 N/A 322 126

2004/05 24,422 N/A 1,094 N/A 357 238

2005/06 15,738 9,131 2,770 20,936 327 231

2006/07 20,205 3,978 3,306 23,997 299 258

2007/08 17,749 6,748 1,965 20,969 291 284

2008/09 26,602 6,415 5,840 29,980 302 340

2008/09 22,291 13,724 4,882 117,581** 282 580

Total 244,728 39,996 28,138 227,852** 5,001 6,653

* This does not include inward investment jobs claimed by the Agency since they are recorded to a different indicator definition.** In 2009/10 The Agency began reporting all types of business support rather than just intensive assistance.

Regional Economic Performance: against targets identified in Regional Economic Strategy 2006.

Each year the Annual Assessment Report of the Regional Economic Strategy 2006 provided the opportunity to performancemanage the Strategy as a whole, and to assess progress and barriers to achievement in each Action. The Annual Assessmentalso reported on the headline indicators of the North West economy, against targets established by NWDA and its RegionalStrategy Advisory Group on publication of the Regional Economic Strategy 2006.

The data below updates the last (2009) Annual Assessment to include figures for 2010 and (where available) 2011. The overallpicture shows continuing progress in tackling the sustained socio-economic challenges facing the North West, whereproductivity in 2004 was 85% of the England average. The data includes the initial impacts of the recession of 2008/09:however, time lags in the release of data mean that the activity of the last 1-2 years may not be fully reflected. In addition,revisions and other changes to data mean that some of the original targets do not match the latest figures.

GVA

The North Westʼs GVA growth gap with England has fluctuated over recent years. In times of recession, as experienced since2008, the gap has generally narrowed, whilst during periods of recovery it has widened. GVA in the North West declined lessthan the England average as a result of the recent recession, largely due to its industrial structure being less exposed to theglobal financial crisis which significantly impacted London and the South East. The North West has improved its positionrelative to other English regions in terms of GVA per head, moving from 7th in 2006 to 6th in 2010. Over the same period, whilstall regions other than London experienced a decline in GVA per head performance relative to the England average, the NorthWest maintained its share at 86%.

Target 2006-2009

Measure 2006Baseline (data 2005)

2007 Update(data 2006)





GVA Growth

Achieve GVAgrowthaboveEnglandaverage (tocloseGVA/headgap withEngland inthe longerterm)

GVA: £103.4bn £106.6bn £111.8bn £117.7bn £121bn £119.1bn

GVA growth: 4.69% 3.15% 4.83% 5.31% 2.78% -1.6%Eng -2.23%

GVA gap: £18.9bn £20.2bn £22.4bn £23.5bn £24.5bn £20.9bn

Job Creation

The data shows that by 2007 the North West had achieved its target of creating 80,000 jobs in knowledge occupations. Whilstthe recession has impacted on the overall number of jobs in the North West, including the number of knowledge jobs, the datashows that the share of knowledge jobs has increased.

Target 2006-2009

Measure 2006 Baseline(data 2004)





Job creation

Create 150,000new jobs,80,000 in“knowledgeoccupations”,to have same% in theseoccupationsas England

No. jobs 3.04m 2.99m 3.02m 3.04m 3m

No. “knowledge”jobs

1.2m 1.23m 1.25m 1.27m 1.26m

% “knowledge”jobs

38.4% 39.3% 39.9% 40.2% 40.6%Eng 44%

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Firm Formation

Our firm formation rate has risen from 33 to 37 per 10,000 people and is approaching the same rate as the England average.

Target 2006-2009

Measure 2006 Baseline(data 2004)



2009Update (data2007)

Firm formation

Raise the firmformation rate to21,000 per annum(to have samerate and businessstock as Englandin the longerterm)

Firm formation (No.) 18,085 18,055 18,165 20,640

Firm formation rateper 10,000 people

33 33 33 37UK 43

No. fewerbusinesses than theEngland average

38,800 38,300 38,000 38,000

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Skills Profile

The number of people in the working age population with no qualifications reduced by nearly 140,000 by 2009 (target 80,000).The gap with the England average for the percentage of this group in the workforce has been narrowing year on year.

Target 2006-2009




2009Update(data 2007)



No qualifications

Reduce theworking agepopulationwith noqualifications by 80,000and nodistrict withmore than29%. (Inlonger termto have thesame % asEngland)

Working agepop. with noquals:

753,800 725,700 679,900 647,000 701,300 612,900

% of workingage pop. withno quals:

18% 17.2% 16% 15.2% 15.9% 13.9%Eng 12.1%

Districts withrate more than29%

2 0 0 0 0 0

The number of people in the workforce with graduate qualifications has increased year on year. 2009 data shows that there areover 200,000 more individuals qualified to graduate level in the North West than in 2004, although the gap with the Englandaverage remains.

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Target 2006-2009




2009Update(data 2007)



Graduate qualifications

Increase theworkforcewithgraduatequalifications by 120,000to meet theEnglandaverage

Workforce withgraduatequals:

974,600 1,016,400 1,054,900 1,079,700 1,112,000 1,192,800

% of workingage pop withgraduatequals:

23.2% 24% 24.8% 25.3% 25.2% 27%Eng 29.6%

Employment Rate

Up until the recession, the number of people employed in the North West had been increasing, although our employment rateremained static and a stubborn two percentage points off the England rate. The latest data shows that the gap in employmentrates has widened, along with the number of districts with an employment rate below 68%.

Target 2006-2009

Measure 2006Baseline(data 2004)






Employment rate

Increase theworkforce by83,000 (tomeet theEnglandemploymentrate) and nodistrict tohave anemploymentrate lessthan 68%

Workforce: 3.07m 3.08m 3.10m 3.10m 3.05m 3m

Employmentrate:

70.6% 70.6% 70.5% 70.2% 69% 67.7%Eng 70.4%

Districts withrate less than68%:

8 5 13 11 12 16

We hope that Businesses, People, Places: Learning from theNWDAʼs Experience succeeds in capturing the story of theAgency and what we have learned from our 12 yearsleading the sustainable development of the North Westeconomy. We intend to produce a follow-up document laterthis year which sets out how our key activities will be takenforward in the post-NWDA world and where furtherinformation can be found.

We firmly believe the North West is a better place as a resultof the NWDAʼs contribution and our legacy is there for all tosee: improved workforce skills; internationally competitivebusinesses; revitalised places; valuable infrastructure;leading edge environmental and equalities work; and arange of other tangibles. However, some serious challengesremain to be addressed and there is a host of opportunitiesout there to be seized. The 12 ʻBig Ticket Issuesʼ describedin Future North West: Our Shared Priorities highlight themajor challenges and opportunities for the region over thenext 20 years or so and we are pleased that the North WestRegional Leaders Board has taken ownership movingforward.

In the short term, challenges and opportunities will need tobe addressed against a background of a national economywhich is slowly improving but with a significant reduction inpublic investment in the North West taking effect. We arealso in transition to the new Local Economic Partnershipswhich will in future drive forward economic development at asub-national level.

The North West is already focussed on how to deliver therebalanced, private-sector led economic renaissancerequired, particularly through our advanced manufacturing,biomedical digital/creative and energy strengths. Ourindigenous firms need to continue accessing finance,utilising a well skilled workforce, expanding into new marketsboth at home and abroad and continuing to invest in R&Dand business productivity. Continuing to position the NorthWest in the national and global marketplace as a stronglocation for inward investment will be vital to enable theregion to exploit export-led growth and foreign directinvestment as a route to prosperity.

Partners will need to focus on creating the right conditions tomaintain and increase private sector investment, intoemployment sites and housing. Key projects such asMediaCityUK and Daresbury will need further support andinvestment if they are to reach their full potential. Promotingthe North West at home and abroad as a great place to dobusiness and hold major events needs to be underpinned bycontinuing investment in green infrastructure, in revitalisingplaces and in boosting the skills and capacity of our people.

This will all need to be achieved whilst safeguarding and,where possible, enhancing our environmental assets as wellas reducing our carbon footprint, adapting to unavoidableclimate change and using resources more efficiently. Therewill also be social challenges, and action to spread thebenefits of growth and tackle the barriers to engagement inthe workplace needs to continue.

We know that Local Enterprise Partnerships and otherbodies taking over the NWDAʼs functions stand ready toaddress these issues. Success will require many things butabove all:

• Strong strategic leadership and effective partnershipworking;

• Securing investment in businesses, people and places;and

• Delivering effectively.

We therefore hope that those operating in the post-NWDAworld will be able to build on the Agencyʼs substantial legacyand the learning set out in this document to develop topclass local and regional economies and an excellent qualityof life for all.

Acknowledgements

Business, People and Places: Learning from the NWDAʼsExperience was produced by the NWDA Strategy Team –Neil Cumberlidge, Tracy Mawson and Brenda Buckley – whowish to extend their heartfelt thanks to the many NWDA staffmembers and partners past and present who havecontributed the thoughts, experiences and other material onwhich this document is based.

Looking Ahead

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