20Issue_14

315°

THE RDA MAGAZINE JAN 2008 ISSUE 14

LIVERPOOLTAKES OFF!

Curtain rises on Liverpool 08

THE THIRD DEGREE

Beverley Hughes

BUSINESS

Lessons in healthy eating

Start-up support scheme launched

Daresbury reaches enterprise milestone

Generating energy solutions

Support for overseas trade

Forum to promote culture of enterprise

SKILLS AND EDUCATION

Training ground for knowledge economy

Reconnecting to the workplace

PEOPLE AND JOBS

Warrington targets smart growth

ERDF funding aids drive for prosperity

Celebrating the region’s diversity

INFRASTRUCTURE

Liverpool Arena takes centre stage

QUALITY OF LIFE


celebrations

Blackpool bids for dance capital fame

Building on what the Romans gave us

REGULARS

People in the region

Event highlights

Getting in touch31

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CONTENTS HIGHLIGHTS

OUR VISION:

‘A dynamic, sustainableinternational economy whichcompetes on the basis ofknowledge, advancedtechnology and an excellentquality of life for all.’

CONTACTS

Editor Trevor [email protected]

NWDARachel Ormandyemail: [email protected]: 01925 400 237

visit www.nwda.co.uk &www.visitenglandsnorthwest.com

315°

HEALTHY EATINGThe Chefs Adopt a Schoolprogramme, founded by theAcademy of Culinary Arts, ishelping to teach andinfluence a new generationabout healthy food.

GOING GLOBALThe NWDA and UKTI arespearheading a new bid toboost export activity withinthe region’s key businesssectors, offering support tohelp them compete on theinternational stage.

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MOVING AHEADWarrington has opened a newchapter as a growth engine byunveiling a £2.7 billionregeneration action plan totransform the business, retail,social and cultural profile ofthe town.

Experience Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008...

...and take in the FAB FOUR

For more information go to

visitenglandsnorthwest.com

www.yearofgardens08.com

ManchesterWorld Sport 08

THE THIRD DEGREE

Beverley Hughes

BUSINESS

Lessons in healthy eating

Start-up support scheme launched

Daresbury reaches enterprise milestone

Generating energy solutions

Support for overseas trade

Forum to promote culture of enterprise


Training ground for knowledge economy

Reconnecting to the workplace

PEOPLE AND JOBS

Warrington targets smart growth

ERDF funding aids drive for prosperity

Celebrating the region’s diversity

INFRASTRUCTURE

Liverpool Arena takes centre stage

QUALITY OF LIFE


celebrations

Blackpool bids for dance capital fame

Building on what the Romans gave us

REGULARS

People in the region

Event highlights

Getting in touch31

30

28

27

26

24

22

21

20

18

16

14

13

12

10

8

6

4

2

CONTENTS HIGHLIGHTS

OUR VISION:

‘A dynamic, sustainableinternational economy whichcompetes on the basis ofknowledge, advancedtechnology and an excellentquality of life for all.’

CONTACTS

Editor Trevor [email protected]

NWDARachel Ormandyemail: [email protected]: 01925 400 237

visit www.nwda.co.uk &www.visitenglandsnorthwest.com

315°

HEALTHY EATINGThe Chefs Adopt a Schoolprogramme, founded by theAcademy of Culinary Arts, ishelping to teach andinfluence a new generationabout healthy food.

GOING GLOBALThe NWDA and UKTI arespearheading a new bid toboost export activity withinthe region’s key businesssectors, offering support tohelp them compete on theinternational stage.

6

12

18


MOVING AHEADWarrington has opened a newchapter as a growth engine byunveiling a £2.7 billionregeneration action plan totransform the business, retail,social and cultural profile ofthe town.

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including facilitating major developments inour science and knowledge base, building astrong education infrastructure and drivinggrowth across key business sectors. We mustnot lose momentum as 2008 brings newopportunities to create further economicbenefits for the region.

One significant area for the Agency will bethe management of the £521 million EuropeanRegional Development Fund programme in theNorthwest. This is a considerable new role forthe Agency and will be vital in ensuring thatERDF investments support the priorities setout in the RES.

The government’s Sub-National Review alsopresents us with new challenges as we worktowards an integrated regional strategyfor economic development, planning, housingand transport.

Meanwhile, across our business agenda akey area of focus will be to continue to simplifybusiness support. The establishment ofBusiness Link Northwest was a majormilestone in this area, however it is importantthat we continue to make it easier forbusinesses to access relevant, timely businesssupport in the region.

These are just some of the priorities andchallenges for the year ahead, however thereare many more which will make workingtogether as a region ever more relevant.I am committed to leaving a strong legacyfor the region to build on beyond 2008 andI am convinced that by working in partnership,we will continue to create realtransformational change.

Liverpool’s Capital of Culture celebrationsare now firmly underway, with an outstandingopening weekend which saw the newlycompleted Echo Arena Liverpool hosting‘Liverpool – The Musical’. This was just one ofa number of successful events that havealready taken place in the city as part of theyear’s celebrations, including the TurnerPrize and the Liverpool Nativity, which setthe standard for what I am sure will bea successful year for both Merseysideand the region.

Capital of Culture will create majoreconomic benefits for the whole of theNorthwest. It is estimated that this year alone,an additional £100 million will be generated forthe Northwest economy in visitor spend and itis vital that we capitalise on this.

Our sub-regions are playing their part insupporting this aim through a series of themedevents building on their own unique strengths.With Manchester hosting several world-classsporting events this year, the city has crowned2008 the Year of Sport, whilst Cumbria iscelebrating a Year of Adventure. Cheshire ishighlighting its green heritage through a Yearof Gardens and Taste Lancashire 08 is alsoputting the spotlight on the county’s growingfood and drink culture.

Of course, 2008 will also be an importantyear for the NWDA and I will be ensuring thatwe deliver on our priorities for this year.

Since my appointment as NWDA Chairmanin 2002, I have made a personal commitmentto ensuring strong progression of the Agency’srole in driving real and lasting change for oureconomy. I am extremely proud of what wehave achieved as an Agency and as a region.

The Agency now has a strong focus onproviding strategic leadership and ensuringdelivery of the transformational actionsoutlined in the Regional Economic Strategy(RES). This approach has led to tangible resultsbeing achieved in a number of key areas,

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

CREATING A LEGACYAs I enter my final year as NWDA Chairman, 2008 is already proving to be anexciting and memorable year for England’s Northwest.

Bryan Gray, Chairman,January 2008

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BEVERLEY HUGHES

“THE NORTHWEST HAS BEEN ATRAILBLAZER IN MANY WAYS INSHOWING WHAT IS POSSIBLE INCOLLABORATIVE, SUB-REGIONALWORKING AND PROVIDING THESTRONG LEADERSHIP TO MAKE ITA REALITY.”

BEVERLEY HUGHESMINISTER FOR THE NORTH WEST

With strong family, education andcareer links to the region BeverleyHughes is well suited to her role asthe new Minister for the North West.She was formerly Leader of TraffordMBC before being elected toParliament in 1997 as MP forStretford and Urmston and has heldnumerous government appointments.She is also Minister for Children,Young People and Families.

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THE THIRD DEGREE

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What is the likely impact of theComprehensive Spending Review on thisregion? Will it be tougher on peoplepursuing economic growth?

I don’t think so. We are asking RDAs toadopt the same rigours in terms of efficiencyas other parts of the public sector. Thismeans reducing their administrative budgetsto 10% or less of their total budgets. If youtake into account all public spending,including the RDA budget, the Northwestgets £700 per head more on average thanregions in the South East. Public spendingper head has increased 40% on transport,30% on health and 16% on education.

Has this increased spending achieved thedesired effects?

If you remember what parts of GreaterManchester and Merseyside were like tenyears ago and look at those places now therehas been a dramatic transformation. Whatstill exists and is perhaps more exposed nowbecause of the general improvement is thereare still too many communities laggingbehind where families are not in goodhousing and opportunities for work have notreached them, not because the jobs aren’tthere, but because they don’t have the skillsto compete for them. The focus on reducinginequality has to be a very important part ofwhat we are about. We simply can’t have ourwell performing areas simply performingbetter. We have to enable those still laggingbehind to catch up.

How are you finding out about people’spriorities at grassroots level?

Since my appointment I’ve been makingquite intensive visits to various parts of theregion seeing the things I want to see butalso making sure I sit down with variousstakeholders and organisations right acrossthe public, private and community sectors.Seeing things, talking to people, listening andlearning allows me to build up a detailedknowledge of the different issues andpriorities in different areas. That process isreally important if I am to bat for the regionin Whitehall.

The government-inspired Pride of Place pollgenerated a good deal of interest. What’syour favourite place and why?

It has to be the Lake District. As a familywe have been going to the Lakes for 35 yearsand still visit there about twice a month.We go there walking when I’m free of redboxes. In terms of walks the place I cherishmost is probably Lingmoor Fell, fairly close tothe Langdales.

This is the first time the Northwest has hadits own Minister. How do you see your role?

It’s very important to see my appointmentas part of the broader Sub-National Review(SNR) changes aimed at improving economicgrowth, narrowing the gap in performancebetween individual regions and recalibratingthe roles and responsibilities of RDAs, localauthorities and other partners. There is aneed for enhanced clarity and accountabilityand we can achieve this through each regionhaving its own Select Committee anddedicated Minister.

What are the key things you can deliver forthe Northwest?

I see my role as championing all the goodthings the Northwest has to offer, a kind ofregional ambassador in Whitehall.Conversely it’s about letting the region knowwhat government is thinking and doing. I alsosee myself as the glue or driver forpromoting partnership working right acrossthe public, private and voluntary sectors. Mypriorities will be getting the most out of theSNR, reducing the performance gap with theSouth East regions and focusing on twoissues that really concern me –worklessness, which is a significant problemin parts of the region, and health inequalities,which can act as a drag anchor for peoplewanting to contribute to the economy.

The government has announced there is tobe a single integrated strategy for eachregion. What does that involve and who willmanage the process?

We are working towards that being theformat in 2010 so we have some time toprepare for change. The RDAs will beresponsible for producing a clear vision andclear investment plan for each region, which,for the first time, will cover spatial issuessuch as housing and transport. They willessentially become the regional planningauthority but it will not be a case of RDAsdrawing up something and being able toimpose it. The final strategy will be theresult of joint working and negotiation.Partners need to be proactive in helpingto shape this vision and not just wait tobe consulted.

Does this mean an expanded operationalrole for the RDAs?

We are rebalancing, not expanding, the roleof Regional Development Agencies. Betweennow and 2010 we want them to come forwardwith constructive proposals and principles asto how they will devolve responsibility forsome of their programme funding andmanagement down to local authorities andother partners. RDAs will become morestreamlined and more strategic in character.They are set to get £6.5 billion over the period2008-11. When they first started out thecombined annual budget was £1 billion so ithas doubled over the past seven years.

So local authorities will have a bigger role toplay under the new arrangements?

Yes - we think democratically electedbodies such as local authorities should havea greater say in economic development. Theway that operates in practice will depend oneach region. The Northwest has been atrailblazer in many ways in showing what waspossible in collaborative, sub-regionalworking and providing the strong leadershipto make it a reality. We already have somestrong city regional groupings of localauthorities in place and we have to ensurethat other councils do not feel they areweaker in terms of the collective structurethey end up with. I don’t think that’s thecase here.

This suggests breaking new ground incollaborative working?

Absolutely. It’s really essential we rise to anew level of partnership working if we are todeliver prosperity for all. This is both apromise and a challenge of the SNR.Economic performance does not respectadministrative boundaries. Some issues suchas transport cannot be dealt with on thebasis of a single local authority.

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With almost 30 years experience in thecatering industry, he is leading the ChefsAdopt A School programme, founded by theAcademy of Culinary Arts (ACA), across theNorthwest. It is a three-year projectsponsored by the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA) with a£243,000 grant.

During that time the programme aims totarget 240 primary schools where the chefwill hold classroom sessions which include a‘four tastes and five senses’ food test, pass oninformation on food sources, healthy foodsand hygiene as well as organising practicalcookery sessions.

Following the national healthy eatingagenda, James believes that targeting youngchildren also helps to pass the message totheir parents.

“Primary school children are keen to learnand to tell their parents what they have beendoing at school, especially when it involvescooking,” says the father of five, who teacheshis own children about buying and cookingfresh food.

He says the ‘five-a-day’ motto – to eat fiveportions of fresh fruit and vegetables eachday – is his main message to schools selected

because they have a high proportion ofchildren eligible for free school meals.

“They all love to play with food and toactually make something at school,” he says.“It shows them just how easy it is to use freshfood and to make something quickly andeasily which tastes good.”

Knowledge varies widely, he says, with onechild describing ‘sweet and sour’ tastes as‘yummy and yucky’ and another unsure whereher taste buds were.

One anecdote, which illustrates an amusingknowledge gap, was a comment to the cheffrom a five-year-old girl that “the milk withred tops comes from lady cows and the oneswith blue tops from men cows”!

SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRYAs part of the programme, chefs from

some of the region’s top restaurants includingHeathcotes, Northcote Manor near Blackburnand the London Carriageworks in Liverpool –all members of the ACA – have volunteered todeliver some sessions to both primary andsecondary schools.

Janet Horn, the programme’s Regional Co-ordinator, says: “Every school we haveapproached so far has wanted to take up the

BUSINESS

Companies across the Northwest arebeing offered a new comprehensivegreen audit service byThe ManufacturingInstitute to help thembenchmarkenvironmentalperformance andidentify improvements and cost savingson their energy, water and waste.

Regional agencies seeking to attractinward investment from North Americahave a new ally following the North ofEngland Inward Investment Agency’sappointment of Neal Lilliott as VicePresident of Business Developmentfor Canada.

Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter benefitsthe city’s economyby £1 billion a year.A new study revealsthat the area currentlysupports 14,000 full-time jobs – 7% of theLiverpool total in just 1% of the city’sgeographical area.

Start-up accommodation and support isnow available for up to 25 femaleentrepreneurs on the Wirral followingthe opening of a new, affordable state-of-the-art business centre completewith mentoring services at EgertonHouse, Birkenhead.

Grasmere Gingerbread won the ‘BestRegional Product’ award and ButterflySnacks of Blackburnthe ‘Most InnovativeProduct’ accolade atthe 2007 FoodNorthwest Awardsevent at the MidlandHotel, Manchester, hosted byLucy Meacock of Granada TV.

Scientists are expected to gain newinsights into the transfer of diseasesfrom animals tohumans following theopening of the UK’sNational Centre forZoonosis Research atthe University ofLiverpool. The NWDAhas invested £1.68 million in the projectthrough the Northwest Science Fund.

NEWS LESSONSIN HEALTHYEATING

Chef James Holden has gone back to school – to teach and influence a newgeneration all about healthy food.

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sessions and the feedback from the earlyones is very positive and enthusiastic.”

The initiative is just one among many in theNorthwest – which supports a £9.5 billionfood and drink manufacturing industry –aimed at improving the provision and accessto healthier foods for everyone.

It is one of six priorities in the five-yearNorthwest Food and Drink Strategy that waslaunched in 2006 with a vision “to promote aprofitable and sustainable industry thatimproves its competitiveness in a globalmarket place.”

MEET THE BUYERPatricia Foreman, Chief Executive of

Food Northwest, set up by the NWDA toco-ordinate support for the sector,acknowledges that many of their aims aredriven by the changing tastes of theconsumer whose demands are influenced byhealthy eating and environmental concerns.

She is also keen to make the industry moreaware of the region as a good place to dobusiness. There is some restructuring in thesector but closures are often balanced by newinvestments.

Bakery retailer Greggs, for example, isrelocating from its existing east Manchesterbase to a new £16 million bakery inOpenshaw, a joint deal between Manchester

City Council, New East Manchester andthe NWDA.

Promotions are a key tool in helping theregion’s myriad of smaller producers sell intoa wider marketplace. They include aninternational ‘Meet the Buyer’ event atTatton Park in March 2008 when up to 100local food and drink producers will discusstheir products with around 25 major buyersfrom overseas markets.

The following month, the region willshowcase the best of the industry at theannual Food & Drink Expo in Birminghamattended by leading buyers in all areasof the industry.

Taste Lancashire 08, co-ordinated byLancashire and Blackpool Tourist Board andsupported by the NWDA, will include a widerange of food and drink-related events, tomark Liverpool’s European Capital of Culture.

Loyd Grossman, TV presenter, writer andadviser to the government on hospital foodreform, who is Patron of the year-longprogramme, says: “Lancashire has manyexamples of fine food and drink includingcheese, potted shrimps, meats, salads andlocal ales.”

Some of the best of the region’s food anddrink producers had their achievementsrecognised at the 2007 Food NorthwestAwards. Winners included Patak’s Foods,based in Leigh, producers of sauces, pastes,pickles, breads and ready meals, whichreceived the Improve Award for Skills.

Celebrating its 50th birthday last yearPatak’s, which has a turnover of over£80 million, also scooped the UKTI Awardfor International Trade.

Knutsford-based Delamere Dairy, asupplier of goat’s milk products, won theManufacturing Institute Award for MostInnovative Company, 22 years after itsfounders started out with just three goats.

Food Northwest is planning more ‘Meetthe Buyer’ events bringing together localproducers with decision-makers fromsupermarkets including Tesco, as part of aninitiative, which has brought more than£30 million of business to Northwest foodmanufacturers.

Among the companies was BartonsPickles, a family business established inSt Helen’s in 1905, which employs less than20 people. Director Joanna Jenner, greatgranddaughter of the founder EdmundBarton, says: “We were a local supplierto Tesco with our products in 15 stores,but keen to expand. As a result of ‘Meetthe Buyer’ we are now in 250 Tescostores nationally.”

Hawkshead Relish – Shortlistedfor Food Northwest Awards 2007,

based in Hawkshead, Cumbria

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Contact: www.foodnw.co.uk

Food for thought – Chef-lecturer James Holden teaches pupilsat Trafford’s Partington Primary School about healthy eating

“EVERY SCHOOL WE HAVEAPPROACHED SO FAR HASWANTED TO TAKE UP THESESSIONS AND THE FEEDBACKFROM THE EARLY ONES IS VERYPOSITIVE AND ENTHUSIASTIC.”

JANET HORN

PROGRAMME CO-ORDINATOR

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A new £8.5 million initiative has beenlaunched to help enterprise-mindedpeople in key target groups set up theirown businesses.

Delivered by a regional consortium ledby A4E on behalf of the NWDA, the newBusiness Start Up programme is accessedthrough Business Link Northwest, theregion’s business support gateway.

SELF-EMPLOYMENTIt is already having an impact having

facilitated over 130 start-ups and generatedover 800 applications from people wantingto move into self-employment. One of theaims is to help improve the survival rate ofthese fledgling businesses.

The target groups are women, disabledpeople, members of black and minorityethnic communities and people living in sixdisadvantaged areas of the Northwest –Barrow, Blackpool, Halton, Knowsley,St. Helens and Wirral, as well as HousingMarket Renewal and Urban RegenerationCompany areas.

“These groups have generally notengaged with business support bodies,”explains Jim Johnstone, the NWDA’sStrategy Manager – Business.

“We needed something more specificthat would allow us to reach out and grabthese people and give them the option of

With turnover slipping away due to thegradual loss of traditional markets the 10-strong company faced an uncertain futureunless it could come up with some fresh ideas.

Working with Business Link NorthwestPalmer found that a step change was neededto halt the decline and suggested thecompany invest in e-commerce and try to findnew outlets at home and overseas.

Both ideas are now paying dividendsgiving the owners enough confidence tothink about moving to new premises andtaking on more staff. Advice given byThe Manufacturing Institute has alsoresulted in the company introducing moreprocess automation.

“There’s now an air of optimism about thefuture when you walk into the place – muchdifferent than when I first visited the factory,”reports Palmer, who is part of a brokerageteam assigned to the region’s food anddrinks industry.

By April 2008, a year after its launch,Business Link Northwest will have 220brokers as they are known, helping small andmedium size companies in the region toimprove their competitiveness.

WEB CONTACTBusiness Link Northwest brokers have

industry experience or have successfully runtheir own businesses. Palmer is a goodexample having spent 20 years building hisown food distribution company into a £15million turnover operation with 180 staff.

Nearly 46,000 users contacted Business LinkNorthwest in its first six months of operation,with 87% reporting satisfaction with thestreamlined service. Nearly two thirds used theweb to make contact, the remainder using thetelephone or email.

“People are engaging with us because it’sso easy for them to go online,” reportsManaging Director Peter Watson. “There’s

also no obligation to provide us withinformation – it’s all voluntary.”

AWARENESS CAMPAIGNRegionally managed but delivered locally,

Business Link Northwest is an impartial,free-to-use business support and informationservice providing a single point of contact forbusinesses seeking support.

Wholly owned by the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA) with an annualincome of £18 million and a projected staff of300, it has a head office and contact centre inPreston and a growing network ofsatellite offices.

It manages the Train-to-Gain skillsbrokerage service, works closely withorganisations such as UKTI and theManufacturing Advisory Service and acts as agateway to the regional Business Start Upsupport programme delivered by A4E.

Business Link Northwest is running a12-month ‘Just Ask’ brand awarenesscampaign to inform the market about therestructured service. Marketing ManagerTom Wilkins, the campaign architect,wants to get across the message that “weare here to inspire business to create wealthand opportunity.”

Peter Watson is keen to do more work withsmaller companies and with partners such asthe Institute of Directors, CBI North West andthe Federation of Small Businesses.

“Organisations are happier working with usnow because they realise we are not incompetition with them,” he says. “A goodexample is the way partners collaborated onthe regional consultation about thegovernment’s business simplification agenda.We are the living embodiment of whatbusiness simplification can achieve.”

For further information:www.businesslinknw.co.uk tel: 0845 0066888

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BUSINESS

Sweet idea – e-commerce is helpingThe Fudge Factory expand its markets

Life is a lot sweeter at The Fudge Factory since the firm’s owners, Jean and LarryEdwards, enlisted the help of Business Link Northwest broker Ian Palmer to chart a newcourse for the small Bacup-based enterprise.

START UP

Trading places – enterprise-mindedindividuals are offered encouragementand support to star their own businesses.

INSPIRING BUSINESS TO PROSPER

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self employment as an alterative to theircurrent lifestyle.”

Over the next two years Business Start Upaims to facilitate 4,200 start-ups.

Willing participants are taken under the wingof a dedicated business advisor who can providea range of support from helping to write abusiness plan to finding suitable premises.

”It’s a very bespoke service for eachindividual and it can involve a lot of hand-holding and confidence building,” saysJan Foster, Operations Director forBlue Orchid, a consultancy based inManchester and Liverpool, which is part ofthe A4E consortium.

“People face a variety of barriers, thebiggest often being finance. Once they starttrading we keep in touch and offer advice onthings like marketing and sales and how tofill in a tax return.”

AVOIDING PITFALLSSo far she and her team of ten business

advisers have helped over 50 people start upa variety of enterprises from a plumbingbusiness to a child minding service.

When he’s not on tour Martyn Walsh, bassplayer with the hit band Inspiral Carpets, oneof the famed ‘Madchester’ music groups,works three days a week helping Blue Orchidreach out to people in the entertainment andcreative industries.

He’s recently been using his musicindustry experience to advise young groupsand musicians how to avoid pitfalls whenthey go it alone.

“Bands have to take the business side ofmusic making more seriously. They have tobe a bit more strategic in the way they planthings and look further afield for their gigs,”he says.

Blue Orchid have held a number of eventsin African churches in the Longsight area ofManchester and also engaged with the city’sChinese community. One adviser, Somali bornAbdi Yusef, had been responsible for threestart-ups among Bolton’s Somali community.

Business Start Up partners in otherparts of the region have been equally zealousin spreading the enterprise message totarget groups using National EnterpriseWeek in November as a spur for a number oforiginal events.

In Liverpool, Train 2000 helped organise a‘Dare to Dream’ event to encourage morewomen to start a business while in LancashireEnterprise4all used a ‘Speed Dating’ formulaat three venues to match start-up mindedindividuals with business experts.

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“IT’S A VERY BESPOKE SERVICEFOR EACH INDIVIDUAL AND IT CANINVOLVE A LOT OF HAND-HOLDINGAND CONFIDENCE BUILDING.”

JAN FOSTEROPERATIONS DIRECTOR, BLUE ORCHID

SUPPORT SCHEME LAUNCHED

For further information:www.businesslinknw.co.uk

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BUSINESS

DARESBURY REACHES ENTERPRISE MILESTONE

All are currently located within theimpressive state-of-the-art DaresburyInnovation Centre, one of two new buildingsdeveloped by the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA) as part of itsten-year £50 million investment in the campussite. The Cockcroft Institute, the UK NationalCentre of Excellence in accelerator science,occupies the other building.

Backed by a number of business supportservices, the centre has been highly successfulin attracting digital/ICT, electronics,healthcare, instrumentation, and advancedengineering companies – the feedstock of theknowledge economy.

FRUITFUL COLLABORATION“What we are seeing is the development of

mini clusters in different market sectors andcompanies seeing opportunities to interactwith each other,“ reports John Leake,General Manager of the site businessdevelopment company.

Many tenants are in fruitful commercial orresearch-based collaboration, activity oftentriggered through informal contact atnetworking events.

It was at one such meeting that Mike Carterand Chris Haslam, co-directors of Ixis, an ITconsultancy and web development company,met up with Manoj Ranaweera who runsEbdex, an electronic invoicing enterprise, andagreed to form a third company, Edocr.

The joint venture has developed technologyto make it easier for companies to placedocuments online so they become moreavailable to the general public. “Daresbury isa great place for bouncing ideas off people, avery fertile environment in which to create newproducts and even new companies,”comments Carter.

Most of the 60 tenants located on thecampus are financed through their own tradingor through regional venture capital funds. Theyare supported by the rapidly growingDaresbury Network and access2expertsprogramme, which brings together a powerfulcommunity of high-tech SMEs, multi-nationalcompanies, universities and service providers.

STRATEGIC IMPORTANCEWith the space filling up plans are being

developed for another business centre building50% larger, at 36,000 sq ft, than the existingInnovation Centre. It will have small-scale laband work unit space and will cater forcompanies who have outgrown the originalbuilding and new arrivals.

The government has designated Daresburyas one of two strategically important nationalscience campuses where it will partnerbusiness, universities and research institutesin a drive to sharpen the UK’s globalcompetitiveness.

It is run by a joint venture company whoseEnterprise hothouse –Daresbury Innovation Centre

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Daresbury Science & Innovation Campus has reached a newmilestone in its drive to become a world-class hub of technology andresearch-driven commerce by attracting its 60th tenant, many ofwhom are interacting with each other.

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Scientists at the Joule Centre for EnergyResearch are set to play a crucial rolehelping the Northwest to win substantialnew funding for low-carbon technologies.

An estimated £100 million of new researchcapital will soon become available throughthe Energy Technologies Institute (ETI), abody set up by the government in 2006 tospeed up the development of new sustainableenergy solutions.

“There’s been a lack of spending on(energy) R&D since the demise of the publicutilities, which is one of the key reasons whyJoule was developed,” explains Joe Flanagan,Sector Leader – Energy and Environmental

Technologies at the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA), which isproviding the centre with £5 million overfive years.

But now Flanagan is confident that theJoule Centre, with its strong links to bothacademic and commercial sectors, willhelp the region secure a sizeable chunk ofthe funding.

ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIP“Part of what Joule is about is building up

the expertise in the region so that we can bemore successful when we bid into these hugecentral government research funds,” he says.

Based at the University of Manchester’sSackville Street campus, the centre wascreated on the back of the government’s 2003White Paper on Energy, which required eachregion to develop and implement an energystrategy with a strong emphasis onrenewables and efficiency.

Named after James Joule, the 19th centurySalford scientist, the centre is a partnershipof Northwest universities, commercialorganisations and other stakeholdersassociated with the energy industry.

As well as co-ordinating the bids forETI funding, the centre also provides a focalpoint for the region’s contribution tosustainable energy by funding new ideasand developments.

“What Joule is trying to do is developregional expertise by linking the universitysector with the commercial sector,”explains Flanagan.

SUSTAINABLE POWEREnergy has always been a key sector in the

Northwest, contributing some £5 billion tothe regional economy and employing over50,000 people, and now the sector is lookingto lead the way in renewables too.

So far the centre has awarded over£2.5 million in grants, funds which aredesigned to help projects reach the stagewhere they can start to attract privateinvestment of their own.

Projects have included a detailedevaluation of the tidal power potential of theeastern Irish Sea, which takes in six majorNorthwest river estuaries, including theRibble, Mersey and the Dee. The report aimsto discover whether 24-hour generation ispossible using a new device that convertsoffshore waves into electricity.

Joule’s own wave flume is also being usedto investigate new ways of harnessing thenatural motion of the sea.

The centre has also funded research intousing small scale hydro-electric schemes tobring regular power supplies to remoteparts of the region which don’t receivemains electricity.

Seed corn funding has also been used tostimulate new research into areas such asrecycling compressed air and developing newmaterials that can absorb hydrogen and thenuse it as an energy supply.

“Climate change is creating great marketsfor renewable energy devices and energyefficient technologies,” says Flanagan,“and the Joule Centre is an attempt tostimulate academia and industry to tryand develop products that they can sell intothese markets.”

For further information: www.joulecentre.org

partners include the NWDA, the Science &Technology Facilities Council, HaltonBorough Council and the Universities ofManchester, Liverpool and Lancaster andcurrently houses 1,000 research scientists,business people, technicians, engineers andsupport staff.

Daresbury is seeking to replicate thesuccess it had in attracting the CockcroftInstitute by winning the investment forseveral of the new Research Institutes, whichthe government recently, in principle,allocated to the site.

For further information:www.daresburysic.co.uk

GENERATING ENERGY SOLUTIONS

Taking to water – the JouleCentre wave flume

Helping hand– technical support is available

for campus start-ups

11

“PART OF WHAT JOULE IS ABOUT ISBUILDING UP THE EXPERTISE INTHE REGION SO THAT WE CAN BESUCCESSFUL WHEN WE BID INTOCENTRAL GOVERNMENTRESEARCH FUNDS.”

JOE FLANAGAN

SECTOR LEADER – ENERGY

AND ENVIRONMENTAL

TECHNOLOGIES, NWDA

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SUPPORT FOR OVERSEAS TRADECompanies in the region’s key businesssectors are being urged to go global tohelp accelerate economic growth acrossthe region.

In a bid to boost export activity theNorthwest Regional Development Agency(NWDA) is providing £4.9 million funding overthe next three years to assist UK Trade andInvestment (UKTI) in offering businessessupport to help them compete on theinternational stage.

International trade is seen as a crucial toolin the region’s drive to cut the North-Southprosperity gap. Last year the Northwestincreased its exports by 23% to an all timehigh of £24 billion and now accounts for 14%of England’s exports.

UKTI will use the additional resources to offeran expanded portfolio of services aimed at awide corporate spectrum from novice exportersto high growth technology companies.

PRIORITY SECTORSThe money will be used to exploit overseas

trade opportunities for companies operatingin the priority business sectors and marketsidentified in the Regional Economic Strategy.This will form one of the major delivery projectsoutlined in the Northwest InternationalisationStrategy to be launched in 2008.

Priority sectors such as pharmaceuticalsand chemicals are major drivers of theregion’s £111 billion economy and last year

the two industries together contributed amassive 44% of the Northwest’s overallexport performance.

The NWDA and One NorthEast havestrengthened their overseas marketingoperations in the valuable biomedical sectorby appointing Scott Kozak as the new Boston-based Vice-President of Life Sciences for thejointly funded North of England InvestmentAgency. He will focus on opportunities in theregenerative medicine industry.

TRADE MISSIONSOver 7,000 of the region’s companies are

trading globally and research evidence hasshown these firms tend to have higherproductivity and innovations levels and are11% more likely to survive in the long term.

On average firms new to international tradeexperience a 34% increase in output in theyear they start exporting. Exporters also havea relatively higher capacity to value,assimilate and apply knowledge.

Export services has been streamlined in thepast few months after UKTI contractedChamberlink, on behalf of the Chambers ofCommerce North West (CCNW), to provideinternational trade support across the region.

It will work closely with Business LinkNorthwest as the region’s gateway to businesssupport and with regional cluster organisations,particularly on sector trade missions.

A recent sector mission to Japan by the

Chemical Industries Association, supported byUKTI, gave three Northwest companies, Runcorn-based ACAL Energy, Reaxa from Blackley andthe University’s Nanoco Technologies, achance to showcase their skills to globalgiants such as Panasonic and Toshiba.

“This was an important step for usoutside the pharmaceutical sector in Japanand we have had a number of inquiries as aresult of the visit,“ explained Peter Jackson,Chief Executive of Reaxa Ltd, who alsoled the mission.

The two-year old company, a buy-out fromAvecia employing 12 people, has developedcatalyst technology to help companies makegreener and cleaner chemicals.

“Doing business in Japan is a five yearhaul,” reports Jackson. “Japanese companieswill not do business with someone they don’tknow but if UK companies put in the effortover a number of years they’ll eventually berewarded with business that will be on-going.”

Backed by a strong team of over 30International Trade Advisers (ITAs), UKTIoffers a range of services including the ‘Meetthe Buyer’ programme, which generatedexport business worth over £20 millionbetween 2004 and 2006, and Passport toExport for first-time exporters.

For further information:www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk

BUSINESS

12

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13

The Northwest Regional DevelopmentAgency (NWDA) has enlisted the support ofsome of the region’s leading entrepreneursto help the Northwest regain its reputationas a hotbed of enterprise.

When it comes to enterprise in the21st century the Northwest is behind theEngland average.

Estimates suggest that there is an‘enterprise gap’ in the Northwest that equatesto around 40,000 businesses, along withgrowth rates for existing businesses that arebelow the national norm.

To help reverse the trend, the NWDA has setup the Northwest Enterprise Forum (NWEF) toact as a sounding board and help the Agencyand its partners develop and implement a newregional enterprise strategy.

The Forum is made up of 15 leadingbusinesspeople with a particular interest inenterprise, who have been nominated by keybusiness and enterprise groups across theregion. These include the Northwest EthnicMinority Business Forum, Institute of Directorsand the Northwest Social Enterprise Network.

ENTERPRISE BARRIERSMark Hughes, NWDA Executive Director of

Enterprise and Skills, says: “The Forum willsteer the Agency and our partners withintelligence on the challenges and solutions toenterprise barriers in the region.”

Robert Davis, Managing Director ofCheshire power engineering specialists EATechnology, is the Forum’s first Chair.

“The Northwest needs to improve businesssurvival and growth rates,” he says. “We needto create nearly 40,000 additional businessesjust to catch up to the national average. TheNorthwest Enterprise Forum will utilise the‘on-the-ground’ experience of its businessmembers to advise how the region canencourage entrepreneurship, help businessesgrow, and help boost the economy.”

The Forum was launched during NationalEnterprise Week, an annual event that seeks

to inspire young people to take a greaterinterest in business and enterprise.

NEXT BIG THINGAs part of the activities, over 500 Northwest

teenagers attended the Next Big Thing eventat the Print Works in Manchester. Co-hosted bythe NWDA and Institute of Directors, theevent featured talks from leading localentrepreneurs and an inspirational addressfrom leading American basketball starJohn Amaechi.

It was an occasion that rung bells with theForum too, as Davis is keen to highlight theneed to find more regional entrepreneurs toact as role models for young people.Teenagers would also benefit from plansto strengthen links between enterprise and education.

“There isn’t enough interaction betweenbusiness and universities particularly interms of bringing on enterprising people,”says Davis, who believes business and

academia are often ‘more competitivethan co-operative.’

The Forum will also attempt to change theway people think about failure. “Stigmatisingbankruptcy is unhelpful when it comes tostimulating an enterprise culture,” says Davis,who wants to see a cultural change towardsfailure that views it more as a learning pointthan a black mark.

Another key idea the Forum is set tochampion is ‘interpreneurship’, which involves encouraging employees who have agood idea for a product or service to develop itwithin that company rather than leaving togo it alone.

“It’s not an idea that’s widely used andI think we should do much more of it,” Daviscontinues. “The companies retain equityand great people, and if it doesn’t work outthey’ve still got them on board rather thanas a competitor.”

For more information www.nwda.co.uk

Inspiring the young – basketball starJohn Amaechi was a keynote speaker at

The Next Big Thing

FORUM TO PROMOTEENTERPRISE CULTURE

315-14 P12-13 18/1/08 11:06 Page 2

NEWS

West Cumbria has been chosen as thelocation for the head office of the newlyannounced NationalSkills Academy forNuclear, which willassist employers intackling the currentand future challengesfacing the nuclear industry in areasas diverse as decommissioning andpower production.

Scientists at the University of Manchesterhave launched a new Aerospace ResearchInstitute (UMARI), an interdisciplinaryfacility that is expected to play a major rolein the development of quieter, moreefficient and more durable aircraft. Morethan 100 researchers are already workingon an array of projects.

Raising workforce skill levels and helpingdisadvantaged people into work are keyaims of the newEuropean Social Fund(ESF) programme,which will invest£360 million in theNorthwest between2007-2013. Merseyside will receive£138 million of this total in recognition ofits transitional status.

Three fledgling businesses are set tomove into the new £8.4 million GordonManley Building at Lancaster Universityafter winning a competition run by theEnvironment Centre (LEC) to find freshbusiness ideas with an environmentalbias. The winners receive 12 months freeincubation support and accommodation.

Six organisations and individuals wonNational Training Awards at a regionalawards ceremony in Liverpool sponsoredby the NWDA and City & Guilds. Theyincluded Amelia Shemilt of Audlem,Bentley Motors, M&S Money, NorthTrafford College, The Bank of New Yorkand Merseytravel.

Phil Barton who has played a key rolein lifting the skillslevels of regenerationpractitioners is joiningENCAMS as ChiefExecutive. He workedfor Defra, Groundwork,the Mersey Basin Campaign and the Co-operative Bank before becomingDirector of RENEW Northwest.

14

Early milestones include the opening of a£6 million Design Studio, an InnovationFactory, the appointment of three newprofessors to boost its world-class researchin smart materials and a broadening of itscourse portfolio in fast growing sectors suchas computer games.

The university is also establishing itself asa key provider of continuing professionaldevelopment, offering employers flexibleskills enhancing programmes that can bedelivered on campus, in the workplace or bye-learning, one of Bolton’s great strengths.

“We are trying to get away from the ideathat universities are just nine-to-five placesfor fulltime young 18 year olds,” explains Dr.Peter Marsh, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor.

Student numbers are expected to rise from8,800 to 10,000 within three years with muchof the growth coming from employer-relatedlearning programmes.

Bolton hopes to make its mark byexpanding its portfolio of professionally-

accredited programmes targeting the socalled “para professions”, such asparamedics, technical officers and associateengineers, the groups that have been growingfastest in the modern economy.

SPORTS EDUCATION“There are lots of areas of the economy

where employees can enter at a starter orintermediate level and then go on to qualifyfor full professional status. It’s a model veryevident in construction where we are thebiggest provider of part-time industryeducation in the region,” adds Dr Marsh.

Bolton has been providing skilled, educatedpeople for local industries, particularlyengineering and textiles, for over 180 yearsthrough its former incarnation as BoltonInstitute and its earlier origins as BoltonMechanics Institute.

It has established a quality track record inscience and technology, the built environmentand also in health, psychology, and the


Campus hub – the Eagle Mallentrance to the student centre

The University of Bolton’s climb up the higher education ladder - it wasawarded university status three years ago - has provided the institution witha new impetus to distinguish itself in the region’s knowledge economy.

“WE ARE TRYING TO GET AWAYFROM THE IDEA THATUNIVERSITIES ARE JUST NINE-TO-FIVE PLACES FOR FULLTIMEYOUNG 18 YEAR OLDS”.

DR PETER MARSHDEPUTY VICE CHANCELLOR

TRAINING GROUND creative industries. Bolton is alsoemerging as a vibrant centre for business andsports education.

Under the leadership of Dr. George Holmes,the Vice-Chancellor, the university aims tobecome “a leading professional universitywith a clear-sighted focus on making asignificant contribution to the welfare,prosperity and prestige of the Northwest”.

It works closely with the NorthwestRegional Development Agency (NWDA) inareas such as manufacturing and innovationand in raising skills and enterprise levels inthe priority growth sectors identified in theRegional Economic Strategy.

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15

Bolton has hit a winning streak since itlaunched degree courses in computergames. More than 250 students areenrolled on programmes run by theuniversity and many go on to work in theregion’s games industry.

Five former Bolton students wonrecognition for their work on Motorstorm,a blockbuster game developed by Runcorn-based Evolution Studios for Sony’sPlaystation 3.

Andrew Williams, Principal Lecturer inGames Computing and CreativeTechnologies, reports a ‘halo effect’ withpeople spinning out of the bigger companiesto start up on their own.

The university recently held a networkingevent for new media companies to makethem aware of the business potential of the£1 billion a year casual games market.

Casual games are accessed from awebsite and can be played online. They canbe produced inexpensively by one or twograduates as a way of showcasing theirtalents to the mainstream industry.

Style icon – Bolton’s newDesign Studio at night

For further information:www.bolton.ac.uk

One of the biggest co-investments in recentyears has been the £6 million Design Studio,a stylishly designed building where small andmedium size companies can interact withstudents on new product development to theirmutual benefit.

SMART FABRICSBolton has further strengthened its

enterprise credentials by opening a£1.6 million Innovation Factory, wherecompanies can turn their ideas into prototypeform and gain specialist help from staff andstudents on production and innovation issues.

Some of the best ideas for commercialexploitation are emanating from theuniversity’s Centre for MaterialsResearch and Innovation, where researchteams are working on a range of smartfabric technologies.

Among the products in the pipeline is aheat sensitive bra to detect early signs ofbreast cancer, clothes that generate heat inArctic conditions and a bulletproof vestthat has been successfully tested bythe US military.

The university completed an £11 millioninvestment in new estate in 2006, and hasembarked on a second development phasecosting £8 million, which includes projectssuch as the Innovation Factory and a new

social learning zone. Ranked top in the Northwest for student

satisfaction, according to the Times GoodUniversity Guide 2008, Bolton hassuccessfully widened access to students fromdisadvantaged groups by agreeing‘progression accords’ with 24 local furthereducation and sixth form colleges.

Students entering the university throughthis route are guaranteed bursary supporttowards their top-up fees. A third of allstudents studying at Bolton are nowcovered by these arrangements at a total costof £1 million.

The university is a growing influence in thetown’s regeneration and is working with thecouncil to create the Bolton Innovation Zone,a 38-hectare business, leisure andeducational quarter that could attractinvestment of £300 million and generate4,000 jobs.

Talks are taking place about the possibleco-location of Bolton Community College andBolton Sixth Form College close to theuniversity to encourage progression fromfurther to higher education, thereby providingincoming companies with a pool of skilled,educated labour.

BOLTON STUDENTSSTRIKE THE JACKPOT

FOR KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY

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Weeks later he met Lee Price, an OutreachAdviser working with Positive Steps Into Work,a Blackpool Council run programmesupported by the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA) aimed at gettinglong term Incapacity Benefit claimants backinto gainful employment, and his life changed.

After four years on benefits he wasdesperate to start work but faced having tofind £1,800 to renew his qualifications andcouldn’t get from the agencies he approached.

Working together, Peter found a company inKirkham willing to offer him a job for 16 hoursa week provided he updated his qualificationsand Positive Steps Into Work contributed

£1,300 towards his initial training with theemployer agreeing to fund the remainder.

Lee gave him intensive support resulting inPeter completing two of his threequalifications and reaching the standardrequired. He has since started work with thecompany testing equipment and premises inthe care industry.

“Peter sees this as an initial first step backinto employment on a full-time basis,”explained Lee. “He was fearful of coming offbenefits and being unable to support hisfamily but by offering him a package ofsupport to suit his needs we have been able togive him a new start on the jobs ladder.”

Positive Steps Into Work is one of severalinnovative, locally focused Northern Way-funded programmes tackling the deeplyentrenched problem of worklessness acrossthe region, a problem that’s costing theNorthwest £3 billion in lost output.

BUILDING TRUSTMore than 4,400 claimants had been

engaged by mid 2007, 175 had been helpedinto work and a further 116 into training.

Delivery teams have faced differentchallenges in different areas. In Blackpool, forexample, alcohol addiction and seasonalemployment are serious issues amongstsome of the economically inactive, while inManchester the focus has been on linkingindividuals to local employment opportunities.

Vanda De Freitas, Manager of Positive StepsInto Work, a West Lancashire initiative, reportshaving moved “a good few” people like PeterLyle back into work, others into volunteeringor on to educational courses.

“Even if people want to go back to work theyneed retraining and some need to be taughtquite basic skills like how to read.The longer they stay on Incapacity Benefitthe more they lose their self-confidenceand motivation.”

Projects share a common, well structuredprogression model of engaging hard to reach

16


Confidence boost – long-term claimant Donna O’Neill foundwork as a receptionist after a personal development course

Switched on – electrician Peter Lyle isback in work after four years on benefit

Long term benefit claimant Peter Lyle’s spirits dropped when a Job Centre Plusadviser told him he had “no chance” of working again as an electrician despite theskills and experience he has acquired.

RECONNECTING TO THE WORKPLACE

315-14 P16-17 18/1/08 15:57 Page 1

claimants where they live, shop and socialise,building trust and then customising support toindividual needs before linking them to jobs.Mentoring and training are importantelements of the package.

Aftercare is crucial in keeping people on thepath of sustainable employment and claimantstend to keep the same adviser, says theNWDA’s Director of Skills Policy, Lis Smith.

NEW IMPETUS“We try and give them lots of support so

that if they hit problems in the early stages ofemployment they have someone to contact.”

The Northern Way Growth Initiative fundedfive projects with Knowsley Works, the firstpilot, receiving £1 million and each of theothers, Stepping Stones (Greater Manchester),Working 4U (Liverpool and Wirral), Routes toWork (Cumbria) and Positive Steps(Lancashire) receiving £750,000.

Action against worklessness in the regionwill be given new impetus when the secondprogramme begins in April.

In 2006 there were 755,000 people ofworking age claiming out-of-workbenefits in the region, 400,000 of whomare Incapacity Benefit claimants, nearly onein ten of the population.

A newly completed report commissioned bythe NWDA cites worklessness as a key

contributing factor in the region’s£18 billion output gap with the rest ofEngland. It estimates that £3 billion islost by having comparatively fewerpeople working.

Managers on the worklessness projectsfirmly believe there are positive socialinclusion, crime, health and anti-povertyspin-offs in getting people off benefits andinto work.

“There are big mental health andbehavioural issues – low confidence, lowesteem and depression” says Lis Smith.“One of the keys to success is encouragingthese individuals to look for work. If they aremotivated to find a job they usually do.”

Building on ideas and experience gained inthe pilot projects, the new programme willtarget a number of disadvantaged worklessgroups in specific geographical areas. Keygoals are raising productivity and linkingpeople with jobs.

Priority targets include lone parents,the disabled, the over 50s, people withno qualifications (45% of claimantshave very low skills), black and ethnicminority groups, ex-offenders andthe homeless.

For further information:www.nwda.co.uk

17

BREAKING OUTOF DEPENDENCYCULTUREAfter six years on Incapacity Benefit,Halewood resident Donna O’Neill has brokenthe cycle of dependency by undergoing apersonal development course and landinga job with Knowsley Works, the veryproject group that started her on thepath to recovery.

The single mother of two teenage boys hadbeen suffering from depression and anxietyand found it difficult to leave the housebecause of panic attacks, causing her todespair that she would ever findemployment again.

After registering with Knowsley Works, aNorthern Way funded pilot establishedby the NWDA to deal with worklessness inhard to reach groups, her prospectsbegan to brighten.

Working with a development officer sheattended some workshops run by Prism, acharity which supports people with mentalhealth issues and low self esteem, beforegoing on to undertake an intensive 14-weekcourse run by the Knowsley Works PublicSector Academy programme.

Donna went on placement as a receptionistworking for the project group’s busycommunity-based Jobs, Education andTraining (JET) service, gaining sufficientconfidence to successfully apply for a full-time vacancy.

Knowsley Works Manager Tony Cavanaghsays some clients have been on benefits for15-20 years and need a lot of coaching andcounselling to get them ready to re-enteremployment.

“There are a whole host of supportmechanisms available from adult learning todebt management. All our programmes arevery successful.”

315-14 P16-17 18/1/08 15:57 Page 2

WARRINGTON TARGETS

18

Warrington has opened a new chapter as agrowth engine for the Northwest by unveilinga £2.7 billion regeneration action plan totransform the business, retail, social andcultural profile of the town.

The recently approved 20-year frameworkenvisages a renaissance of the town centre,better transport links, new urban villages, arevitalised waterfront and more opportunitiesfor disadvantaged communities.

“This is a place of huge potential but it needsa firm and clear identity,” explains Andy Farrall,Warrington Borough Council’s StrategicDirector for Environment and Regeneration.

“We need to refocus and refine the town’simage as a significant business, shopping andlifestyle location so it can punch its weight inthe region’s economy. People tend to see

Warrington as a fairly small place. We tend toforget how big we are.”

The town is already benefiting frominvestment in higher education – a key elementin the drive to target new knowledge -drivenbusiness sectors – an expanded retail offering,a new transport interchange and 21st centurybusiness accommodation.

Helped by £5 million funding support fromthe Northwest Regional Development Agency,(NWDA) Warrington Collegiate has opened anew campus and the University of Chester hascompleted a new £3 million Business Centre atPadgate, again with grant aid of £2.4 millionfrom the Agency.

The NWDA also provided funding assistancefor the town’s new bus station and hascommitted £900,000 to a five-year initiative thatenables residents of some of the mostdisadvantaged areas to plug into theemployment and training opportunities comingto the town.

The scheme is on track to help 300unemployed people into jobs by March, mainlyin construction, social care and retail.

Work is also due to start on the first phaseof development of the Omega strategic sitealongside the M62, a major opportunity for theregion as a whole, not just Warrington.

A counterbalance between Manchester andLiverpool, Warrington has seen its fortunesrise dramatically during the past 30 years as aresult of its strategic location at the hub of the

NEWS

Peel Holdings has appointed BrianGreasley to spearhead the development ofdisused dockland atSalford Quays as aninternational digitaland creative hub.He takes up the postManaging Director ofmediacity:uk afterhaving held senior positions in telecoms,media, internet and venture capital.

Liverpool’s Gladstone Conservatory,currently derelict, will be converted into amulti-purpose enterprise facilityfollowing approval by the NWDA of a£9.2 million regeneration package for thearea around Liverpool FC’s new stadium atStanley Park.

The second phase of a major developmentat Oaklands Office Park near EllesmerePort in Cheshire has been completed. Theproject, which received a £400,000 grantfrom the NWDA, has created seven newcontemporary office units covering 30,000sq ft and is expected to create over 100new jobs for the local area.

Northwest farmers and rural businessesaffected by movement restrictions causedby Foot and Mouth and Bluetongueoutbreaks in theSouth of England arebeing offered a£320,000 package ofsupport by theNWDA, signpostedthrough BusinessLink Northwest. Farmers in upland areasare a high priority.

Funding support of £350,000 is beingprovided by the NWDA to help homelessmen and women off the streets and intothe workplace. The money will be used bythe charity Emmaus to refurbish abuilding in Preston as a community basethat can be used by homeless people as aroute to social stability and mainstreamemployment.

Construction is under way at RamsdenBusiness Park, Barrow-in-Furness, thefirst of three related schemes that willmake up the Waterfront Business Park, aproject that is aimedat diversifying thetown’s economycreating 1,500 jobs.The NWDA provided£8 million in fundingsupport towards thepurchase of the redundant dockland site.

PEOPLE AND JOBS

Investing in higher education – the Universityof Chester’s new Business Centre

New bus station – Warrington has bucked thenational trend by increasing bus use

315-14 P18-19 22/1/08 09:49 Page 1

region’s motorway network and its New Townstatus which has delivered new housing,schools, amenities and business parks in thegreener suburbs.

Its economic success in recent years isrecognised in the Regional Economic Strategy,which identifies Warrington, alongside Crewe,Chester, Lancaster and Carlisle as a majorgrowth location with significant potential forknowledge based activities.

Chris Koral, the NWDA’s Policy andPartnership Manager for Cheshire andWarrington, says the Agency is working closelywith the council and the Cheshire andWarrington Economic Alliance to developelements of the framework.

“Effective partnership working to create the

conditions necessary to attract and support newprivate sector investment will be critical to thesuccessful implementation of the framework.”he says.

The blueprint seeks to distance Warringtonfrom the New Town era by building a morecohesive, urban identity that marries newcommunities such as Birchwood withrejuvenated, older areas.

“We have produced a regeneration blueprintthat is more focused on smart growth,” saysFarrall. “We need to attract more worthwhilejobs – growth that tackles the deprived areasand makes use of the huge bank of brownfieldland that exists in the town.”

Ten programmes have been formulated tomake Warrington an attractive lifestyle town

19

S SMART GROWTH

“WE NEED TO REFOCUS ANDREFINE THE TOWN’S IMAGE AS ASIGNIFICANT BUSINESS, SHOPPINGAND LIFESTYLE LOCATION SO THATIT CAN PUNCH ITS WEIGHT IN THEREGION’S ECONOMY .”

ANDY FARRALLSTRATEGIC DIRECTOR FOR ENVIRONMENT

AND REGENERATION, WARRINGTONBOROUGH COUNCIL

For further information:www. warrington.gov.uk

Much of the framework focus is on bringingabout a renaissance of the town centre,making Warrington livelier at night andpopulating it with new homes, shops, officesand enhanced visitor attractions.

Key components of the plan include ahigh-density business and leisure districtaround Central Station, kick-started by theModus Wireworks development, and a new

zone of business and enterprise alongWinwick Road (the Northern Spine).

Warrington Borough Council is makingprogress on other important pieces of theregeneration jigsaw. It will shortly start amaster planning exercise to revitalise theBridge Street Quarter with shops, offices,homes, a new market hall and square.

It’s also developing plans with NetworkRail and Virgin Trains to develop Bank Quayas a mainline station with gateway links tothe town centre, and is working with PeelHoldings on a development blueprint for the

Manchester Ship Canal Corridor.Town planners are keen on exploiting the

investor appeal of the town’s waterfront.“We have a golden opportunity to emulatewhat many attractive towns and cities inEurope have – a waterfront with exhibitionand conference facilities,” insists Farrall.

“Hotel operators are keen to come herewhich would allow us to develop a businesstourism product. The council will masterplanthe area, parcel up sites and offer them toprivate developers, using CompulsoryPurchase Order powers if necessary.”

TOWN CENTREREJUVENATION

well equipped to force the pace of growth withinthe Northern Way corridor.

They cover everything from creating morebusiness districts and sustainableneighbourhoods to better transport and ITconnectivity and a shift to place rather thanproduct marketing.

The framework is built around overarchingprinciples such as reducing the impact ofclimate change, quality in design, equalopportunity, neighbourhood safety,community engagement, partnership workingand sustainability.

The council wants to develop a number of eco-communities based on the urban village concept,the first of which is Chapelford with 2000 homes.

Projected cost of the transformation is£2.7 billion over 20 years, most it from theprivate sector. Andy Farrall claims there willbe minimal pump priming by the public sectorbut the council will make land available tocatalyse developments.

“It’s about how you use that land and howyou provide the private sector with informationabout what it is you want them to do. We thinkwe are unique in the Northwest because wehave large amounts of brownfield land andtrack record of delivery.”

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PEOPLE AND JOBS

Worth £521 million – the largest amount ofany English region – the European RegionalDevelopment Fund (ERDF) programme 2007-13 will be managed by the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency (NWDA).

The money will be tightly focused on actionsthat correspond with the competitivenessaspirations of the EU’s Lisbon Agenda andthe priorities identified in the RegionalEconomic Strategy.

Applicants seeking ERDF and NWDA singlepot support will find the task simpler andquicker since the NWDA will operate a single,integrated appraisal process for the twofunding streams.

PRIORITY OBJECTIVESThe transfer of responsibility for the

programme from Government Office for theNorth West (GONW) represents a new ‘first’ forthe NWDA, prompting the Agency’s ChiefExecutive Steven Broomhead to describe it asan “important milestone” for the region.

“This is likely to be the last significant ERDFprogramme, and the region must ensure theseresources are aligned with its economic prioritiesand used for measured impact. The Agencywill ensure that all systems and processes arein place for delivery to run smoothly,” he says.

“WITH THE PARTNER EXPERTISEAT OUR DISPOSAL WE HAVE AGOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE ALASTING CONTRIBUTION TO JOBCREATION AND THE OVERALLPROSPERITY OF THE REGION.”

DAVID MALPASS

DIRECTOR

OF EUROPEAN

PROGRAMME, NWDA

ERDF FUNDINGAIDS DRIVE FORPROSPERITYRegional partners are drawing up investment plans to use a new round of Europeanfunding to deliver more prosperity. The money will be used over the next six yearsto create over 26,000 additional jobs and boost productivity by over £1 billion.

For further information: www.nwda.co.uk

effect on growing Merseyside’s Gross ValueAdded (GVA) above the 75% threshold thattriggers the award of structural funds.

The overall thrust of the programme is oneof improving competitiveness in line with theEU’s Lisbon Agenda which targets growththrough specific, high value addedinterventions.

In the Northwest investments will befocused on delivering high economic growthbased on environmental sustainability andequality and diversity. Targets include creating26,700 net additional jobs, improving theregion’s annual GVA by £1.17 billion and a 25%reduction in additional CO2 emissionsgenerated from Programme investments.

The Agency has appointed David Malpass, aprofessional senior manager who headed upBirmingham Chamber of Commerce’sAccelerate initiative, as its new Director ofEuropean Programme.

His job will be to ensure the new Europeanprogramme is delivered and aligns closely withthe priority objectives of the RES and conformsto the ERDF regulatory framework.

He will be responsible for supporting theProgramme Monitoring Committee (PMC)in managing the strategic direction ofthe programme.

The 25-strong PMC, whose members covera broad spectrum of regional and sub-regionalpartners, will meet in the New Year to considerinvestment frameworks for the 11 action areasidentified in the North West OperatingProgramme (NWOP) document, which receivedapproval from the European Commission atthe end of December 2007.

The 300-page NWOP document wasproduced after extensive consultation withpartners from the public, private andvoluntary sectors.

It contains four Priority themes – supportingbusiness, supporting innovation andtechnology, capital investment and communityeconomic development.

“With the partner expertise at our disposalwe have a golden opportunity to make alasting contribution to job creation and theoverall prosperity of the region,” commentedDavid Malpass.

The overall level of funding - £521 million –is about half the ERDF value of the 2000-06Objective 1 and 2 programmes. Forty per centof the money – approximately £212 million –will be ‘ring fenced’ for Merseyside.

Previous Objective One and Objective Twoprogrammes covered only about 60% of theNorthwest whereas the new arrangements willtake in the whole region.

Objective One funding has had a catalytic

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n The Northwest has a population of6.85 million

n Gender split: NW male 48.9%, 51.1% female(England 49.1% male, 50.9% female)

n Black minority ethnic population:NW 7.1% (England 10.9%)

n Working age population with disability:NW 19.9% (England 18.4%)

n Population over official retirement age:NW 18.9% (England 18.6%)

n Employment rate:NW 72.5% (England 74.3%)

n Foreign nationals registered for NationalInsurance number in 06/07:NW 52,000 (England 615,000)

21

CELEBRATING THEREGION’S DIVERSITY

Full participation – enjoying the Celebr8 festival

FACT FILE“PEOPLE CAN BE SCARED OFGETTING IT WRONG WHEREEQUALITY AND DIVERSITY ISCONCERNED, BUT WE MUSTREMEMBER THAT MUCH OF WHATIS INVOLVED IS COMMON SENSE.”

EVELYN ASANTE-MENSAH

HEAD OF EQUALITY

AND DIVERSITY

NWDA

Already plans are taking shape for thethird 2008 Festival which aims to highlightthe positive impact diverse communitieshave on the region – socially, culturally andeconomically.

The Celebr8 (don’t discrimin8) Festival wasthe first such regional event of its kind in theUK. Co-ordinated by the North West RegionalAssembly (NWRA) with support from theNorthwest Regional Development Agency(NWDA) and Government Office North West(GONW), it holds a variety of activitiesstretching across the region from Barrow-in-Furness to Chester.

Evelyn Asante-Mensah, Head of Equality andDiversity at the NWDA, highlights Celebr8 asjust one of a series of events and organisationsthat help to make her task easier.

EQUAL ACCESSShe heads a seven-strong team, which

works both internally and externally to ensurethat equality and diversity is integral to theeconomic development of the region andenables everyone “to have equitable and equalaccess to appropriate services and are able toparticipate within the regional economy.”

“When people think of the meaning ofequality and diversity, they immediately think ofrace, gender and disability – the three areaswhere we have legal responsibilities,” saysMs Asante-Mensah, who joined the Agency inJuly from her role as strategic adviser forGONW, on secondment from the Black HealthAgency (BHA).

But there are many other strands involved,she says, including sexual orientation, religion

and belief, ageing, poverty, migrant workersand rural issues.

Organisations working to encompass diversecommunities, all supported by the NWDA,include the Ethnic Minority Business Forumand the Faiths4Change project which isengaging faith communities in transforminglocal environments in the inner cities.

They will make contact with prospectiveemployers, particularly in hospitality, cateringand construction - areas in which prisonersoften receive training – and offer support tothose willing to give jobs to ex-offenders.

Lack of employment has proved to be aprimary trigger to re-offending which costs thenational economy over £11 billion per year.

In the arts, the Creative Communitiesinitiative – a programme of public andcommunity art - is underway as part ofLiverpool 08, where European Capital ofCulture status is giving the city a chance toreflect the diversity of its heritage.

The NWDA, NWRA and GONW are the threestrategic partners committed to delivering theregion’s three-year Equality and DiversityStrategy and Implementation Plan drawn up in2006. Their overall responsibility is to secureeconomic inclusion for all.

“Internally our team is building on the goodwork which has been done and supporting theAgency to become better equipped to be partof the leadership in the region,” says MsAsante-Mensah.

“People can be scared of getting it wrongwhere equality and diversity is concerned,but we must remember that much of what isinvolved is common sense – it’s about respectand dignity and being treated as we wantto be treated. We are all different but we havelots in common.”

For further information:Email: [email protected]: 01925 400100

From the 50-strong orchestra of diverse musicians striking up atthe launch to the re-creation of Montmartre in Manchester’sPiccadilly to mark the close, the week-long Celebr8 Festival acrossthe Northwest in June 2007 was a resounding success.

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NEWS

International architects are being invitedto submit designs for an Observatory toreplace a disused radar tower onCrosby Beach,Merseyside. Thelandmark touristattraction wouldprovide unrivalledviews of cruiseliners enteringLiverpool harbour. The competitionwinners will be announced in March.

Twelve Northwest communities are setto benefit from the Sustrans Connect2project, which was announced as thewinner of The People’s £50 MillionGiveaway. The funding, from the BigLottery Fund, will be used to create newwalking and cycling routes in 79communities across the UK.

Councils across the Northwest are setto benefit from £672 milliongovernment investment in localtransport schemesover the next threeyears. The moneywill allow localauthorities to investin new road safetyschemes, betterstreet lighting, road maintenance, parkand ride facilities and cycle and bus lanes.

West Lakes Renaissance is seeking adeveloper for the £120 million MarinaVillage project in Barrow-in-Furness.The dockland scheme will transform aformer railway works into a newcommunity with over 650 homes, a 350-berth marina, hotel, retail spaceand leisure facilities.

Funding support of £8 million is beingprovided by the NWDA to help Metrolinkimprove services on the Salford Quaysline. Peak hours service frequency willdouble to 10 trams an hour as a resultof the investment.

Traffic has started using a stretch of thenew £35 million A590 High and LowNewton Bypass,which will remove90% of throughtraffic from theCumbrian villages.Over 51,000 nativetrees and shrubsare being planted along the dualcarriageway road. The full 4km longBypass is expected to be open in Spring.

22

INFRASTRUCTURE

Liverpool’s drive to become one of Europe’spremier visitor destinations has moved intotop gear with the opening of the striking£154 million Arena and Convention Centreon the Kings Waterfront development, aniconic symbol of the city’s rejuvenation.

The 10,600-seater Echo Arena Liverpoolwas completed in time to host a weekend ofspectacular events that launched the city’syear as European Capital of Culture. A multi-storey car park is also operational.

Elements of the Convention Centre – thearched Galleria and a 3,725 sq m multi-purpose hall, which can double up asexhibition space, will open in Februaryfollowed by the upper levels and theConvention’s main auditorium from mid-April.

“This is a fabulous building - the most up-to-date and sophisticated complex of its kind inEurope and it’s been fantastically received byour client base,” enthuses Bob Prattey, ChiefExecutive of ACC Liverpool, which will managethe energy-saving venue on behalf ofLiverpool City Council, the long lease owners.

He sees the design of the building – thework of award-winning architects WilkinsonEyre – as “a key point of differentiation” inthe increasingly competitive global pitch forhigh profile conference, entertainment andsporting events.

Bookings confirmed will have an economic

impact in 2008 of £60 million. A total of 144events – 80 of them conferences and severalwith over 1,000 delegates – have been signedup and many others are in the pipeline.

The city’s visitor appeal will be furtherenhanced when the £920 million ParadiseStreet project (Liverpool One) opposite theAlbert Dock is completed in Spring 2008.Grosvenor has developed the 42-acre sitewithout any public money, a sure sign ofinvestor confidence in the city’s future.

HIGH STANDARDSThe giant scheme is one of the biggest

regeneration projects in Europe. It adds 30individually designed buildings to the city’sskyline, 1.65 million sq ft (154,000 sq m) ofretail space, over 630 residential units, 3,000parking spaces (2,100 of them new), 230,000sq ft (21,500 sq m) of leisure space and afive-acre park.

Construction of the third ingredient in thevisitor attractions mix, the highlycontemporary Museum of Liverpool on theMann Island site, should be completed by theend of 2008 and be ready for opening in 2010.

The NWDA is contributing over £32 milliontowards the £50 million developmentcosts of the project, which is expected togenerate 750,000 visits a year. Togetherthe three flagship projects should create

LIVERPOOL ARENATAKES CENTRE STAGE

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23

nearly 3,500 full-time jobs.The Agency has also provided over

£18 million of funding support for the ACCLiverpool project, which sets high standardsin environmental, employment and supplychain sustainability.

The complex is one of the ‘greenest’ arenaand convention centres in Europe havingbeen configured and equipped to producehalf the CO2 emissions of a traditional build.

All its energy needs are supplied fromrenewable sources. Five low-noise windturbines located on the site will provide 10%of the building’s electricity, and all rainwaterfalling on the roof is collected and usedwithin the complex to flush toilets.

Where possible ACC Liverpool has usedlocal suppliers to create employment andreduce transport impact. The appointment ofNorthwest-based Heathcotes as caterer is agood example of the sustainable approachbeing taken to servicing the complex.

“Heathcotes is committed to sourcingfresh, local food so the number of road milesis reduced and clients are recognising that ifthey bring their event to the ACC they willalso be reducing their carbon footprint.

“Our strategic aim is to provide goods andservices from local sources but we arehaving to compete on quality with conferencevenues such as London, Paris and Barcelona

so local suppliers have to set their horizonsat that level.”

Prattey believes the new square or piazzain front of the building will add a newdimension to the waterfront landscape andprovide an impressive new civic space foroutdoor activities. “We are seeing a shift inthe focus of the city centre back to its singlegreatest asset – the waterfront.”

Bookings have surpassed expectations.ACC Liverpool figures prominently in theCapital of Culture programme by staging theJanuary 12 opening event and the highprofile 15th Annual MTV Europe MusicAwards in November.

MAGNET FOR INVESTMENTOther events in 2008 include the ‘Winter

Pops’, a week-long rock and pop festival, TheWorld Firefighter Games, the X Factor show,an international business summit andconferences for the British Chambers ofCommerce, medical groups and the Springgathering of the Liberal Democrats.

“Big events give cities enormous profilewhich can be significant in attractingfurther investment,” declares Prattey.“The spin-off from bringing 10,000 peopleinto the city centre is immense. It createsjobs, fills hotels, and provides business for

taxi drivers and restaurants.”ACC Liverpool is making a push to win

smaller corporate events and nicheexhibition business from within the region,not just the national and internationalblockbuster events.

The facilities offer a high degree offlexibility and comfort. The main ConventionCentre hall will seat 1,350, there are two 250-seater revolving drum shaped sectionsthat can be isolated to create separateconference spaces and a further 18breakout rooms.

Other eye-catching features include thecentral Galleria whose arched space iscovered with translucent material also usedto cover the Eden Project domes in Cornwall,and the floor-to-ceiling glazing whichemphasises the architectural quality ofthe building.

Sponsorship is a key part of the revenuestream. The Echo Arena Liverpool hasagreed a three-year deal for which it getsnaming rights for the Arena and it wasrecently announced that the ConferenceCentre is to be named the BT ConventionCentre as part of a five year sponsorship deal.

For further information:www.accliverpool.com

Comfort zone – an inside view of the 10,000 seat Echo Arena

World-class venue – the Echo ArenaLiverpool and the BT Convention Centre

will enhance the city’s visitor appeal

“THIS IS A FABULOUS BUILDING– THE MOST UP-TO-DATE ANDSOPHISTICATED COMPLEX OF ITSKIND IN EUROPE AND IT’S BEENFANTASTICALLY RECEIVED BYOUR CLIENT BASE .”

BOB PRATTEY

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

ACC, LIVERPOOL

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24

Tate Liverpool will bring a range ofworld-class art to the city during theCapital of Culture celebrations includingthe first ever UK exhibition of the workof the highly revered Gustav Klimt(May 30 – Aug 31)and the first majorUK exhibition of theFrench artistNiki de Saint Phalle(Feb 1- May 5).

World Museum Liverpool is organisingan exhibition (July 12 – Nov 1), whichexplores and celebrates the city’smusical identity, its success andcontinuing evolution. The first of itskind, The Beat Goes On, draws materialfrom record companies, institutions andprivate collectors.

Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral willprovide the setting for the worldpremiere of Sir JohnTaverner’s newRequiem on Feb 28with the work beingperformed by theRLPO and Choir. Fourgroups of performers, set out in theshape of a cross within the nave, willrepresents the four great faiths.

Artist Ben Johnson has beencommissioned to produce an 8ft x 16ftarchitectural portrait of Liverpool tocommemorate the award of Capital ofCulture. He is working at the Walker ArtGallery to finish ‘Liverpool Cityscape’ infront of a live audience from Jan 28 toMarch 7.

Nearly 300 young people from 30European countries will gather at St.George’s Hall, Liverpool, to share ideas,culture andexperience during a10-day session of theEuropean YouthParliament (July16-27). They willframe 15 resolutions, which will be senton to the European Parliament.

Liverpool’s historic Bluecoat Art Centrewill reopen early in 2008 after a £12.5million refit with a focus on events thatsupport Capital of Culture including afirst-ever literature festival. It will be avenue for the Liverpool Arabic ArtsFestival in July and Liverpool Biennial2008, which opens in September.

NEWS

QUALITY OF LIFE

An extra two million visitors are expected todescend on the city during 2008 to feast on amegastar offering of pop, classical and jazzmusic, drama, dance, art exhibitions, designand film. They are expected to generate avisitor spend of over £100 million.

Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr make awelcome return to their home city to take partin several of the planned events. Musicheavyweights Simon Rattle, VladimirAshkenaszy and Karl Jenkins have also agreedto join the party.

Seventy organisations are involved indelivering a hugely diverse, internationalcalendar of events, which include the largest

programme of outdoor public art evercommissioned by a city. There will be a dozendifferent festivals.

The celebrations have been organisedby the Liverpool Culture Company, whichhas a budget of £107 million to invest over fouryears. Its board has been slimmed down to sixmembers to speed up the decision process inthe key areas of finance and creativity.

New Chairman Bryan Gray says that Capitalof Culture has two “massive” tasks – to delivera world-class programme in 08 and a legacythat goes beyond 08 - “one that the wholeregion and the UK can be proud of.”

WORLD STAGEHe takes responsibility for finance while

continuing as Chairman of the NorthwestRegional Development Agency (NWDA), one ofthe 08 funding partners. TV executive PhilRedmond is responsible for the creativedirection of the company.

The eclectic mix of cultural events andnovel experiences includes scheduledperformances by some of the world’s mosttalented artists, many of them with deep rootsin Liverpool, and a creative input from smallgrassroots organisations.

Peter Mearns, Executive Director ofMarketing for the NWDA, one of the principalsponsors, says the celebrations have animportant role in “really highlighting the

CURTAIN RISES

Liverpool opened the long-awaited European Capital of Culturecelebrations with a spectacular debut for a new landmark icon andan events and investment programme that will leave a lasting legacyfor the people of Merseyside and the Northwest.

Opening night – thousands joined theLiverpool 08 merry making outsideSt. George's Hall

Capital creation – artist Ben Johnsonat work on ‘Liverpool Cityscape’, hismost ambitious painting to date

315-14 P24-25 18/1/08 12:29 Page 1

region’s world-class offering.”Capital of Culture was officially opened with

a series of public events and concerts over3 days (January 11 - 13). Over 50,000descended on Liverpool for the spectacularPeople's Opening, which saw a cast ofhundreds join Beatles legend Ringo Starr onthe roof of St George's Hall. The event putfirmly Liverpool and the region firmly in thenational and international spotlight, withBBC News 24 and Sky News dedicatingextensive coverage to the event.

A one off performance of 'Liverpool - TheMusical' also took place on January 12th at theofficial opening of the city's new Echo ArenaLiverpool, where a sell out crowd of 10,600people were treated to a visual and musicalextravaganza. This included a line up ofRingo Starr, Dave Stewart, Pete Wylie andIan Broudie, along with Vasily Petrenkoconducting the Royal Liverpool PhilharmonicOrchestra (RLPO). Along with special gueststhere was a cast of poets, singers, aerialists,comedian, construction workers and sailors.

The trail blazing weekend was overseenby Liverpool 08’s two artistic directors,Nigel Jamieson, who worked on the opening

ceremony for the Sydney Olympics and theclosing ceremony of the 2002 CommonwealthGames in Manchester, and Jayne Casey, co-founder of the city’s world famous Cream.

They set the scene for a voyage of culturaldiscovery and artistic innovation embracingmany of the city’s landmark buildings andvenues such as the two Cathedrals, TateLiverpool, the newly refurbished Bluecoat, thePhilharmonic Hall, FACT, Playhouse andLiverpool Everyman and Playhouse theatres,the Walker Art Gallery and NationalMuseums, Liverpool.

Two of the city’s famous sons, Sir Paul

McCartney and Ringo Starr, recorded videomessages for the official launch of the culturalprogramme at Tate Liverpool in Septemberwith Paul promising “a showcase for the wholeof Britain.”

MUSIC AWARDSHe will headline ‘The Liverpool Sound’, a

concert at the Anfield Football Stadium featuringthe superstars of popular music live, on stage,which will be broadcast to a global audience.

A rich musical thread runs through the 08canvas with the RLPO presenting 30 new

commissions, including major works bySir John Taverner, Karl Jenkins, MichaelWyman and Brett Dean. Simon Rattle willconduct the Berlin Philharmonic (Oct 2) with

Vladimir Ashkenazy taking the RLPO baton(Nov 26 and 27).

There was more icing on the cultural cake inOctober when MTV announced that it would beholding the 15th Europe Music Awards 2008 live

across all platforms at the Echo ArenaLiverpool on November 6, a major coup giventhe event’s global profile.

The 350-event programme includesdistinguished exhibitions at Tate Liverpool, threespecially commissioned plays at the Everymanand Playhouse theatres, a fifth edition ofLiverpool Biennial, the comedic talents ofKen Dodd through to new dance performancesand street theatre on an epic scale.

Phil Redmond described Liverpool as atreasure house of culture and artistic innovation.“This is a city that has been built on the strengthof its people and their ideas and we now want touse culture to capture the building confidenceand self-esteem that is coming from seeingtheir 19th century city transforming to one forthe 21st century.”

25

ON 08 CELEBRATIONS

For further information:www. liverpool08.com

“CAPITAL OF CULTURE HAS TWOMASSIVE TASKS – TO DELIVER AWORLD-CLASS PROGRAMME IN 08AND A LEGACY THAT GOESBEYOND 08, ONE THAT THEWHOLE REGION AND THE UK CANBE PROUD OF.”

BRYAN GRAYCHAIRMAN, LIVERPOOL

CULTURE COMPANY

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26

QUALITY OF LIFE

It’s strictly ‘come dancing’ for Blackpool in2008 as the resort, already world famous forthe Tower, Pleasure Beach andIlluminations, aims to add ‘Dance Capital ofthe World’ to its claims to fame.

Planning a new ‘famous five’ programmeof national and international events, aimed athighlighting the resort as a year-round visitordestination, ‘Blackpool 365’ has added theUDO World Street Dance Championships andthe European Ballroom Championships to itsexisting tally of dance festivals.

All the new events, based around the fivethemes of dance, fire and light, magic andvariety, reunions and beach sports, aredesigned to celebrate the resort’s heritage,traditions and innovative spirit.

MAGICAL FESTIVALSupported by funding of £3.5 million from

the Northwest Regional Development Agency(NWDA), the programme of signature eventsover the next three years will build on thesuccess of existing attractions.

The UDO World Street DanceChampionships, which attracted Europeanand American dancers when it was held inBlackpool for the first time in 2007, willinclude African champions at this year’sAugust event.

It will follow Blackpool’s May DanceFestival, first held in 1920, which coversballroom and Latin American, the largest of five annual festivals, ending with the World Professional Ballroom Championshipsin November.

Councillor Maxine Callow, Cabinet Memberfor Regeneration and Tourism says: “ Our‘Blackpool 365’ campaign is all aboutbuilding on and celebrating the town’sexisting heritage and unique features.

“It’s about people – both visitors and those who live in the town – being able toparticipate in events, get involved, learn newskills – think about staging their own events.”

February is a big month for the town, with a new two-week magic and varietyfestival called Showzam, including a‘Heat the Streets’ Saturday when the streetswill become home to fire sculptures and fire performers and culminate in anilluminated parade.

In June, Veterans’ Week, when Blackpool traditionally remembers veteransmainly from World Wars I and ll, will beexpanded to include ‘veterans’ of all ages.

In September, the International Federationof Beach Volleyball (FIVB) will again stage atournament in Blackpool, following thesuccess of its first in 2007. The town is alsohoping to expand its repertoire of ‘beachsports’ to include football and cricket.

Robert Owen, Head of Marketing forVisitBlackpool, says: “The events programmeis all about giving Blackpool a reason to visitduring our ambitious programme ofregeneration. Some will be one-offs andothers will go on to become annual events.”

UNIQUE DIMENSIONThe whole events programme is just one

element in the regeneration of the town’sinfrastructure and economic development,with massive investment in the promenade,also supported by the NWDA.

Peter Mearns, Executive Director ofMarketing at the NWDA, says: “Thisprogramme of original and nationallysignificant events will give a distinctive,unique dimension to Blackpool’s visitoroffer. Major events have an important roleto play in the area’s regeneration, helping toattract more business and leisure visitorsto the region.”

Contact: www.visitblackpool.co.uk

BLACKPOOL BIDS FORDANCE CAPITAL FAME

High Energy – These American dancers fromthe Jabbawockeez group featured in the 2007Blackpool Street Dance Festival

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27

A powerful symbol of the Roman Empireand arguably Britain’s greatest – andlargest - cultural treasure, Hadrian’s Wallis set to make history again in the 21stcentury as a newly burnished jewel of theregion’s visitor economy.

Stretching from the Solway Firth to theTyne, the necklace of forts, museums anddramatic landscapes is the focus of avisionary improvement programme that willsee the creation of major new visitor facilities,a wealth of business opportunities and bettermarketing and communications.

“This is a five to ten year project but we hopeto see some visible things happening withinthree years. There are a number of capitalschemes underway and others in the pipeline,”reports Linda Tuttiett, Chief Executive ofHadrian’s Wall Heritage Ltd (HWHL).

The company has completed its first year ofoperations after being set up by the NorthwestRegional Development Agency (NWDA),One NorthEast, English Heritage and NaturalEngland to promote the development andregeneration of the Hadrian’s Wall corridor.

WORLD HERITAGE SITEIt came into being following a major study,

which pinpointed declining visitor numbers, apoor visitor experience, lack of facilities andsignposting and a fragmented approach tohow the story of the Wall was presented to

the public. A key finding was the need toestablish a single management body.

Ambitions are high with Tuttiett and theHWHL Board targeting a potential increase intourism-generated revenue of around £200million over the next five to ten years, subjectto the required injection of financial supportfor capital development and consumer-facingmarketing over this period. This could lead toan estimated 3,000 new jobs across the Wallcorridor in tourism related businesses.

Total investment in new facilities along the150-mile corridor from Ravenglass toNewcastle would be about £50 million. Theyinclude capital projects at Maryport, TullieHouse Museum, Carlisle, and RomanVindolanda in Newcastle.

Built in AD122 to mark the limits of theRoman Empire, Hadrian’s Wall is part of theRoman Frontier that crosses two governmentregions and 12 local authorities, along with anetwork of around 800 owners. It became aWorld Heritage Site (WHS) in 1987.

Archaeologists have found well-preservedremains of a series of Roman forts underpresent-day Carlisle prompting an applicationto English Heritage to include the city withinthe WHS boundaries. If granted it wouldstrengthen the development of the proposedCultural Quarter.

Excavations are also planned, subject toEnglish Heritage approval, at a civiliansettlement (or vicus) at Roman Maryport –the biggest of these settlements along theWall – to learn more about Roman social andcultural life on the Northern frontier.

WRITING TABLETSA major tourist facility costing up to

£10 million could be developed at the site if astudy, currently underway, establishes thereis a market for such an attraction.

“Ninety per cent of the wall isunexcavated,” explains Tuttiett, “and ourdream is to find more of the writing tabletsdiscovered at Vindolanda which showed whatpeople were thinking and doing at that time.”

Written by a commander’s wife, the tabletshave been voted among Britain’s greatestnational treasures.

A Wall-wide programme of activities isplanned for 2009 on the theme of “The LivingFrontier”, which will link into a number ofmajor events including the opening of theGreat North Museum.

As well as UK visitors the Wall is a populartourist destination for visitors from America,Australia, France and the Netherlands.

For further information:www.hadrians-wall.org

BUILDING ON WHATTHE ROMANS GAVE US

Cultural treasure – Hadrian’s Wall snakes across dramatic landscapes

Silent witness – ninety per cent of the Wallremains unexcavated

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28

NOTEBOOK

PEOPLEIN THEREGION

TOP ACADEMYPOST FORLLEWELLYNJean Llewellyn has been appointed ChiefExecutive of the newly establishedNational Skills Academy for Nuclearfollowing a year’s secondment from theNWDA leading the team that developedthe successful Academy business plan.

Formerly Head of Skills Policy at theAgency, she has spent the last four yearsworking with employers and partners inthe nuclear sector, chairing the NuclearSkills Advisory Group to identify the keyskills and training challenges facing thesector and developing the Academyproject to meet these challenges.

She has had a versatile career havingspent 12 years in Higher and FurtherEducation including lecturing atManchester Metropolitan University. Shegraduated in Hospitality Managementand has managed hotels in Scotland,England and Italy as well as spending fiveyears as an AA Hotel Inspector.

CHAIR OFENTERPRISEFORUMAPPOINTED

EU ADVISERCHAIRSCUMBRIA VISIONEconomic regeneration organisationCumbria Vision has recruitedRoger Liddle, former Principal Adviser tothe President of the European Commission,to succeed David Brockbank as Chairmanof the 14-strong Board of Directors.

He will act as a key ambassador forregeneration to regional and nationalaudiences, such as business leaders andpolicy makers. Cumbria Vision, which issupported by the NWDA, brings together therural and urban agendas to create a county-wide regeneration strategy.

Born and educated in Carlisle, Liddle waspreviously responsible for leading a team ofeconomists advising on the economic andsocial challenges facing Europe.

Prior to this he was a member of thecabinet of the EU Trade Commissionerand spent seven years as SpecialAdviser to the Prime Minister onEuropean issues.

Respected business leader Michael Parker, Group Chief Executive of BNFL, returnsto his native Liverpool to take over as the first Chair of the new company that

will help drive the city’s future regeneration and economic growth.Born in Waterloo and educated in the city, he had an illustrious 30-year

business career with The Dow Chemical Company in Michigan, USA, rising tobecome its President and Chief Executive Officer from 2000-2002 before joiningBNFL in 2003. He is a chemical engineer by training with an MBA from

Manchester Business School. The new Liverpool venture is being created from the merger of Liverpool

Vision, Business Liverpool and Liverpool Land Development Company. Itsaim is to chart and deliver the next stage of Liverpool’s renaissance as apremier international city for business, investment and commerce.

Energy executive Robert Davis has agreedto become the first Chair of the NorthwestEnterprise Forum (NWEF), a new 15-strongbody set up by the NWDA to advise onenterprise strategy and policy. The regionneeds 40,000 additional businesses tocatch up with the national average.

He is Managing Director of EA TechnologyLtd, a Capenhurst-based power engineeringcompany operating in the UK electricitysector and overseas. Since taking up thepost he has increased the company’sturnover by 50% and profits by 100%.

His career has progressed from amarketing consultancy through industrialasset management to the power assetmanagement sector. He is a member of theNorth West Regional Council of the CBI anda member of the CBI Innovation, Science andTechnology Committee.

NEW REGENERATION CHAIR

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29

PETER ALLEN

JOHN BROOKS

TONY MCDERMOTT

ROBERT HOUGH

FIVE KEY FIGURESJOIN NWDA BOARDFive new members have been appointed to the management board of the NorthwestRegional Development Agency (NWDA) by Stephen Timms, the Competitiveness Minister.

The new members who took up their three-year appointments in December will providethe board with a valuable range of experience and expertise in business, farming, localauthority and higher education, sectors critical to the successful implementation of theRegional Economic Strategy.

is a Cumbrian hill farmer who has beenactively involved with the NFU for manyyears representing farming and ruralissues locally, regionally and nationally.He worked with industry and governmenton the control and eradication of foot andmouth disease in 2001-02.

Peter has played an influential role inreforming and implementing the EU sheepregime and is currently Chair of RUMA, theUK body promoting the responsible use ofmedicines in agriculture. He is also aBoard member of Natural England.

SUSAN WILLIAMS

is the Vice-Chancellor of ManchesterMetropolitan University. In his previous job atthe University of Wolverhampton he chaired aregeneration project after the closure ofRover, which involved infrastructuredevelopment and small business support.

He chairs the Board of the EqualityChallenge Unit and is on the boards ofUniversities UK, the Oxford Road CorridorPartnership and the Universities & CollegesEmployers Association. In 1992-1998 hehelped create Bodycote-SHU Coatings, atechnology-led metal finishing company.

is Deputy Chairman and latterly ExecutiveDirector of Peel Holdings, whose businessesinclude airports, ports, land use planning,development, waste, energy and theenvironment. He is a Non-Executive Directorof a number of other companies.

Chair of New East Manchester Ltd, one ofthe first Urban Regeneration Companies to beestablished, he also is a member and formerChair of the North West Business LeadershipTeam, and a board member of the Universityof Manchester and also sits on the North WestRegional Assembly Executive Board.

is the Leader of Halton Borough Counciland taught in Lancashire and Liverpoolfor 34 years. He is also Chair of theNorth West Regional Transport Groupand a former Chair of the North WestRegional Assembly.

His is active in a number of other areasof public service holding board membershipof the Local Government AssociationImprovement and Development Agency,The Mersey Partnership, the North WestImprovement Network and the 5 BoroughsNHS Mental Health Trust.

has been Conservative Leader of TraffordBorough Council since 2004 havingpreviously worked as a nutritionist for thecharity Action and Research into MultipleSclerosis until 2001. She is a board memberof Manchester Enterprises, the TraffordLocal Strategic Partnership and also sits onthe AGMA Economic Development Board.

A former political agent for theConservative Party, she contested theWythenshawe and Sale East seat in 2001and was selected as the ConservativeParliamentary candidate for Bolton Westin 2006.

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JANUARY

TV FROM THE NATIONS ANDREGIONS CONFERENCE

Keynote speaker – Mark Thompson, DirectorGeneral, BBCThe Lowry, Salford Quays

22JAN

RICS NORTH WEST AWARDS 2008Celebrating the achievements of the

built environmentACC Liverpool

16MAY

PRINCE OF WALES BUSINESSSUMMIT ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Interactive event linked to mainshow in LondonNew Century House, Manchester

1MAY

BE INSPIRED BUSINESS AWARDSLancashire’s premier business

competitionTower Ballroom, Blackpool

7MAR

SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIESCONFERENCE & EXHIBITION

Charting the future of neighbourhooddevelopmentACC Liverpool

11-13MAR

GREATER MANCHESTER CHAMBERANNUAL DINNER

Networking tour de forceManchester Central

9APR

ENJOY ENGLAND AWARDS FOREXCELLENCE

Toasting the nation’s top tourism businessesSt. George’s Hall, Liverpool

23APR

BRITISH CHAMBERS OF COMMERCEANNUAL CONFERENCE

Another national event for the region’snewest venueACC Liverpool

28APR

FEBRUARY

MAY

MARCH

BUSINESS IN THE COMMUNITYAWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE

Gala dinner to honour responsiblebusinessesCrowne Plaza Hotel, Liverpool

12JUN

FOOD NORTHWEST AWARDS 2008Celebrating the achievements of the

agri-food and drink industryACC Liverpool

19JUN

JUNE

APRIL

CUMBRIA CBI ANNUAL DINNERKeynote speaker – Beverley Hughes,

Minister for the North WestCastle Green Hotel, Kendal

7FEB

INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS NORTHWEST ANNUAL CONFERENCE

On the record with Shadow ChancellorGeorge Osborne and Sven-Goran ErikssonCity of Manchester Stadium

28FEB

GRAND NATIONALAnnual meeting culminating in

world’s best steeplechaseAintree, Liverpool

03-05APR

FINA WORLD SWIMMINGCHAMPIONSHIPS

Sporting excellence on a global stageMEN Arena, Manchester

09-13APR

EVENTS

EVENT HIGHLIGHTS

30

For further information www.nwda.co.uk/events

EUROPEAN SENIOR BOXINGCHAMPIONSHIPS

Europe’s top amateurs go fist to fistACC Liverpool

21FEB-01MAR

Boxing championships – Europe’sfinest slug it out

Grand National– the world’s greatest steeplechase

VOICE 08Annual social enterprise conference

ACC Liverpool

25-27FEB

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESSDAY 2008

Helping businesses expand intonew marketsOld Trafford, Manchester

28FEB

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31

GETTING IN TOUCHAt the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA),we value your views and feedback.

Visit www.nwda.co.uk & www.visitenglandsnorthwest.com

KEY CONTACTS

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HEAD OFFICE PO Box 37, Renaissance House,Centre Park, Warrington WA1 1XBTel: +44 (0)1925 400 100Fax: +44 (0)1925 400 400e-mail: [email protected]

The NWDA manages alloperations from itsHeadquarters at:

HEAD OFFICE

PRINT STOCK:Cover: Challenger Laser Matt is totally chlorine free and acquired only fromsuppliers operating sustainable forest reserves.

Text: Cyclus offset is manufactured using only 100% recycled post consumer waste.

The NWDA’s ExecutiveTeam are based at itsHeadquarters inWarrington.

STEVEN BROOMHEADChief ExecutiveTel: 01925 400 133Email: [email protected]

BERNICE LAWChief Operating Officer,(currently on secondment at theLiverpool Culture Company)Tel: 01925 400 532 Email: [email protected]

IAN HAYTHORNTHWAITEExecutive Director,ResourcesTel: 01925 400 116Email: [email protected]

MARK HUGHESExecutive Director,Enterprise and SkillsTel: 01925 400 531Email: [email protected]

PETER WHITEExecutive Director, DevelopmentTel: 01925 400 299Email: [email protected]

JAMES BERRESFORDDirector of Tourism Tel: 01925 400 472Email: [email protected]

PETER MEARNSExecutive Director, MarketingTel: 01925 400 212Email: [email protected]

FIONA MILLSDirector of Human PerformanceTel: 01925 644 422Email: [email protected]

PATRICK WHITEExecutive Director, Policy Tel: 01925 400 274Email: [email protected]

315-14 P30-31 18/1/08 15:54 Page 2

20Issue_14

Documents

Transcript of 20Issue_14