Agenda item

To consider a report by the Corporate Director: Economic & Community Ambition (copy enclosed) on the development of Denbighshire’s first Economic and Community Ambition strategy in line with the Corporate Plan priority of developing the local economy.

 

A copy of a report by the Corporate Director: Economic and Community Ambition (CDECA), on the development of Denbighshire’s first Economic and Community Ambition Strategy, had been circulated with the papers for the meeting.

 

Councillor H.Ll. Jones introduced the report on behalf of the Leader and explained that a Task and Finish Group (TFG) had developed Denbighshire’s first Economic and Community Ambition Strategy, in line with the Corporate Plan priority of developing the local economy.  Approval was being sought for the draft Strategy to be made available for public consultation as detailed in the report.

 

The Corporate Plan identified Developing the Local Economy as one of its 7 corporate priorities.  Revitalising the local economy had been identified as a key concern by residents during development of the Corporate Plan and seen as a means of achieving a sound base for all other developments.  The Strategy aimed to explain how the Council would meet its corporate objective for developing the economy, and details of the TFG had been included in Appendix 3.

 

The draft Strategy had been developed with a focus on benefits and outcomes and the TFG had agreed that the overall benefit to be achieved by developing the local economy should ultimately be felt by local residents.  The overall outcome behind the strategy had been defined as:-

 

“Denbighshire is a County with high levels of employment and good levels of income in all of its towns and communities”.

From this, the TFG had created the following Vision Statement for Denbighshire’s Economic and Community Ambition:-

-   Developing Opportunities, Creating Confidence

-   Working together to make Denbighshire a place where:-

·                              Businesses, established and new, grow and flourish

·                              Our towns and communities are vibrant and prosper

·                              Residents enjoy a good quality of life and can participate in the local economy

To achieve this core factors would need to be addressed and the following priority areas for action had been identified and formed the core structure of the Strategy:-

·                              The right Infrastructure for Growth

·                              Businesses that are Supported and Connected

·                              Maximised Economic Strengths/Opportunities

·                              A High Quality Skilled Workforce

·                              Vibrant Towns and Communities

·                              A Well Promoted Denbighshire

An initial 4 year indicative Delivery Plan had been developed which aligned with the timescale for delivery of the Corporate Plan. However, the Strategy itself had a longer timescale and covered the period 2013 to 2023.  The TFG had concluded that the outcomes identified and the areas for action highlighted offer the best means of delivering the ambition of both the Strategy and the Corporate Plan.  It recommended that these were tested through consultation with Denbighshire’s communities and businesses prior to the Strategy being presented for formal adoption by the Council.

It was explained by the CDECA that it had been proposed that the draft Strategy and Delivery Plan, Appendix 1, be made available for public consultation during July and August through a range of opportunities as detailed in Appendix 2.  Details of the consultation process had been included in the report.  Specific consultation events would explore in detail the Strategy in relation to Tourism, Priority Sectors for Growth, and Rural Economic Development.  These would be complemented by more generic consultation events arranged on a geographic basis across the County.

The three key questions the consultation would seek to test opinion on included:-

(a)          Are the Vision, intended outcomes and underpinning principles broadly appropriate for Denbighshire?

(b)          Does the Strategy capture the important issues, challenges and opportunities affecting Denbighshire’s local economy?

(c)          Will the headline actions in the Delivery Plan achieve the right impact?

The consultation results would be considered by the TFG before the final Economic and Community Ambition Strategy, Delivery Plan and Performance Framework were presented to Council for formal approval in October.

Following approval of the Strategy, oversight of delivery would be provided by the Economic and Community Ambition Programme Board.  It would monitor progress and impact, help to resolve problems and barriers to delivery and would recommend changes as necessary during the lifetime of the Strategy to ensure the desired impact can be achieved.  A key role for the Programme Board would be to ensure projects and activities deliver their intended benefits. Further information on the proposed composition and role of the Programme Board, and the overall accountability and governance arrangements, had been set out in the draft Strategy.

The CDECA explained that the Corporate Plan had identified £2m as an indicative allocation towards meeting the costs of implementing the Corporate Priority for the Economy, with £160k being allocated in the 2013/14 budget.  The report and Appendix 2 set out proposals for formal consultation on the proposed Strategy and Delivery Plan and an Equality Impact Assessment would be undertaken during the summer.

 

The Chief Executive endorsed the excellent Strategy and its comprehensive approach which clarified Denbighshire’s role and would enable the Authority to have a positive impact on the local economy.  Denbighshire would now be in a position to offer leadership and encourage businesses and partners to commit and participate.  He explained that the challenge of encouraging partners to sign up should not be underestimated and confirmed that the quality of delivery and level of success achieved would be measured by the number of partners secured.  The Chief Executive stressed the importance of dramatically reducing the percentage of pupils leaving school without approved qualifications and who were not usefully engaged beyond school.  He stressed that whilst he was pleased with the progress made overall there were still significant challenges ahead in terms of engagement.

 

The CDECA provided the following responses to issues raised and concerns expressed by Members:-

 

-               It was explained that nominations had been sought, and Councillor H.Ll. Jones had been the sole representative from the Dee Valley Member Area Group at the Task and Finish Group.  Confirmation was provided that the consultation process would be County wide and issues raised County wide would be noted.

-                 Denbighshire being an easy Council to deal with had been a key theme during discussion in the Task and Finish Group.  At least four specific actions had been identified in the Delivery Plan which included issues around procurement, regulation, easy access to the provision of business support and the development of a business friendly culture.

-               Governance of the strategy moving forward.  The strategy had suggested an initial membership for an Economic and Community Ambition Board. 

-               Confirmation had been provided that a significant piece of work had been undertaken around metrics to support the strategy and the actions, and this detail would be included at a later stage.

-                 Details of work to improve the local impact of the Council’s procurement process were provided, particular reference being made to the engagement of local businesses and the expansion of employment opportunities.

-               The role of Taith was outlined in relation to the Transport strategy for the region and the County’s transport infrastructure.   

-               In response to concern expressed regarding the timing and timescales of the consultation period during the summer period, the Programme Manager provided details of the consultation process to date and confirmed that the draft strategy had been circulated to interested parties.      

-               Members were informed that promotional material would be displayed at events such as the Eisteddfod and Denbigh and Flint Show.  The CDECA confirmed the Federation of Small Businesses would have a stall at the Denbigh and Flint Show.

 

During the ensuing discussion, Councillor H.Ll. Jones and the CDECA thanked the officers and Members for the hard work undertaken in producing the draft Economic and Community Ambition Strategy.

 

RESOLVED – that Council:-

 

(a)   notes the work undertaken by the Task and Finish Group to prepare the draft Economic and Community Ambition Strategy as attached at Appendix 1, and

(b)   approves the Strategy for public consultation over the summer as set out in Appendix 2