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ITEM EX9
EXECUTIVE
– 29 APRIL 2003
ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY AND WORK PROGRAMME 2003/04
Report by
Head of External Policy and Partnerships
Introduction
- This report reviews
current developments in the economic development field, sets out a framework
for the implementation of economic development activities by the Council,
in the context of the creation of a new Directorate for Environment
& Economy, and the County Council’s aim in the Oxfordshire Plan
of sustaining prosperity, and makes proposals for the use of the resources
available to the Council through the Economic Development Initiatives
budget.
The Context
- While 2002/03
saw a major restructuring of the institutions involved in economic development,
and the powers that local government has to engage in economic development
and related activities, the past year has seen much more activity within
the Council in the context of Growing our Corporate Capacity,
the inclusion of the aim ’sustaining prosperity’ in the Oxfordshire
Plan and the creation on 1 April of a Directorate for Environment
& Economy. The Partnerships Unit, formerly in the Strategy Directorate,
which is where the Council’s economic development activities have been
based, has moved to Environment & Economy.
- The County Council
signed up to the Economic Strategy for Oxfordshire which was produced
by the Oxfordshire Economic Partnership (OEP) in 2002. The Partnership’s
vision is: ‘Oxfordshire as a pioneering world class economy that
fulfils the potential of its inhabitants through continually developing
its capacity for innovation, business, personal development, research
and education, and through the effective management of its high quality
environmental resources.’ The Executive met the Chair and Coordinator
of OEP informally in March. The OEP is not a delivery agent for economic
development and the Executive’s view was that the creation of a new
Directorate was an opportunity to enhance the profile of the County
Council’s economic development activities.
Proposals for 2003/04
- The programme
of expenditure under the Economic Development Initiatives budget that
the Executive is recommended to support is set out below. These proposals
do not include expenditure proposals in the field of skills and lifelong
learning, because while this is an important component of the economic
strategy, it is resourced through the Oxfordshire Learning Partnership,
the Directorate for Learning & Culture and the local Learning and
Skills Council. Nor is the ‘West End’ urban renaissance project in Oxford
or the Council’s broadband initiative, the Oxfordshire Community Network,
referred to because although they are corporate projects with significant
economic development components, they are being funded through other
means at the moment. The County Councils involvement in the Capital
of Culture partnership, though led from Learning & Culture, is also
a corporate project, which was supported in 2002/03 and, with a tourism
dimension, will continue to be this year.
- The base budget
for Economic Development Initiatives has been fixed by the Council at
£97,700 for 2003/04. There is a carry forward of £38,300 from 2002/03,
giving a total of £136,000. The proposed programme to utilise these
resources reflects the priorities in the Oxfordshire Plan particularly
PAP’s 31 and 32, which the Partnerships Unit leads on, but also PAP‘s
5, 17, 28, 33, 34, 35 and 45 which have significant crosscutting economic
development dimensions. This range of economic development interests
is one reason for the Partnerships Unit to focus more on taking a lead
within and beyond the Council on economic development in its widest
sense, ensuring that all directorates support the aim of sustaining
prosperity where appropriate. It also points up the need for a work
plan for economic development that is more specific to the County Council
than OEP’s Economic Development Strategy for Oxfordshire and
broader in scope than the expenditure plans for this budget head alone.
Expenditure on economic development from this budget is divided
into five broad areas of work, as summarised in the following paragraphs
and itemised in Annex 1 (download as
.doc file)
(i) Innovation,
enterprise and partnership (PAP 31) Proposed Allocation £49.5k
-
This includes
support for the Oxfordshire Economic Partnership, and a range of partnership
activities including Venturefest, to be held this year at Unipart
in June, sector and ‘cluster’ development work such as supporting
the Bioscience Network, the Oxfordshire IT network (OXIT), the Oxfordshire
Investment Opportunity Network (OION) and the southern Oxfordshire
Enterprise Hub. It also includes support for specific research networks
such as the Economic Observatory and Oxford Networks, which has received
partnership funding from the Gatsby Foundation of £90,000 over three
years for work on Oxfordshire hitech networks. It also supports the
work emerging from the OEP sustainability sub group in developing
a Sustainable Business Partnership, and continuing support for our
local enterprise agencies, Thames Business Advice Centre (TBAC) and
NORBIS.
(ii) Sustainability
and rural issues (PAP’s 32 and 35) Proposed Allocation £49.5k
- Work coming out
of the Oxfordshire Farming Study on farming, food and rural issues continues,
with a successful farmers market programme and a project to promote
local food in Oxfordshire led by the Council which has now been supported
by a range of agencies including South East England Development Agency
(SEEDA), Business Link, OEP, and the district councils. A local food
champion is working with farmers, supermarkets, village shops and other
outlets. The continuing work supporting village shops through Oxfordshire
Rural Community Council is linked to this and remains a priority.
- The rural market
towns initiative is being extended across the County, from the pilot
in Faringdon through a market towns health check programme led by the
Countryside Agency, to include Carterton, Thame and Chipping Norton.
The recent energy white paper gives considerable prominence to promoting
renewable energy sources, including energy crops, which have considerable
rural diversification potential. This work is being led by the renewable
energy agency for the Thames Valley, TV Energy, which we are supporting.
- Supporting rural
businesses remains a priority, and this is done in partnership with
other agencies through the LEADER+ programme in West Oxfordshire, and
the establishment of the Faringdon Enterprise Gateway. PAP 35 seeks
to extend the Oxfordshire Community Network to businesses in rural areas,
and money is allocated to support a feasibility study/pilot.
(iii)
Affordable housing and social inclusion (PAP’s 5, 28 and 34)
Allocation £20k
- The Council has
identified affordable housing as a key issue in sustaining prosperity
in Oxfordshire, and has identified money in the budget for a new post
to champion this area. Money is allocated to assist the postholder deliver
on PAP 34. Our European bidding work mainly involves seeking funds for
people with disabilities into employment (PAP 5) and supporting refugees
and asylum seekers into work (PAP17). As part of our commitment to social
inclusion support for the promotion of social enterprise remains a priority
and support for the Ethnic Minority Business Service remain part of
this strand of the County Council’s work.
(iv) Tourism/Capital
of Culture (PAPs 17 and 45) Proposed Allocation £10k
- The Council is
a partner in the bid for European Capital of Culture in 2008 (PAP 45).
Having been shortlisted and designated a Centre of Culture, Oxford and
Oxfordshire will be having a major series of events and projects culminating
that year. These have important tourism implications and in collaboration
with SEEDA and the City Council, the Council is supporting a tourism
development action plan (PAP 17), including two jointly appointed posts,
and work around promoting the cultural industries in Oxfordshire. The
allocation from the economic development budget will be enhanced by
the £10,000 in 2003/04 (£20,000 from 2004/05) allocated for tourism
by the council in its medium term financial plan.
(v) Promotion and Publicity
Proposed Allocation £7k
- Dissemination
of information and publicity for many of the activities the Council
is involved in is important, as well as giving the Council important
‘profile’ in the region and more widely. Publication of the biannual
‘Business News’, work on e-economic development, and a seminar
for members in the context of the new Directorate for Environment &
Economy, are planned.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- The Executive
is RECOMMENDED to:
- approve
the proposals for the expenditure of the Economic Development
Initiatives budget for 2003/04 as set out in paragraphs 5-11
and Annex 1 (download as .doc file)
of the report;
- agree
to the production of an economic development workplan for Oxfordshire
County Council
MARTIN STOTT
Head of External
Policy & Partnerships
Background papers: Nil
Contact Officer:
Martin Stott Tel: 01865 815919
April 2003
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