Tees Valley City Region: A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

John Lowther & Jonathan Spruce Tees Valley Joint Strategy Unit

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

How We Have Got Here

• Significant sub-regional partnership working since reform of Cleveland in 1996 • Identified as one of eight City Regions with The Northern Way Growth Strategy • Produced of two versions of the City Region Development Programme (CRDP) • Also developed a City Region Business Case in response to CLG in September 2006 • Government Office Peer Assist Review in February 2007 • New City Region Governance arrangements have been agreed with Tees Valley Authorities and all Partners • Now working on developing a Multi-Area Agreement (MAA)

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Our Key “Asks” in Business Case

• Endorse our forward strategy to improve economic performance through: – Developing our economic assets – Improving urban competitiveness • Agree strategic priorities for investment set out in our Investment Plan • Support the governance proposals for a new Metropolitan Economic Partnership • Work with us to develop an MAA which will provide the resources from three key funding streams to implement the Business Case

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Objective of our MAA

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“To deliver the agreed investment priorities earlier than would otherwise have been the case, and more cost effectively, through the integration of physical and fiscal resources and a strong and accountable governance structure within a defined performance monitoring framework.”

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Principles of an MAA (1)

• Covers the 3 main funding streams that will implement the Business Case: – Economic development/regeneration from One NorthEast – Transport from Regional Transport Board/DfT – Housing market renewal from Regional Housing Boards/CLG • Other areas in the longer term • Differs from LAAs in that these are mainly capital funding streams

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Principles of an MAA (2)

• Regional/national funding allocation mechanisms will still decide allocations to the Tees Valley • One Authority acts as an accountable body for MAA with legal agreements with the other four Authorities • Complementary to LAAs but not in a hierarchical relationship • Simple and flexible

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Elements of our MAA

• Priorities – “what” and “when” • Resources and Governance – “how” • Performance Monitoring – “why”

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Governance

• Business Case included outline proposals for our Metropolitan Economic Partnership – Tees Valley Unlimited • Will consider matters considered better dealt with at City Region level – planning and economic strategy, transport, employment and skills, housing and tourism • Presumed to be a partnership co-ordinating activities at a City Region level without delegating powers in the first instance

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Governance Proposals

LEADERSHIP BOARD EXECUTIVE PROGRAMME GROUP PLANNING & ECONOMIC STRATEGY TRANSPORT FOR TEES VALLEY EMP’MENT & SKILLS HOUSING TOURISM

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Accountability

• Local Authorities will still maintain existing powers and voting rights • Structure can therefore be set up using existing partnerships • It is an evolutionary, rather than revolutionary, approach • But Leadership Board will be accountable to Government through the MAA

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

How We Will Measure Success

• Local Government White Paper suggests developing outcome-based indicators drawn from LAAs • But whole ethos of our Business Case is to address our particular economic challenges • We propose three sets of indicators: – Progress towards key economic challenges = outcomes =

Contributory Indicators MAA Indicators

– Progress towards delivery of Investment Plan priorities and – Progress towards other quality of life indicators e.g. crime and health =

Contextualising Indicators

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

What We Want through the MAA (1)

• Agreement to be between Government and Tees Valley Unlimited • ‘Buy in’ across all Government departments • A duty for regional agencies/departments to co-operate in developing an MAA • Agreement to broad programme of strategic investment priorities at an early stage, yet to be fully appraised • Common appraisal system based on Treasury Green Book • Ability to re-profile the sequencing of individual projects to ensure the most effective linkages between spatial schemes and maintain overall delivery

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

What We Want through the MAA (2)

• Certainty of funding over a defined time period (3, 5 or 3 + 2 years), allowing the opportunity to borrow up front with greater certainty against the future funding profile • Ability to vire resources across different disciplines as well as individual projects, even with individual PSA targets • Streamlined approach to performance monitoring, accounting for the new national LAA indicator framework • Acceptance that the we concentrate on economic development in the initial stages • Operational by April 2008

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Added Value of an MAA (1)

• Comfort – to Government that the programme is prioritised and deliverable – to Local Authorities that Government is committed to the City Region Business Case • Certainty – to plan resources for delivery – to help to negotiate increased private sector leverage – to the public/Local Authority Members – to enhance long term financial planning

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Added Value of an MAA (2)

• Flexibility – to vire resources across different funding streams – to use money saved from efficiencies and/or additional private sector funding used elsewhere in the Region • Buy-in – across all Government departments and all delivery Partners • Demonstrates that Government can deliver in a joined up way through a mature relationship with Local Government

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Proposed Timetable

• March/April 2007 – Local Authority Cabinet approvals to new governance structure • April 2007 – publication of draft framework for initial discussions with CLG and Partners • June/July 2007 – inaugural meetings of new Boards and sub-Boards • July 2007 – publication of SNR? • August/September 2007 – prepare draft MAA • October 2007 – publication of CSR07, (SNR?) and new guidance on LAAs and MAAs • November 2007 – receive comments from CLG on draft MAA • December 2007/January 2008 – re-draft MAA and submit revised version to CLG • February 2008 – receive final comments from CLG • March 2008 – prepare final MAA • April 2008 – MAA operational

A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

Tees Valley City Region: A New Way of Joint Working through MAAs

John Lowther & Jonathan Spruce Tees Valley Joint Strategy Unit