Transcript Slide 1

Ian Williams
Director of Economic Growth
Driving the Economy
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Where are we?
Where do we want to be - The Vision?
The Strategies to get us there
Actions to making it happen
Where are we?
• Employment rate is now 73.5% with a pre recession rate of 71.1% this is
above the national average of 71.9% and Tees Valley average of 66.5%
• Unemployment rate is currently 8% with a pre recession rate of 5.3%
• Currently 1,965 on job seekers allowance, 865 less than the previous year
• Youth unemployment an still an issue at 5.6% (450 JSA; 18-24) but has
fallen within last year by 305 from a rate of 9.3%
• Average residence based earnings grew in last 12 months by £33 pp/pw
• New businesses formations in 2013 are around 450 compared to 350 in
2012.
• In last 12 months we have seen housing growth pick up with around 400 –
420 new housing completions expected in 2014/15.
Where do we want to be?
 Transforming Economy Place and Lives
 Building on Excellent Connectivity and Quality of life
- People
 Enabling Infrastructure
 Support and Encourage Business Growth Sectors
Strategies to get us there…..
Major Opportunities
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Darlington Town Centre
Central Park
Town Centre Fringe
Heritage led regeneration
Lingfield Point
Housing
Working with existing businesses
Inward investment
Central Park Master plan
National Biologics Manufacturing Centre
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£38m project, delivered by CPI
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Set to open at Central Park in summer 2015
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National showcase facility for R&D of
pharmaceutical manufacturing processes
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5,000sqm building on gateway to Central Park
South
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Already producing opportunities for spin-offs
and sector growth with developments for a
National Horizons Centre and CPI Factories for
the Future planned to start on site in 2016/17
Business Growth Hub
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Set to open April 2015
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ERDF and HCA funded at £6.6m
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Grade A & BREEAM Excellent serviced
office facility offering 52 units over 2,250
sqm (net)
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This will offer office space for up to 60
firms, as well as an Open Space co-working
facility
Sector Priorities
Biologics
Subsea
Advanced Engineering and Manufacturing
Logistics
Public Sector/Service Sector
Digital creative sectors
Retail
Health
Place Objectives:
 Raise the profile of borough through marketing/influencing/informing to generate economic growth.
 Reduce migration to other employment/retail/leisure/cultural centres.
Place Achievements:
 Produced a sites & premises web portal which went live in December 2014.
 Held a Town Centre Conference in March 2014 to determine how we promote town centre offer and
quality of life - draft Town Centre Business Plan presented to Town Centre Board November 2014.
 Worked in partnership to deliver the second Festival of Thrift event which attracted over 40,000
visitors and the Senior Golf open which attracted 10,000 visitors.
 New public sector hub in the town centre, with shared office space between DfE and the Council
opened at the end of January 2015.
 22 Inward Investment enquiries dealt with by Economy Team and TVU, 19 of these expansion projects
from locally based businesses.
 Work on the new cinema, hotel and leisure complex is underway, together with construction of a
multi-storey car park which will free other sites for development. Opening of the Cinema is planned
for the March 2016.
 Secured retail development to be led by OPUS on North Road
 WIP – Faverdale retail park applications, Yarm Road.
Key
 = achieved
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= in progress
People Objectives:
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Close gap between skills needs and skills availability
Reduce levels of worklessness/young people NEET
Skilled local workforce able to meet business needs
Reduce levels of JSA claimants
People Achievements:
 Completed an employer skills survey to identify future training needs / opportunities
 Successfully supported 94 Darlington businesses take part in Tees Valley workforce skills project with 279 employees
receiving training in areas including hospitality, marketing, construction and health & safety.
 Started Red Hall employability project (summer 2014) with a weekly Jobs club, held at the Community Centre and
support for Red hall residents to access local employment
 103 new jobs have been approved and 5 jobs safe-guarded in Darlington through the Tees Valley Workforce
Investment Scheme a.k.a ‘wage subsidy’
 Value of ‘wage subsidy’ approved in borough is £869,815, matched by £2,847,781 in private funds
 Last year Foundation for Jobs created 194 new apprenticeships, 122 internships/work experience placements and
worked with 1399 pupils.
 In the last year Youth unemployment (18-24) has fallen from 9.3% to 5.6%
 Darlington has second lowest NEET figure of all TV authorities at 7%
 Continued to roll out the Encouraging Engineering Scheme with 2 participants completed and working in relevant
companies.
 Worked in partnership Distinct Darlington to recruit Town Centre Businesses in the TVWS programme - delivering a
series of training sessions between January – April 2015 aimed at supporting the retail sector.
Infrastructure Objectives:
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Business and employment growth is supported
Key sectors (existing and emerging) are supported for growth
Darlington remains a viable and competitive location for business
Effective transport system that meets the needs and aspirations of all
Infrastructure Achievements:
 Allocated £2.2M Local Growth funding for opening up access to Central Park from Yarm Road.
 Influenced Highways Agency investment in junction improvements at the A66 junction with Yarm Road.
 Secured £17.5M in LGF to support a National Horizons Centre providing high-value, integrated support for
companies in innovation and commercialization as well as training programmes. Development planned to
start in 2016/17.
 Attained £10M in LGF to facilitate the next stage of the NBMC development, Factories for the Future with
work planned to start in 2016/17.
 Supported sale of Lingfield Point to developers Clear Bell, with ambitions to continue to build on the success
of the site and to see Lingfield Point become a flagship for successful regeneration in the North East.
 Successfully allocated £30M in pipeline funding to support regeneration activity in 2016/17 and 2017/18.
 Worked with consortium of east coast mainline Local Authorities to develop business case for investment.
 Active partners in Rail North – combined lobbying group for North East rail investment.
 Continuation of the inner ring road upgrades – making bus journey times 3% more reliable.
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Influenced BT High speed broadband rollout programme through BDUK in town centre and Central Park
enterprise zone - to complete Spring 2015.
Identifying infrastructure requirements on our retail parks and looking at feasibility work for
future LGF bids.
Business Growth Objectives:
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Retain growth businesses and attract new businesses
% decrease in business failure rates by 3rd birthday
% increase in GVA per filled job
More opportunities for local businesses to tender for local opportunities
Business Growth Achievements:
Developing a dedicated ‘inward investment’ website - expected to go live by April
2015.
 £1.7M in private sector investment agreed at Faverdale East.
 Supported 38 businesses / vacant premises occupied, includes 33 new
businesses through the High Street Innovation Fund.
 To date, from Autumn 2013 there have been 120 new business starts, and 136
jobs created.
 Completed a report on opportunities for investment in Logistics operations –
sector action plans to complete.
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