Enterprise Zones Update

Enterprise Zones – where are we?

This post will clarify the current enterprise zone situation.

View this useful map showing local enterprise partnerships and enterprise zones http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/pdf/1968608.pdf 


As part of the Budget 2011 the Government announced its intention to establish 21 Enterprise Zones in England. Eleven local enterprise partnerships were invited to come forward with proposals for Enterprise Zones. All of the first round locations have been confirmed.

Local enterprise partnership	Enterprise Zone
Black Country	Black Country Enterprise Zone - led by Local Enterprise Partnership proposes: • Size: two sites covering 120 hectares; one site 'i54' falls across the boundary between the Black Country lep area and the Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire lep area. The two partnerships have agreed to share the costs and proceeds of developing the site. • Sector focus: advanced manufacturing including aerospace, automotive and engineering and environmental technologies; • Tax break: Save business money in forgone business rates; • Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that 3,843 net jobs will be created by 2015; • Floorspace: total developable floor space over £500,000 square metres; • Planning: Simplified regime to provide certainty for business wanting to build.
Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire	Nottingham (Boots Campus)
Greater Birmingham and Solihull	Birmingham (Birmingham City Centre)
Greater Manchester	Manchester (Airport)
Leeds City Region	Leeds (Lower Aire Valley)
Liverpool City Region	Liverpool (Mersey Waters)
London	London (Royal Docks)
North Eastern	North Eastern Enterprise Zone - led by the Local Enterprise Partnership proposes: • Size: two sites covering 117 hectares; • Sector focus: low carbon; • Tax break: save business money in forgone business rates; • Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates nearly 1,000 jobs will be created by 2015; • Floorspace: total developable floor space nearly 500,000 square metres; • Planning: Simplified regime to provide certainty for business wanting to build.
Sheffield City Region	Sheffield (The Modern Manufacturing and Technology Growth Area)
Tees Valley	Tees Valley Enterprise Zone - led by the Local Enterprise Partnership proposes a number of sites across Tees Valley. • Sector focus: petrochemicals and renewable energy, primarily spread on both banks of Tees estuary; • Tax break: save business money in forgone business rates and capital allowances; • Job creation: support the creation of 137 new businesses and over 2,624 jobs, business rate relief sites to be funded locally, will further support the creation of 29 businesses and 360 jobs. This gives a total number of 166 businesses and almost 3,000 jobs by 2015; • Planning: simplified regime to provide certainty for business wanting to build.
West of England	Bristol (Temple Quarter)

For the second wave of Enterprise Zones, LEPs were asked to come forward with bids – with the presumption being that only one designation will be made per partnership. Bids were selected from the thirty bids received.


The full list of bids received is:

Local Enterprise Partnership	Enterprise Zone Proposal
Cheshire and Warrington	Omega - an outstanding business location for Cheshire and Warrington
Coast to Capital	Enterprise@BognorRegis
Cornwall &  Isle of Scilly	Newquay AeroHub Enterprise Zone
Coventry & Warwickshire	Coventry & Warwickshire Gateway
Cumbria	Fuelling the Future - Cumbria Enterprise Zone
Derby Derbyshire Nottingham Nottinghamshire	Markham Vale Growth Zone
East Sussex, Essex, Kent, Medway, Southend and Thurrock	Discovery Park, Sandwich, Kent
East Sussex, Essex, Kent	Enterprise West Essex @ Harlow
Enterprise M3	Enterprise Zone M3
GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership	Gloucestershire Enterprise Zone
Greater Birmingham and Solihull	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Enterprise Belt
Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough	Alconbury Business Campus
Greater Lincolnshire	South Humber Bank Gateway Enterprise Zone
Heart of the South West	Energised, Advanced, Inspired: Plymouth's Enterprise Zone for the Heart of the South West
Heart of the South West	Heart of the South West Low Carbon Energy Enterprise Zone
Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire Enterprise Zone @ Maylands
Humber	Humber Renewable Energy Super Cluster
Lancashire	The Lancashire AEM (Advanced Engineering & Manufacturing) Enterprise Zone
Leicester and Leicestershire	MIRA Technology Park
London	Upper Lee Valley
London	Croydon
Marches	Marches Enterprise Zone
New Anglia	Energy for New Anglia
Oxfordshire	Science Vale UK Gateway Zone
Solent	The Solent Enterprise Zone at Daedalus
South East Midlands	Northampton Waterside
Stoke and Staffordshire	North Staffordshire Enterprise Zone
Worcestershire	South Kidderminster Advanced Manufacturing and Business Park
York and North Yorkshire	The Yorkshire Coast Enterprise Zone

(You will note that this is only 29 bids, I have been unable to locate the 30^th)

On 16th August the second round of Enterprise zones were confirmed.  We were expecting only 10 but 11 were approved.  There are now 22 Enterprise Zones.

The confirmed second round of Enterprise Zones are:Daresbury Science Campus in Warrington.
Newquay AeroHub in Cornwall
The Solent Enterprise Zone at Daedalus Airfield in Gosport
Rotherwas Enterprise Zone in Hereford;
Discovery Park in Sandwich, Kent
Enterprise West Essex in Harlow
Science Vale UK in Oxfordshire
Alconbury Airfield in Cambridgeshire
Great Yarmouth in Norfolk
Lowestoft in Suffolk;
Northampton Waterside
MIRA Technology Park in Hinckley Leicestershire
Humber Estuary Renewable Energy Super Cluster

More details below:

Rotherwas Enterprise Zone - in Hereford led by the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:
• Size: three sites covering 61.5 hectares;
• Sector focus: defence, advanced engineering, green technologies and food processing;
• Tax break: Save business £4 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates at least 55 businesses and 1,800 jobs will be created by 2015;
• Planning: Simplified regime to provide certainty for business wanting to build;
• Broadband: Wireless service 20MB line speeds but can deliver 100MB speeds. A fibre optic option available through the Hereford BDUK Superfast Broadband project (up to 100MB) by 2013;
• Investment: Expecting at least £90m from the private sector by 2015.



Northampton Waterside Enterprise Zone - led by the South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:

• Size: 120 hectares;
• Sector focus: advanced technologies, precision engineering, low carbon technology, sustainable construction, and high performance engineering, supported by related professional, financial, leisure and business services;
• Tax break: Save businesses £19.9 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 390 new businesses and 12,400 new jobs by 2015;
• Broadband: Exploring delivery of superfast broadband with suppliers;
• Investment: Anticipate over £200m from private sector.



Newquay Aerohub Zone – led by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:

• Size: 1 site covering 55 hectares;
• Sector focus: aerospace;
• Tax breaks: Save businesses £2.4million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: 1,100 new jobs by 2015;
• Planning: Simplified regime; opening up the site for aviation development on the aerodrome and for the business park; and aviation related business development;
• Broadband: Access to Superfast Cornwall broadband £132m project is up and running.



Alconbury Airfield Zone - near Huntington, led by the Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:

• Size: 150 hectares;
• Sector focus: ICT, biotech, pharmaceutical, advanced manufacturing, creative industries, engineering and processing;
• Tax breaks: Save businesses £5.9 - £6.3 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 25-40 new businesses and 1,500 jobs by 2015;
• Planning: Simplified regime permitting the change of use of existing buildings and building new ones;
• Investment: Looking to attract international investment with UKTI support.



Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft Enterprise Zone – led by the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:

• Size: Six sites covering 121 hectares - close to the ports - South Denes, Beacon Park, Ellough Industrial Estate, South Lowestoft Industrial Estate, Mobbs Way and Riverside Road;
• Sector focus: energy sector (including offshore wind) and broader focus on ports, logistics, construction and engineering;
• Tax breaks: Save businesses £3.8 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 80 businesses and 1,380 jobs by 2015;
• Planning: Existing simplified regime for all development relating to the energy cluster;
• Broadband: Norfolk just gained BDUK funding to improve broadband and has bid for £1m of ERDF funding to significantly improve coverage.



Daresbury Science and Innovation Zone - in North Warrington, led by Liverpool City Region and Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnerships proposes:

• Size: 28 hectares;
• Sector focus: science and technology.
• Tax break: Save businesses £3.1 million in forgone business rates.
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that 1000 new jobs and at least 32 businesses could be created by 2015;
• Planning: Simplified planning regime on course;
• Broadband: Access to a high speed 100 mb/s internet connection scaleable to demand. Academic partners on site are able to utilise the very high speed Superjanet Network.
• Investment: Seeks to attract significant numbers of high quality inward investment projects.



Humber Waterside Enterprise Zone - in Kingston upon Hull, led by Humber Local Enterprise Partnership proposes:

• Size: 375 hectare site;
• Sector Focus: offshore wind Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and supply chain;
• Tax breaks: Save businesses £7.9 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that 4,850 jobs could be created by 2015;
• Planning: Simplified regime with a presumption - removing the need for specific planning permission with a single Local Development Order.



Discovery Park in Sandwich and West Essex Enterprise Zone in Harlow– led by the Kent, Essex and East Sussex local enterprise partnership proposes:

• Size: Sandwich site will be 99.4ha; Harlow site will be 51ha;
• Sector Focus: Sandwich will focus on life sciences, pharmaceutical, bio-technology and broader R&D (including chemicals, food and renewable energy). Harlow will focus medical technologies and advanced manufacturing;
• Tax breaks: Sandwich will save business £21.4 million.
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that Sandwich will create 2400 jobs and 190 businesses and Harlow will create 100 businesses 2,200 – 2,570 jobs by 2015;
• Planning: simplified regime will cover change of uses without the need for planning permission to be sought. Harlow will facilitate those businesses in the health and allied industries and advanced manufacturing sectors;
• Broadband: There are excellent data (broadband) connections at Sandwich.



Science Vale Enterprise Zone – led by the Oxfordshire local enterprise partnership proposes:

• Size: 2 sites covering 92 hectares;
• Sector Focus: green technology, advanced materials and engineering, space and other high value R&D (e.g. medical technologies, bio-technologies and cryogenics);
• Tax breaks: Save business £29.8 million in forgone Business Rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 200 businesses and between 6,250 - 10,500 jobs by April 2015.



MIRA Technology Park in Hinckley – led by the Leicester and Leicestershire local enterprise partnership proposes:

• Size: one site covering 87.5 hectares;
• Sector Focus: R&D, including automotive, aerospace, transport, defence and manufacturing;
• Tax breaks: Save business £800,000 - £1.9 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 12 businesses and 800 jobs by 2015;
• Broadband: plans for superfast roll out;
• Investment: UKTI have expressed their willingness to support international marketing effort. Local Enterprise Partnership have also bid for regional growth funding.



The Solent Enterprise Zone at Daedalus Airfield in Gosport – led by the Solent local enterprise partnership proposes:

• Size: one site covering 82 hectares;
• Sector Focus: R&D, including automotive, aerospace, transport, defence and manufacturing;
• Tax breaks: Save business £2.7 million in forgone business rates;
• Job creation: Local Enterprise Partnership estimates 38 – 45 businesses and 650 jobs by April 2015.
• Planning: is a master planned site and the current planning applications are intended to provide outline planning consents for development over the long term;
• Broadband: Discussions are ongoing about best broadband provision;
• Investment: UKTI have expressed their willingness to support international marketing effort. Local Enterprise Partnership have also bid for regional growth funding.

LEP Start Up Fund: who got what?

32 proposals were submitted to BIS for the £5 million start up fund. The average amount per LEP (assuming all funding was distributed) would be £156,250. Here is information on who got what. Percentage = percentage received from total amount bid for.

Where there is only a percentage this means I have not yet been able to find out the exact amount.


Coventry and Warwickshire got £200,000 100%

Thames Valley Berkshire got £198,835 100%

Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough £220,500 90%

Staffordshire Stoke-on-Trent Local Enterprise Partnership £172,500 98%

Black Country £75,000 100%

Coast to Capital £240,000 75%

Cornwall and IoS £76,000 100%

Sheffield £246,000 68%

Hertfordshire £180,000 90%

Greater Birmingham £160,000 73%

York and North Yorkshire £120,000

Dorset £177,500 95%

New Anglia £180,000 100%

Solent £95,000 100%

Humber £177,000 100%

Heart of the South West LEP £170,000 100%

South East £201,000 100%

Enterprise M3 £210,000 100%

The Marches £137,000 93%




Unknown:

North Eastern Local Enterprise Partnership 90%
Leeds City Region 69%
Cheshire and Warrington 90%
Tees Valley Unlimited 91%
Liverpool City Region 100%
Leicester and Leicestershire 97%
Greater Lincolnshire 100%
York and North Yorkshire 100%
South East Midlands 100%
West of England 100%
Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire 69%
Worcestershire 100%
Cumbria 100%
Greater Manchester 100%

LEP Network Interview with the British Chambers of Commerce

I Interviewed Mike Spicer from the British Chambers of Commerce on the LEP Network 26^th July 2011

What will the LEP Network do?

It will be a light-touch network that enables LEPs to come together to discuss issues of shared importance, engage with Ministers, and share knowledge and good practice. It will be a gateway to news and information, and will assist LEPs to ‘self-serve’ with their troubleshooting, capacity-building and problem-solving needs.

The Network officially went live on 21 July, so it’s still very early days. We have a draft programme of activities that we are testing with LEP leaders to ensure it reflects their needs and is driven by their requirements.

The core programme will consist of events; electronic forums for regular communication; a monthly bulletin; a website and an annual benchmarking report of LEP-area economies.

We hope that over time it becomes a valued and trusted platform for LEPs and the wider community of interest around local economic development.



Who is it for?

It’s there for LEPs. LEPs come in all shapes and sizes and the make-up of Boards, in terms of public and private-sector participants, varies greatly too. The Network needs to be inclusive to reflect that and be successful.

While LEPs are resource-constrained, that doesn’t mean they can’t draw on expertise and experience in a way that avoids the use of significant additional resource. Using the power of networks is one such way. We’ve already seen virtual social networks spring up around the LEP agenda. But I think it’s fair to say that at this stage they are mainly confined to the wider community of interest and have a public-sector slant.

The Network will help to address this lack of capacity on the private-sector side but will not be exclusive to it. I think a major strength that the BCC brings to this is experience of engaging with Chamber members, other local business bodies and the wider community on the issue of local economic development. This experience will inform how we frame Network activities so they are as inclusive as they can be.

We have also been in discussions with the LGA about how we can make this work for both the public and private-sector participants in LEPs.



What will you do?

My role is to lead the project management of LEP Network activities and be the main point of contact for those looking to find out more about how they can get involved.



Are you a new national secretariat?

No. This is not about re-creating some equivalent to the old RDA National Secretariat: RDAs shared common lines of accountability into central government and the secretariat supported that by co-ordinating communications and positions.

But LEPs are evolving from the bottom up - free from central control and shaped according to local need: the LEP Network is based on these principles too and will be driven by the priorities of its members.

LEPs have told us loud and clear: they do not want the Network to be a collective mouthpiece for them, and they do not want some grouping drawn from the Network that could, over time, come to be seen as the primary route for the Government to engage with the LEP agenda.



For how long will you be facilitating this network given funding restraints?

The Department for Communities and Local Government has made a grant available to cover some of the costs of Network activity over its first two years, the remainder will be met through in-kind contributions from the BCC.

So our role is to get it up and running. We will be working with partners across the Network to explore the options for sustaining it beyond the grant period.



How do I get involved (LEP/business/representative group)?

There are several ways you can get involved - by attending events; providing news and other material for the website and monthly bulletins; and contributing to online discussions.

The Network will hold events throughout the year: some will be directed primarily at LEP Boards, others will be open to the wider community of interest.

We will also be organising a Business Representatives Forum, drawn from across national business groups and sector organisations. This will be a forum for business groups to raise common issues about local economic development from their members, in a way that can be fed into the Network.



I understand that there is an event on 15th September – how can I register?

The LEP Network’s inaugural event will be held in London on 15 September. It is open to LEP Boards, senior government officials and business group representatives. This first event is by invitation only. The aim is to maximise the quality time between LEP leaders and Ministers. The event will feature keynote addresses from BIS and CLG Ministers; a ‘LEP Question time’ session – a chance for LEP leaders to ask questions of senior members of the Government; and plenty of opportunities for networking.



There will be a second, larger event, in February / March 2012 that will be open to the wider community of interest. We also plan to hold regular thematic workshops.



Will you have a website/email address?

Yes. The Network website will go live over the next few months. It will be a portal for information on LEPs and news from around the Network; carry discussion threads; be a hub for LEP-relevant research; and include information about LEP Network events with details of how to get involved.

The LEP Network email address will go live from 1 August and will be: info@lepnetwork.org.uk



Can I register for updates / newsletter / events? Will you have a distribution list?

Yes. You will be able to register by emailing info@lepnetwork.org.uk from 1 August and there will also be a facility to sign up through the website when that goes live.



Will I be able to bid for funding from you?

No – the Network is not a funding body. But information on how to access / raise funding will be included within the scope of Network activities.

Sub-national economic development: Where do we go from here?

Sub-national economic development: Where do we go from here?


Lee Pugalis, September 2010
 
A little dated but still worth a read as many of the points are still valid.
 
http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/60737924?access_key=key-jpd9v6f8rnac1goo00n

Everything you need to know about LEPs(2): essential LEP reading; groups to join and best practice

LEPs are part of the Government’s Local Economic Growth Agenda which also includes: Enterprise Zones; Regional Growth Fund; Reforming the planning system; Incentivising Local Authorities to go for growth (including the New Homes Bonus and the Local Government Resource Review which is due in July 2011); UKTI: new arrangements for Foreign Direct Investment support; and around skills: freedom from central control; two-way engagement between colleges & training organisations and local partners.

Each LEPs role will be decided locally, however the focus will be around these themes: economic development, skills, planning, housing and tourism. 

There are 36 LEPs.  They are at different stages of development. 

Many LEPs have websites which are a great source of information.  In terms of establishing a LEP and what they will be doing here is a list of documents that I would recommend viewing:

Coast to Capital chairman role job description
South East Midlands chair job description
South East Midlands director role
Hertfordshire LEP terms of reference
Cheshire and Warrington presentation from stakeholder forum presentation on 4^th July
Stoke and Staffordshire Selection criteria for Board Members
Solent LEP mission statement and guiding principles
Oxfordshire LEP business plan
Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Board Terms of Reference
West of England June Board minutes 

All of which are available on the appropriate LEP website

A couple of other reports worth reading are:

Patrick McVeigh’s thoughts on LEPs via CLES http://www.cles.org.uk/features/decisions-decisions/

Janice Morphet Infrastucture Development Plans and LEPs which is available through LinkedIn

There are my tips of groups to join for more information on LEPs.

Linked In:

From RDA to LEP

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Check if your local LEP has a LinkedIn group

Communities of Practice http://www.communities.idea.gov.uk/welcome.do

You will need to register and then join the Local Enterprise Partnerships ‘community’

If you would like me to share your documentation / papers / other best practice please forward it to me.  This blog has had more than 6000 hits in two months.

lorna_gibbons@hotmail.com

List of Local Authorities in more than one LEP

LA (District/ Unitary) covered (spatially)	LEPs
Barnsley	Leeds City Region Sheffield City Region
Craven	Leeds City Region York and North Yorkshire
Harrogate	Leeds City Region York and North Yorkshire
Selby	Leeds City Region York and North Yorkshire
York	Leeds City Region York and North Yorkshire
North East Derbyshire	Sheffield City Region Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire,
Chesterfield	Sheffield City Region Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire,
Bassetlaw	Sheffield City Region Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire,
Bolsover	Sheffield City Region Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire,
East Staffordshire	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Stoke and Staffordshire
Lichfield	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Stoke and Staffordshire
Cannock Chase	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Stoke and Staffordshire
Tamworth	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Stoke and Staffordshire
Redditch	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Worcestershire
Bromsgrove	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Worcestershire
Wyre Forest	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Worcestershire
King's Lynn and West Norfolk	Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough New Anglia
Forest Heath	Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough New Anglia
North Hertfordshire	Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough Hertfordshire
St Edmundsbury	Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough New Anglia
Uttlesford	Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough Kent, Greater Essex and East Sussex
Dacorum	Hertfordshire South East Midlands
Cherwell	Oxford City Region South East Midlands
East Hampshire	Solent Enterprise M3
Test Valley	Solent Enterprise M3
Winchester	Solent Enterprise M3
North East Lincolnshire	Lincolnshire Humber
Croydon	Coast to Capital Pan London
East Riding of Yorkshire	York and North Yorkshire and Humber

For a full list of LEPs and LAs follow this link to an Excel spreed sheet http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/economic-development/docs/l/11-p113f-local-authority-areas-covered-by-leps.xls

The 29 bids for a second wave of 10 Enterprise Zone are as follows:

Local Enterprise Partnership	Enterprise Zone Proposal
Cheshire and Warrington	Omega - an outstanding business location for Cheshire and Warrington
Coast to Capital	Enterprise@BognorRegis
Cornwall & Isle of Scilly	Newquay AeroHub Enterprise Zone
Coventry & Warwickshire	Coventry & Warwickshire Gateway
Cumbria	Fuelling the Future - Cumbria Enterprise Zone
Derby Derbyshire Nottingham Nottinghamshire	Markham Vale Growth Zone
East Sussex, Essex, Kent, Medway, Southend and Thurrock	Discovery Park, Sandwich, Kent
East Sussex, Essex, Kent	Enterprise West Essex @ Harlow
Enterprise M3	Enterprise Zone M3
GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership	Gloucestershire Enterprise Zone
Greater Birmingham and Solihull	Greater Birmingham and Solihull Enterprise Belt
Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough	Alconbury Business Campus
Greater Lincolnshire	South Humber Bank Gateway Enterprise Zone
Heart of the South West	Energised, Advanced, Inspired: Plymouth's Enterprise Zone for the Heart of the South West
Heart of the South West	Heart of the South West Low Carbon Energy Enterprise Zone
Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire Enterprise Zone @ Maylands
Humber	Humber Renewable Energy Super Cluster
Lancashire	The Lancashire AEM (Advanced Engineering & Manufacturing) Enterprise Zone
Leicester and Leicestershire	MIRA Technology Park
London	Upper Lee Valley
London	Croydon
Marches	Marches Enterprise Zone
New Anglia	Energy for New Anglia
Oxfordshire	Science Vale UK Gateway Zone
Solent	The Solent Enterprise Zone at Daedalus
South East Midlands	Northampton Waterside
Stoke and Staffordshire	North Staffordshire Enterprise Zone
Worcestershire	South Kidderminster Advanced Manufacturing and Business Park
York and North Yorkshire	The Yorkshire Coast Enterprise Zone