Issue - meetings

Report of Assistant Director – Economy and Regeneration

Purpose of report

To seek the Executives’ endorsement for the development of a 10 year district industrial strategy for Cherwell; the Cherwell Industrial Strategy (CIS).

Recommendations

The meeting is recommended:

1.1         To endorse and support the process to prepare a ten year industrial strategy for Cherwell.

1.2         To agree the approach for Cherwell.

1.3         To note the programme and indicative timeline for delivery.

Resolved

(1)           That the process to prepare a ten year industrial strategy for Cherwell be supported and endorsed.

(2)           That the approach for Cherwell be agreed.

(3)           That the programme and indicative timeline for delivery be noted.

The Assistant Director – Economy and Regeneration submitted a report to seek the Executives’ endorsement for the development of a 10 year district industrial strategy for Cherwell; the Cherwell Industrial Strategy (CIS).

Resolved

(1)           That the process to prepare a ten year industrial strategy for Cherwell be supported and endorsed.

(2)           That the approach for Cherwell be agreed.

(3)           That the programme and indicative timeline for delivery be noted.

Reasons

This programme is ambitious and provides the opportunity to mobilise, motivate and inspire participants including internal teams, members throughout CDC and external partners. The methodology is proven.  The iterative and incremental approach to gaining internal and external buy-in has been shown to deliver successful strategies elsewhere. The process will ensure that the final strategies have the support of the various groups and partners. The time is right to prepare a ten year economic strategy for CDC as the current strategy has expired. The strategy will realise real benefits including enabling an organisation-wide approach to delivering economic growth. The strategy development process will ensure the interests and input of a wide range of organisations are represented enabling effective delivery. 

Alternative options

Option 1: Do nothing; this was rejected because the District’s current plan for the economy expired in 2016 and a replacement is overdue.

Option 2: Undertake producing a three year plan for the economy adopting traditional and prosaic methods. This was rejected because the time is right for an ambitious ten year strategy which aligns with the national Industrial Strategy and the work being undertaken by the LEPs and their LIS trailblazers. Furthermore, with the Growth Deal and the Ox-Cam corridor there is currently a mood of ambition and positivity which makes producing a much more progressive district industrial strategy the right thing to do for our times.

Option 3: Produce a joint economic strategy with South Northamptonshire.  This option was rejected on two grounds. The first is the imminent split with SNC through local government reorganisation and secondly because the economies are not sufficiently similar. It was, initially, proposed to pursue a “twin-track” approach where Cherwell and South Northants would develop concurrent strategies following the same, progressive, strategy development methodology. Things have moved on since then and the creation of a three way (South Northants, Daventry and Northampton) West Northamptonshire Industrial Strategy is currently being considered. This development creates a situation that puts Cherwell at the forefront of this process because the West Northamptonshire strategy will, unavoidably, now be some months behind.