The SCR Chambers: East Midlands
Putting your business needs at the heart of our strategy
the economy. Councils, businesses and universities across
A bold vision for the economy T
he East Midlands is planning a historic fightback from the economic impact of Covid-19 with a bold new vision to grow
the region have come together to develop long- term plans that aim to create 84,000 jobs, unleash new technologies and add billions to the value of the East Midlands economy. Backed by the Midlands Engine partnership,
they will use proposals for a new East Midlands Development Corporation to drive a series of large-scale development sites, linking them to local communities through drastically improved transport connections. They are also looking to East Midlands Airport
to build on its status as the UK’s biggest airfreight gateway to drive international trade for key regional industries and businesses. Each of the proposals individually covers an
area the size of the London Olympic Park. They are being hailed as a potential transformation for the region’s economy by MPs, council and business leaders and universities. Midlands Engine Chairman Sir John Peace,
who has steered the oversight board behind the proposals, said it would be “nothing short of a transformation”.
“To make the most of this massive potential,
we are working together to build a new organisation which will have the drive and purpose to achieve rapid progress.” The East Midlands Development Corporation
team is working with the Midlands Engine to secure an initial £235m of funding from Government, which will enable it to finalise proposals for three massive developments that will feed into each other to create regional impact: • Toton and Chetwynd – using the HS2 hub
Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station
station at Toton as the super-connected centrepiece of a new “Garden of Innovation” featuring a new community and innovation district
• Ratcliffe-on-Soar – transforming the UK’s last coal-field power station into ZERO, a global research centre that will develop real-world low-emission technologies
• East Midlands Airport – already the UK’s largest airfreight hub, the airport could be the centrepiece of an inland freeport that will provide regional businesses with a lower-cost gateway to international trade post-Brexit The Development Corporation will work to
make sure the major redevelopment opportunities – which cross local authority boundaries – are joined up and maximise their potential. Scott Knowles, Chief Executive of East Midlands Chamber, said: “We can see huge, long-term potential in these proposals. The better connectivity unlocked by HS2 and the proposals for airport expansion can be combined with the redevelopment of Ratcliffe to achieve a long-term impact which really shifts the dial of regional economic performance. It is vital now that the Government backs these proposals to the hilt.”
Scheme to reduce crime across Derbyshire
Businesses across Derbyshire have been urged to work together by joining a scheme that aims to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour as the economic impact of Covid-19 takes hold. Jackie Roberts, Manager of the East Midlands Chamber-run Business Crime Reduction Partnership (BCRP), believes greater collaboration between employers will be crucial to the recovery of town centres. About 100 organisations in Chesterfield,
Matlock, Bakewell and Staveley are already signed up to the Partnership, sharing information that will help reduce crime and anti-social behaviour in the towns and surrounding areas. But it is now aiming to roll out the scheme further afield into the rest of Derbyshire to co-ordinate a more joined-up approach across the county. Jackie said: “We know from past experience
that periods of economic uncertainty can lead to more crime and anti-social behaviour in town and city centres. “BCRPs don’t just generate benefits for their
members, but also contribute to the wider community by helping identify opportunities for early-stage intervention and by working with police to pursue serious or prolific offenders through the courts. As the schemes work via an online information-sharing system, the more members there are, the more effective they become.”
46 CHAMBERconnect Autumn 2020
Derbyshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Hardyal Dhindsa (centre) with members of the Business Crime Reduction Partnership in Chesterfield
The BCRP, one of 200 such programmes in
the country, is funded by both the Chamber and the Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner Hardyal Dhindsa. Its remit to reduce crime in the participating
towns fits into an overall objective to make them a safer place to work, visit, socialise and shop. Members pay a fee, starting at £50 for the
first year, and benefits include a GDPR-compliant data-sharing system that facilitates direct reporting to the police without the need to use the time-consuming 101 system. Derbyshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner
Hardyal Dhindsa said: “The importance of partners working together to make retail areas safer, thereby encouraging footfall and cutting the costs of crime, cannot be overstated. “We are all confident the initiative will cut crime,
help the police and partners bring offenders to justice, and help to keep our towns and city centres vibrant places to live, visit and work.”
Anyone interested in discussing how to get involved with the Derbyshire Business Crime Reduction Partnership can email
jackie.roberts@
emc-dnl.co.uk
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