PLANNING FOR GROWTH By Rob Kelly IN ASSOCIATION WITH:
PANEL: Richard Slater, Lancashire Business View (chair) Professor Miranda Barker, East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce and Lancashire Business Board
John Chesworth, Harrison Drury and Lancashire Business Board Jane Cole, Blackpool Transport and Lancashire Business Board Paula Gill, North West Aerospace Alliance Mark Rawstron, Lancashire Business Board
Andy Walker, Lancashire County Council Professor Robert Walsh, University of Central Lancashire Rachel Westray, Westinghouse and Lancashire Business Board
WE’VE GOT A PLAN!
We brought our panel of experts, including members of the new Business Board, to Lancashire County Council to discuss the combined county authority’s new growth plan and the opportunities it is looking to unlock
Q: Lancashire’s Growth Plan – what is it, what is it going to generate and how do you think business will view it?
AW: It’s important that as the new combined authority is established that it’s clear around its priorities, and the growth plan is intended not just to be a statement about the Lancashire economy, but also to lead how we think about the transport needs of the county and how we think public monies are spent on skills. It sets the tone.
We see this document as being co-authored, both by the business community of Lancashire and that new combined authority coming together.
MR: There is a history of producing documents, growth plans. The private sector is naturally cautious about some of these things, because they are documents which sit on a shelf and don’t actually produce much action.
But this is very different and there have been some quite robust discussions from members of the business board because they were very keen that this was something different that had some tangible vision to put to government.
MB: It is ambition and opportunity and we need to bear in mind where these things are going and why. If they’re going to government they are effectively campaigning on behalf of Lancashire in terms of our potential.
This is an aspirational communique from Lancashire that looks like Lancashire. It doesn’t look like anybody else, it’s showing our points of difference, but it’s also showing our potential and the unlocking of economic opportunities.
We have to be really conscious of the fact that
to each other and we keep that momentum going. We need to be able to push that out to government and let them know exactly who we are and where we are.
Jane C: The economic growth plan is all about getting the fundamentals right. It’s about looking at the infrastructure that’s going to be needed to actually take us to that next level.
In this area we’re rural, we’re coastal, and with that comes the social challenges that we have around it.
The business board needs to hear from business and the business voice will be listened to
Cheshire and Cumbria are now chasing on our heels in terms of combined authority creation and, therefore, growth plan submission, and we have to try and keep ahead of them.
PG: The word we have to use is ‘collaboration’ and Lancashire is brilliant at collaborating across sectors, across industries. We all talk
We need to really support the local authorities and the combined authority to be able to get under the skin of, ‘What infrastructure do we need to get the Britain Working Policy up and running?’And, ‘How can we support the schools and the colleges to engage younger people with more opportunity?’
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