On March 11, SOLACE responded to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Local Growth's call for evidence on the local growth and skills system. This is a summary of our views on how local government can continue to thrive.
Local Government should play a lead role in co-ordinating efforts to drive growth and be empowered in setting policy and spending strategies at a local level. In SOLACE's response to this call for evidence, we have made eighteen recommendations that would place councils at the centre of local economic partnerships and provide the impetus and local intelligence to ensure growth funding starts to make a real impact.
Local Government has a unique place at the centre of local economies, with the local intelligence and democratic legitimacy to provide leadership and resilience. To do so requires skilful partnership working across all sectors – economic growth cannot be delivered alone.
Our recommendations include:
• Single funding pots devolved directly to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) without qualification
• That LEP areas are used as the basis for City Deals and their roll out to all areas including rural economies with the ambition to drive growth
• That LEPs constitute themselves as legal entities owned jointly by all local authorities in their areas to provide long term sustainability and effectiveness
The full SOLACE response is available here.
Graeme McDonald is director of SOLACE
Content on this page is provided by SOLACE, partner on the Local Leadership hub
