Author: Helen Birkett MBA, APMP, Assoc CIPD On behalf of the Blyth Development Trust Table of Contents Para Contents Page Glossary 3 1 Core Strategic Statement and Executive summary 4 2 Key Contact 6 3 CCT Membership 6 4 Accountable Body 7 5 Local area – Brief geographical and historical description 7 6 Context – Community. A description of local community with 9 demographics. Describe plans to involve and inform partners and other bodies, including accountable body, CCA and DCLG. 7 Context – Economy. Local economy, e.g. business, tourism, 17 manufacture, etc., ‘Starting point’ 8 Related Initiatives - What else is going on in the community of 21 economic importance, e.g. BID, LEP, CIC, CCF, CRF 9 Ambition - A positive statement of the aims and objectives of the plan 28 and a description of what it will achieve. 10 Success - Description of ‘what success will look like’. 31 11 Needs of the community and intentions of the team to meet them. 32 Identify the economic needs of the community and the opportunities to meet them. 12 Analysis. Describe the strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and 36 threats in meeting the needs at (10). 13 Data. Provide evidence to support the intentions of the plan. This will 40 include statistical data but broader data should also be included. Data used should be specific, relevant and transparent. It is sufficient to reference evidence held elsewhere 14 Key projects and/or bodies of work. High level description of discrete 40 pieces of work. 15 Short term goals/actions. What will the team achieve in the next 6 41 months? Should demonstrate ‘quick wins’. 16 Performance Measures. For first 6 months – to be SMART 41 17 Medium term goals/actions. For 6mths to 5 years 42 18 Performance Measures. For 6mths to 5 years 42 19 Long term goals and actions 42 20 Performance Measures. Beyond 5 years – to be SMART (may need to be 42 identified at later stage) 21 Barriers. Identify barriers to planned performance and contingencies 43 Page | 1 to manage them. 22 Resources. Who and what will be required to deliver each element of 43 the plan. Include ‘in kind’ services, volunteers, etc. Demonstrate how local expertise will be utilise and/or grown. 23 Costs. Detail of costs of each element of plan. What is the worth of the 44 plan to the local economy? 24 Funding. Identification of funding streams and how costs of project(s) 45 will be met 25 Maximising resources and costs. Describe how this will be minimised, 45 e.g. shared services, use of technology, avoidance of bureaucracy, etc. 26 Consultation. Describe existing results of consultations and planned 46 consultation exercises. 27 Communication with Community. How will the community be involved 47 and informed of progress and outcomes 28 Management of Team. How the team will operate, frequency of 50 meetings, centrality of team to projects, etc. How the team is representative of the community. 29 Support Structure. Network of support built to enable CCT to deliver 50 the economic plan 30 Costs. Running costs of CCT itself 51 31 Sustainability. Long term plan for team and how this will be managed 51 32 Areas of Specific Interest to allow DCLG to match/mentor and network 51 across teams Appendices 53 1. BCCT Partnership Organisations 54 2. BCCT Terms of Reference 58 3. Statistics 61 4. Public Consultation results 97 The Blyth Coast and Community Team would like to thank: Julie Pearson Sharon Herron Matthew Margetts Clive Gray Helen Birkett For the photographs used to illustrate this report and for those used in Public Consultation exercises. This Economic Plan has been set out in accordance with the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) “COASTAL COMMUNITY TEAMS ECONOMIC PLAN – GUIDANCE and TEMPLATE” Page | 2 Glossary BCCT Blyth Coast and Community Team BEACH Blyth Education and Community Hub BID Business Improvement District BRIC Blyth Resource and Information Centre BTC Blyth Town Council BTS Blyth Tall Ship CCA Coastal Communities Alliance CCF Coastal Communities Fund CIC Community Interest Company NCC Northumberland County Council CLA Country Land Association CLLD Community Led Local Development CRF Coastal Revival Fund CVS Northumberland Council for Voluntary Service DCLG Department for Communities and Local Government ESSEN Engaging and Supporting South East Northumberland LEP Local Economic Partnership NAREC National Renewable Energy Centre NECA North East Combined Authority NELEP North East Local Enterprise Partnership RNYC Royal Northumberland Yacht Club SEP North East Strategic Economic Plan TOR Terms of Reference VCS Voluntary and Community Sector Page | 3 1. Core Strategic Statement and Executive Summary The aim of the Blyth Coast and Community Team (BCCT) is to create in Blyth a vibrant, confident and supportive community that celebrates its past achievements, is proud of its present strengths, and is ambitious for its future. This to be achieved by collaborative cross sector working that generates inward investment in capital and revenue based cultural projects, industry linked educational and training programmes, and international and national events that position Blyth as a regular host on the tourism calendar. Executive Summary We recognise that public perception of Blyth is exceptionally low, this may in part, be due to the widely publicised problems with substance abuse during the 1990s, higher than average unemployment, higher than average crime rates – especially those relating to anti-social behaviour and the decline of our “traditional” industries such as mining, shipbuilding and a thriving market, without any obvious replacements. In addition, numerous local businesses are closing, leaving retail and industrial units empty and a large open Market space that is widely disparaged by residents and is woefully under-utilised. We hope to demonstrate in this plan, that whilst there are a vast number of issues which need to be addressed, Blyth is well worth the investment as there is a very strong foundation on which to build. We have no desire to “compete” with e.g.: Manor Walks, Cramlington or to replicate the most excellent mining heritage museum in Woodhorn, Ashington. Rather, we wish to showcase Blyth by optimising our unique maritime history whilst still celebrating our past achievements in mining, market trading and our exemplary record in both World Wars. The Beach, Park and Quayside, together with the wider media exposure we expect from hosting the Tall Ships Regatta in August, provide us with a perfect platform to position ourselves on the tourism map. Blyth has a rich and varied history, being home to Antarctic discovery, building the first Ark Royal and providing a sub-marine base in World War II, to name a few. Frameworks, Wetherspoons and Headway Artspace have taught us that by creating good quality products that people want, we can make diverse use of the assets we already have. By encouraging visitors, we expect existing businesses to thrive and new investors to emerge. We also see training and education as being key to helping Blyth residents flourish. There are many such opportunities highlighted in this report, but perhaps the most distinctive are: the development of support activities for marine focussed higher education degrees and research led by Newcastle University on Blyth Quayside. It is Page | 4 intended the research and educational infrastructure, the level of research activity, and the through-put of undergraduate and post graduate students active in Blyth will continue to grow, and the Blyth Education And Community Hub (BEACH) is an educational and training consortium involving: the Port of Blyth (Training Services); Newcastle University; Blyth Tall Ship Charity; Northumberland College, Maersk Shipping (Training Services); and Active Northumberland. The vision of the group is to develop the southern end of the quayside into a mini campus where a range of educational and training activities are co-located. Working with learners that range from school children through to adults it is intended that the hub will host recreational, vocational, and professional learning activities. The next phase will see new workshops for Blyth Tall Ship, and new facilities for the Port of Blyth Training Services, for Northumberland College and for Active Northumberland, as well as the construction of the substantial building required to house the UK’s only Cavitation Tunnel research facility. These developments are transforming this part of the port from an almost derelict wasteland into a vibrant space where learners of all types will be enthused and inspired. The Blyth Coast and Community Team (BCCT) is an established community partnership which has expanded to include members of the local Business Forum and the voluntary sector to ensure there is a diverse mix of business, leisure, culture, education and heritage, represented by private, public and voluntary sector members. The diversity of the partnership provides a wide variety of skills and expertise, especially in the area of successfully managing major projects. Appendix 1 gives a brief synopsis of each partnership organisation. The Blyth Development Trust (TBDT) – a voluntary, charitable organisation whose aim is to make Blyth a better place to live, work and invest is taking the lead in organising the BCCT and preparing the Economic Plan. We aim to build on our strengths, maximise opportunities and turn our weaknesses and threats outlined at Section 12 into even more opportunities. One of our main aims is to conduct regular public consultation exercises which will allow us to find out how to restore residents’ pride in Blyth. This will enable us to establish priorities and seek investment. Our pilot public consultation exercise took place on 21st January in Blyth Sports Centre and results are captured at Section 11. Further public consultation exercises are scheduled. Our immediate priority is to improve public perception by highlighting the many positive aspects about Blyth. We will also seek to make the arrival experience for visitors less confusing by creating better signage and making better links from the Quayside to the Town Centre.