APPENDIX B Allerdale 2010 Towards Greater Prosperity Draft Executive Summary Allerdale Regeneration Group 2005 i Introduction Allerdale District is a relatively small local authority with a population of only 96,000, but with diverse landscape characteristics and very different local economies. Its principal towns are Workington and Maryport on the West Coast, and Keswick, a hive of tourist activity, in the heart of the English Lake District. In West Allerdale, with its relatively high resident concentrations, the tourist pound has not made much of an impact and this area has never really recovered from the decline of its traditional industries of Mining and Steel-making, which together with their supply and distribution chains, were the area’s major sources of employment. Whilst various Government Initiatives have assisted in diversifying the employment base, the result is an imbalanced economy, with an unhealthy emphasis on manufacturing which is still well above regional and national averages and which remains vulnerable. The BNFL Power Station at Sellafield employs some 4000 Allerdale residents, but decommissioning starts in 2005 and since the government is uncertain about the future of Nuclear Power for the nation, the long term loss of employment cannot be ignored. The economy of the area therefore remains fragile and is unlikely to change without strong, long-term interventionist policies based on a sound understanding of the economic factors. Allerdale Council has established itself as a strong leader in Regeneration, with a good track record of meeting the challenges with wise expenditure delivering sustainable change. ‘Economic Regeneration’ can be interpreted in a number of ways and varies according to its context. This is also true between the areas within a local authority. For example, economic regeneration in a town centre, or in a National Park context, may be one of control, whereas in a deprived area, it will be one of encouragement and support. The Allerdale Borough includes town centres large and small, national park areas of breathtaking natural beauty, plus areas of substantial deprivation. Any economic regeneration must therefore be tailored more precisely, recognising the real differences in geography, need and opportunity. Purpose of the Strategy We are proud of our record in helping to safeguard and improve the economy of the area. We believe we are good at what we do, we know where we want to be, are clear about our priorities and we know what resources are needed to achieve our aims. This first Economic Regeneration Strategy for the Borough has four key aims: • To put the issues, needs and opportunities for economic regeneration into context for the benefit of Council members and stakeholders • To act as a support document to underpin bids for resources from investors in Allerdale’s future • To ensure that the Borough gets (at least) its fair share of such investment • To provide a firm but flexible platform from which to plan for and cope with new threats or opportunities. ii 1. Allerdale in Context Any Economic Regeneration Strategy must be aligned with the policies and strategies already existing or emerging from all relevant sources: • From within its own organisation – Allerdale Council’s Corporate and other theme strategies and the Allerdale Regeneration Group Service Plans • From within West Cumbria - West Cumbria Local Strategic Partnership and its West Cumbria Community Strategy (Copeland and Allerdale) • From the Sub Regional / Cumbria County Level – Cumbria Vision, Rural Regeneration Cumbria, West Lakes Renaissance, Cumbria Community Strategy, Cumbria Economic Strategy • From the Northwest Region, The Regional Economic Strategy from NWRDA • From Central Government giving the National perspective with a whole raft of policies from all government departments which may not always be entirely linked • From Europe, which is presently experiencing some major changes owing to its growth The policy framework that operates around our regeneration actions is at best confusing, especially for people and businesses not ‘within the system’. It remains a key challenge to be able to maximise the opportunities of the system, whilst preserving the ability to take unitary action where appropriate. Within the field of Regeneration, a local authority was traditionally seen as being best placed to act as a kind of funnel for funding, information, policy and to set priorities. It can act as the link and filter between how the European and national agenda can be actioned at the local level. This is still the case, but in a small council such as Allerdale, the capacity to take large scale actions cannot be tackled and so we must rely more on collaborative partnerships with the Regeneration Companies created for the purpose. 2. Allerdale’s Regeneration Policies Allerdale is a small authority with only 96,000 residents living in 31 wards, with 55 members of council to represent their views. With only 362 staff, it must maintain high standards in service delivery and carry out all the statutory functions like gathering in the Council Tax, housing the homeless and determining planning applications, as well as the obligated but non statutory functions like Economic Regeneration. Regeneration Delivery The Council has recognised that it cannot expect to achieve results alone and it therefore chooses alternative suitable delivery mechanisms. Among these will be formal arrangements like Limited Companies with Councillors on the Board of Directors, and also simple informal partnership arrangements. In this way there is less restriction on the amount of regeneration activity that can be undertaken, and the process allows for even the smallest community groups to get involved, learn and grow. iii Partnerships Our commitment to Partnership working will be put to the test during the next couple of years, as we are to become instrumental in the Government’s new agenda in Local Service Agreements. Effectively, the Local Strategic Partnership will act as the catalyst for meeting Targets in 3 areas of service: • Children and Young people • Healthy Communities and Older People • Safer & Stronger Communities Mainstream providers, including council services, will need to work much more closely to provide local services that meet local need. Targeting Communities in Need The most deprived communities in Allerdale have had the benefit of Neighbourhood Renewal Funding (NRF) since 2002, but we are unsure whether further NRF funding will be available. We shall continue to direct most effort and resources to addressing the needs of the communities in those areas via whatever resources become available. Equally, other funding opportunities, which may be for communities of interest (i.e. Disability access) rather than neighbourhoods, will continue to gain assistance. We are now in the best position to access as much funding as possible since we have now completed a thorough mapping exercise for the whole Borough which can show where need exists. External Funding Given the very limited funds available from council revenues, we shall continue to access as much external funding as possible. As well as applying for as much mainstream government funding as possible from a variety of departments, we shall continue to offer support in assistance to community groups to access Lottery funding streams. There is an expertise within the ARG1 in successfully bidding for all types of external funding. In the future it is likely that more officer time will need to be devoted to seeking out and applying for external funding. We will therefore ensure that training in funding applications and its consequent management is made as widely available as possible. The Spatial Context As part of the Government’s drive towards greater community participation in all local government matters, there is to be a change to the way local planning and development decisions are carried out. In Allerdale this will mean that by 2008 the present Local Plan will be replaced by the Local Development Framework (LDF). The new document will serve much the same purpose as the old, but it is the way this plan is arrived at that will change. The Local Development Framework will be a collection of strategies, as well clear guidance, which pull together all elements of planned changes (or not) to the land and buildings. There will be a shift in the balance from the production of a plan which is open to objections which need to be heard at Public Inquiry, to a plan which has been 1 Allerdale Regeneration Group iv thoroughly consulted and agreed prior to its production. It will become the responsibility of the Council to ensure that all the individual strategies and other supporting documents have been consulted and tested by all interested parties before the plan is produced. Regeneration practitioners welcome the changes the LDF will bring, as it should become the basis upon which the forward planning function is carried out. The ARG has recognised for some time the need to strengthen our Planning Policy function to provide a more proactive and speedy approach to changing circumstances. 3. Allerdale Council’s 7 Strategic Themes Jobs for Local People Whilst the ability of the Council to influence overall rates of economic activity is limited, it is the role of the ARG to encourage, facilitate and support agencies and organisations to address some of the underlying issues and thus create joint initiatives. However, without external funding from the full variety of sources little