Interventions to tackle the economic needs of deprived areas Analysis of six policy case studies David North, Stephen Syrett and David Etherington This study examines six policy initiatives aimed at tackling the economic and employment needs of people living in deprived areas. Drawn from the six study areas (see main report), these initiatives are selected as good practice examples of joint working between different levels of governance and of effective linking of the economic and social objectives: n The Acumen Community Enterprise Development Trust (North East region) n Camborne Pool Redruth (CPR) Works (South West region) n Local Alchemy (East Midlands region) n Brent into Work (London) n South Lanarkshire Routes to Inclusion (Scotland) n Want2Work (Wales). The case studies demonstrate the importance of employer engagement, identifying entry-level jobs, and the use of person/client-centred methods, as well as diffi culties arising from existing governance and funding arrangements. This publication can be provided in other formats, such as large print, Braille and audio. Please contact: Communications, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, The Homestead, 40 Water End, York YO30 6WP. Tel: 01904 615905. Email: [email protected] Interventions to tackle the economic needs of deprived areas Analysis of six policy case studies David North, Stephen Syrett, David Etherington and Ian Vickers The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has supported this project as part of its programme of research and innovative development projects, which it hopes will be of value to policymakers, practitioners and service users. The facts presented and views expressed in this report are, however, those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation. Joseph Rowntree Foundation The Homestead 40 Water End York YO30 6WP Website: www.jrf.org.uk About the authors David North, Stephen Syrett, David Etherington and Ian Vickers Centre for Enterprise and Economic Development Research (CEEDR), at Middlesex University Business School. © Middlesex University 2007 First published 2007 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation All rights reserved. Reproduction of this report by photocopying or electronic means for non-commercial purposes is permitted. Otherwise, no part of this report may be reproduced, adapted, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. ISBN: 978 1 85935 618 0 A CIP catalogue record for this report is available from the British Library. 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Contents Introduction 1 The research project 1 The case studies 2 Research methodology 3 Structure of case study analysis 4 1 Acumen Trust, Easington, County Durham 5 Introduction 5 Socio-economic context 5 Governance and policy context 6 Organisation, functions and activities 9 Outcomes and achievements 14 Examples of achievements 15 Challenges and barriers 18 Conclusions and future developments 24 References 25 Organisations interviewed 26 2 CPR Works, Camborne, Pool, Redruth Regeneration, West Cornwall 27 Introduction 27 Socio-economic background 27 Project description, rationale and aims 29 Engagement with employers 32 Partner organisations 34 Project analysis 37 Challenges and barriers 44 Conclusions and future developments 46 Notes 47 References 48 Organisations interviewed 48 3 Local Alchemy in the East Midlands 49 Introduction 49 Project description 49 Analysis of Local Alchemy in Sneinton, Cotmanhay and Somercotes 53 Conclusions 74 Notes 76 References 77 Organisations interviewed 78 Interventions to tackle the economic needs of deprived areas 4 Brent in2 Work 80 Introduction 80 The socio-economic context in Brent 80 Policy context 82 Programme development and description 84 Programme analysis 90 Challenges for Brent in2 Work 95 Conclusions 104 References 105 Organisations interviewed 105 5 South Lanarkshire Routes to Inclusion Partnership 106 Introduction 106 Socio-economic context 106 The governance and policy context 107 Project description 109 Routes to Inclusion performance, outcomes and success factors 112 Key success factors 113 Routes to Inclusion case study projects 117 Challenges and barriers 121 Conclusions and future directions 124 References 125 Organisations interviewed 125 6 Want2Work pilot, Merthyr Tydfi l 127 Introduction 127 Socio-economic context of Merthyr Tydfi l 127 Policy context 129 Programme description 131 Outcomes and success factors 135 Challenges and barriers 141 Conclusions and future developments 143 References 144 Organisations interviewed 146 7 Conclusions 147 Integration of economic and social objectives 147 Developing an integrated and co-ordinated approach 148 vi Introduction The research project This is the third of three volumes presenting the fi ndings of research into the impact of devolution and regional governance in the UK since 1997 on policies for tackling the economic needs of deprived localities. The research was undertaken between 2005 and 2007 and had the following four aims: 1 to assess the actual and potential impact on the economic and employment needs of disadvantaged places of new and emerging governance structures at the regional and sub-regional scales 2 to assess the degree of compatibility between strategies at the regional and sub-regional levels concerned with economic development and job growth, and policies at the local and neighbourhood levels concerned with tackling economic and social exclusion 3 to identify and critically evaluate examples of good practice where integration between different levels of governance and economic and social policy agendas has benefi ted deprived localities and the people who live and work within them 4 to generalise lessons from such good-practice examples, paying particular attention to the importance of regional differences in governance arrangements and the relative benefi ts of different kinds of interventions. The research was conducted in two sequential stages. The fi rst focused on aims (1) and (2) above, and involved a review and analysis of strategies and policies at the regional and sub-regional level in relation to the needs of disadvantaged places and people. The study areas were characterised by a range of different devolved and regional governance arrangements as well as different types of deprived areas (i.e. inner cities, coalfi elds and rural areas). They comprised four English regions – North East, South West, East Midlands and London – Scotland and Wales. The second stage focused on aims (3) and (4) and examined six different examples of policy interventions aimed at tackling the economic needs of deprived localities – one from each of the study areas – in order to consider the possible infl uence of different models of devolved governance. 1 Interventions to tackle the economic needs of deprived areas Volume 1, which presents the main fi ndings of the research, is supplemented by two further volumes: Volume 2 presents the detailed fi ndings relating to governance for the four English regions, Scotland and Wales; and Volume 3 presents the analysis of each of the six policy case studies examining good practice. The case studies This volume comprises separate chapters on six case studies of particular schemes seeking to promote employment, self-employment and business start-up within deprived localities, one drawn from each of the four English regions, Scotland, and Wales: n Acumen Community Enterprise Development Trust (Easington, North East): a social enterprise supporting social and economic regeneration through learning, employment and enterprise initiatives in a former coalfi eld community n Camborne, Pool, Redruth (CPR) Works (West Cornwall, South West): an Urban Regeneration Company that aims to link the workless to jobs created through physical and economic regeneration n Local Alchemy (various locations, East Midlands): a project that promotes enterprise and community-led economic development that is also socially and environmentally sustainable n Brent in2 Work (Brent, London): a partnership that encourages the strategic co-ordination of employment and training provision to help residents make the transition from welfare to work n South Lanarkshire Routes to Inclusion (South Lanarkshire, Scotland): a partnership that strategically co-ordinates labour market programmes to help excluded people back to work n Want2Work (Merthyr Tydfi l, Wales): a locally co-ordinated approach to employment and health services that delivers intensive assistance to long-term benefi t claimants to help them fi nd and stay in a job. These case studies were selected as a means of examining initiatives where some degree of joint working between the national, regional/sub-regional and local levels of governance was apparent within areas suffering high levels of worklessness. As well as the need for partnership working between different levels of governance, the case 2 Introduction selection also identifi ed those initiatives that linked and integrated economic growth/ development with tackling economic and social exclusion, and were examples of good practice in terms of community participation. The aim was to examine a varied mix of case studies, including interventions that were focused on place (e.g. physical regeneration schemes)