Sub Regional Investment Planning (SRIP)

Information for voluntary and community organisations.

Prepared by Chris Hollins, fit4funding - The Charities Information Bureau

What is it?

Yorkshire Forward have chosen 'investment planning' as the mechanism for the use of their funds in support of the Regional Economic Strategy (RES - see final page for more details). This is a process which places emphasis on the four 'sub-regions' - hence 'Sub Regional Investment Planning' (SRIP). It is aimed to complement partners programmes and cooperate with other funding streams such as Objective 2 (European funding).

From 2004 and over the next five years the investment by Yorkshire Forward in the economy of West Yorkshire will be £192 million. Of this some £64 million will go to Business Support, £55 million will be split between 'Skills' and 'ICE' (Investment, Connectivity) and £67 million will go to other Yorkshire Forward spatial/renaissance objectives.

How do I find out what is happening?

At a sub-regional level the SRIP process is driven by the West Yorkshire Economic Partnership (WYEP) which has a Board and Executive Group. The West Yorkshire Partnership Board is supported by staff from the West Yorkshire Economic Partnership. The contact is:

Jeanette Wainwright (01924 305282, Queen's House, Market Street, Wakefield, West Yorkshire WF1 1DF).

There is one voluntary/community sector person sitting on the Executive Group:
Chris Hollins (for WYLDA - West Yorkshire Local Development Agencies). (fit4funding Tel 01924 239063).

The Local Strategic Partnerships are represented at Board level. As yet the voluntary/community sectors do not have direct representation at this level.

Below these groups are theme groups which inform the priorities for business support, skills and inclusion projects. (The Executive Group re-constitutes itself as a Strategic Review Panel for considering projects).

The 'Skills' agenda is being led by the West Yorkshire Learning and Skills Council. The lead officer is Alison Durrant, Economic Development Manager (tel. 01274 444067, LSC-WY, Mercury House, 4 Manchester Road, Bradford BD5 0QL) , with the support of Rachel Morley, Economic Development Adviser (tel. 01274 444101, LSC-WY, Mercury House, 4 Manchester Road, Bradford BD5 0QL). The voluntary and community sector representative on the Skills group is David Wears of West Yorkshire Learning Consortium.

The 'ICE' (Invest, Connect, Enhance) group agenda is being led by John Henkel of West Yorkshire Metro (contact Tel. 0113 251 7272 - 40-50 Wellington Street, Leeds LS1 2DE).

There are three sub-groups of the ICE group:
Access to Employment (Ch. Kate McNicholas Tel. 01274 431761)
Transport (Ch. John Henkel, Contact Jonathon Hepton Tel. 0113 251 7335)
Embedding Investment (Ch. Adrian Curtis Tel. 0113 238 0601)

For details of the ICE group contact Chris Hollins (fit4funding Tel 01924 239063).

How do I get involved?

There is NO application process. Activities will be commissioned. This looks quite different between 'Skills' and 'ICE'. We DO know that ideas are already being discussed, reviewed, and passed to Yorkshire Forward for appraisal. All approved plans will have to be delivering activities which relate directly to the Regional Economic Strategy tier 3 targets (see final page of this document for further details). The amount of money available may well be very limited. At the time of update (February 2006) there was approximately £8 million unallocated funds within the ICE group remit.

The Skills group has had a commissioning round in 2005. Tel. 01274 444149 and tell them you would like details of later rounds, should they happen..

Gateway contacts into the SRIP process are as follows: -

Business support - James Flanagan - Business Link West Yorkshire
Skills - Alison Durrant - West Yorkshire Learning and Skills Council
Inclusion - Jeanette Wainright - West Yorkshire Economic Partnership
Renaissance/Spatial - District contacts are Tim Whitfield (Bradford MBC), Paul Stephens (Leeds CC), Adrian Rose (Calderdale MBC), Jonathan Hall (Wakefield), John Griffiths (Kirklees).

Initial expressions of interest for projects go to these gateway contacts who then advise as to next steps. (This does not apply to the Skills Theme, where all the commissioning is through a tendering process.)

The Regional Economic Strategy

The aim of Yorkshire Forward is that The RES is owned and delivered by the whole region working together. It sits within the Advancing Together Strategic Framework co-ordinated by the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly and it is integrated with the framework for Regional Employment and Skills Action (FRESA).

The RES was reviewed in 2005, The lead officer for this, at Yorkshire Forward, was Phill Adams, tel. 0113 394 9958
Email: phillip.adams@yorkshireforward.com
Website: www.yorkshire-forward.com

The Strategy has three aims: -

a) Releasing and enhancing the potential of all Yorkshire and Humber's people to achieve a healthy learning region and social inclusion;
b) Growing existing and new businesses to achieve a high and stable levels of economic growth and jobs; and
c) Utilising the full potential of Yorkshire and Humber's physical and cultural assets and conserving and enhancing it environment to achieve an integrated, sustainable economy.

A framework of six objectives underpinned by six cross cutting themes will deliver these aims.

Objective 1: To grow the region's businesses, focusing on key clusters, to create a radical improvement in the competitiveness, productivity and value they add to the regions wealth.
Objective 2: To achieve a higher business birth and survival rates to create a radical improvement in the number of new, competitive businesses that last.
Objective 3: To attract and retain more private and public investment in the region by providing the right product for investors and more effective marketing of the region.
Objective 4: To achieve a radical improvement in the development and application of education, learning and skills, particularly high-quality vocational skills.
Objective 5: Connect all the regions communities to economic opportunity through targeted regeneration activity.
Objective 6: Enhance and utilise the regions infrastructure of physical and environmental assets.

The six cross cutting themes are:

1) Environmental good practice.
2) Partnerships
3) Geographic adaptation
4) Social inclusion and diversity
5) Creativity, innovation and technology
6) Employment and skills.

For further information on SRIP : WYEP, Queen's House, Market Street, Wakefield WF1 1DF
Tel: 01924 305282 Fax: 01924 305281
Email: jewainwright@wakefield.gov.uk

Essential Documents for West Yorkshire .

These publications are in Acrobat pdf format. These documents are in pdf format and you if you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer you can download the programme for free.

Adobe Reader is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems, Inc

Sub Regional Investment Plan
This is the Investment Plan for West Yorkshire and covers the period 2004 - 2009. Investment planning joins up public sector funds to maximise their impact on delivery of the Regional Economic Strategy (RES). This investment plan reflects the sub-region's best judgement of the economic development actions needed to radically improve West Yorkshire's fortunes.

Click here to download Sub Regional Investment Plan

Strategic Economic Analysis
This Strategic Economic Assessment of West Yorkshire has been produced to support the Investment Planning process in the sub-region by providing analysis to inform the process of project prioritisation and commissioning. It provides a contextual analysis of the sub-region and details of how West Yorkshire, and the localities within it, fare on key indicators, structured around the six objectives of the Regional Economic Strategy (RES).

Click here to download Strategic Economic Analysis

SEA Policy Objectives
This forms an annex to the Strategic Economic Analysis and identifies the key policy objectives for the sub region, set out against the RES Objectives and key issues for West Yorkshire.

Click here to download SEA Policy Objectives

Please note that as a result of the RES review, there will be a review of all of these documents in 2006/07.

Regional Spatial Strategy
The Yorkshire and Humber Plan is a new type of plan. It springs from Central Government legislation reqires each English region to have its own 'Regional Spatial Strategy'. The Plan "sets out the scale, priorities and broad locations for change and development in the region over the period to 2021. It provides a framework for 'where things go' and 'how much' development should take place, it includes a regional transport strategy, and links all this with broader issues such as the environment, sustainable development and quality of life".

The Plan will work in a supportive way with other regional strategies (the Regional Economic, Housing and Cultural Strategies) to help shape and build a better region. When the document is eventually approved by the Government, the Yorkshire and Humber Plan will provide the statutory planning framework for the Region.

To find out more about this plan please contact Jodie Weston on 01924 331559 or email jodie.weston@yhassembly.gov.uk In the meantime if you want to find out more visit www.yhassembly.gov.uk and click on 'Regional Planning and Transport' or call 01924 331598.

Download this page in Acrobat pdf format.

If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer you can download the programme for free

Other Help

Further help is available from local support organisations and agencies.