Progress to date with URCs Learning the Lessons

1

• Progress to date with URCs Learning the
  Lessons
• 18th January 2002

2
Structure

• Progress in the pilot URCs
• Critical success factors - URCs
• Policy lessons
• Good practice lessons
• Future developments
• Conclusion

3
Progress in the Pilot URCs

• Urban Task Force and the pilot URCs
• Liverpool Vision
• established June 1999
• Liverpool City Centre
• New East Manchester
• established October 1999
• run-down residential and industrial area to east
  of City Centre
• Sheffield One
• established February 2000
• Sheffield City Centre
• Further URCs already underway/announced
• Corby
• Leicester
• Sunderland
• Tees Valley
• Swindon

4
Critical Success Factors - URCs

• Create a favourable climate for private sector
  investment
• Key factors
• Full commitment and involvement with key partners
• Close and effective working relationship with
  local authority
• Getting the local strategy right and
  communicating it widely
• Appointing highly effective Chair, Board, Chief
  Executive and Executive Team
• Board comprising key decision makers and
  influential individuals
• Prioritised programme with clear implementation
  arrangements
• Effective stakeholder engagement
• Influencing investment decisions of partners and
  others
• Integrating with others and clear roles and
  responsibilities
• Establishing and maintaining positive momentum
• High quality standards

5
Policy Lessons (1)

• Not a standard model
• Formal partnership
• Role primarily realising development and
  economic opportunities
• Area
• Strategic approach
• Co-ordination
• Commitment
• Resources
• Independence
• Involvement
• Flexibility

6
Policy Lessons (2)

• Maintaining the brand
• Criteria to guide selection of future URCs
• contribute to regional and local priorities
• rationale, options and costs and benefits (added
  value)
• regionally significant area, demonstrating
  opportunity for private sector investment
• strongly promoted by partners
• demonstrate how they will secure stakeholder
  involvement
• have clear governance and operating arrangements

7
Good practice lessons - URCs

• Forming the company
• Formulating the strategy
• Operating arrangements
• Implementing the strategy

8
Plans for the future

• Urban White Paper
• Number of proposals
• Implementation
• Fiscal incentives
• Monitoring and evaluation
• Co-ordination - Chief Executive Meetings

9
Conclusions

• Significant progress, although still some
  confusion and concerns
• Strong evidence of increase in private sector
  confidence to invest
• Potentially powerful tool