North Warwickshire Community Partnership - The Local Economy

Key priorities:

Ensure a diverse range of employment in the area
Link local people to local jobs and find solutions to problems they have in accessing local employment
Develop and promote local tourism
Support rural business and enterprise
Recognise and develop the role of Market Towns in serving rural communities
Re-use Brownfield sites where appropriate
Help people in need to manage their own finances

Key Facts

The unemployment rate in North Warwickshire is low at 1.5%, when compared to the West Midlands regions at 3.5% and the County at 1.6%. The area lags behind other areas in terms of economic productivity (DEFRA 2004).

All number of wards in North Warwickshire are economically deprived; often this may link with their coal mining past. The Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004, identified that eight areas in North Warwickshire feature in the most income deprived areas of Warwickshire, whilst five feature in the most deprived 25% employment areas in the county overall.

Between 1991 and 2001 more than 5000 jobs were created. Local residents filled only 315 (6.3%) of these new jobs during this period.

Travel to work is a problem for those without a car or those who cannot walk to work or who live away from public transport routes. Despite the rural nature of the Borough, only 1% of employees in the sub-region work in the agricultural sector. The main employment sector is in transport, storage and communication, but with localised variations. 75% of the Borough's businesses employ on to ten workers.

There is a demand for small, modern, flexible business and office premises. Household income varies widely. In Atherstone Central, 19.6% of households earn less than £10,000 per annum. In 2003, the majority of enquiries (33.8%) dealt with by the Citizens Advice Bureau were debt related.

Local tourism is of importance with a wide range of attractions in the area. A variety of accommodation is available - over 1030 bedrooms, 13 self catering units and 198 caravan pitches. 43% are 3 diamond/star or above.

The Market Towns of Atherstone, Coleshill and Polesworth are important service centres for the rural hinterlands of the Borough and beyond.

Why this is a priority

North Warwickshire is a rural area, having characteristics, which distinguish it from surrounding urban areas.

Economies of scale mean that essential services and facilities are moved away from rural areas.

Market towns and village shops have to compete with big urban shopping centres. Supermarkets and rural businesses and farms struggle to compete in a global economy.

Small tourism busineses struggle to compete with those in the south of the County, which is famour for its links to Shakespeare.

Former mining communities are isolated and people often do not have the skills to enable them to find work locally. Many people are not aware of benefits to which they are entitled: money, which could be spent in the local economy.

Derelict sites remain derelict and detract from the attractive rural landscape. They need financial help to redevelop them in an appropriate way.

These priorites have been shaped by partnership events, the Chesterton study 2001 (Business Needs), Market Towns Health check (2002) and a major consultation on rural issues (2005).

Our key targets are:

Assist 200 North Warwickshire residents into local employment each year
Advise and support 15 village shops and businesses in North Warwickshire each year
Hold an annual event for existing and potential employers in the area
Implement the 2005-07 Tourism Action Plan
Support 100 North Warwickshire rural businesses and enterprises each year through the Warwickshire Rural Hub and Rural Forum
Produce a Market Town Succession Strategy for Atherstone and Polesworth by 2006
Implement the Market Towns programme for Coleshill by 2008
Ensure that a minimum of 60% of new housing is built on Browfield sites every year
Increase the proportion of residents and members of the North Warwickshire Community Partnership take-up of the Credit Union by 2007
Provide face to face money advice for 50 local people by 2007

During 2006/07 we will:

Help local people access local jobs by supporting the People into Employment Project (PEP)
Promote investment sites by working closely with the Warwickshire Investment Partnership (WIPS)
Support Business Action Groups
Ensure that businesses are directed to the right people who can help them with their specific needs
Implement the North Warwickshire Tourism Action Plan 2005 - 2007
Promote and support the work of the Warwickshire Rural Hub and Forum
Develop and promote issues of relevance to rural businesses
Support the work of the Vital Villages Development Worker
Implement the Market Towns Succession Strategy for Atherstone and Polesworth
Implement the Market Towns programme for Coleshill
Seek solutions to derelict Brownfield sites with support from Advantage West Midlands and English Partnerships
Work collaborateively to provide financial management advice to those in need
Promote and support the Atherstone Book Town Initiative

Over the next three years we will:

Continue to assist local people in overcoming barriers to local work
Ensure a diverse range of local employment especially regarding small employment sites in the area
Provide ongoing support to Business Action Groups
Develop a single point of contact for business advice to enable referrals to the most relevant form of assistance
Monitor outcomes of the 2005-07 Tourism Plan
Revise, develop and deliver the Tourism Action Plan
Support and develop rural businesses each year through the Warwickshire Rural Hub and Rural Forum
Continue to recognise and enhance the role of Market Towns in serving rural communities and to lobby for continued support to enable this to happen
Continue to support and develop the Atherstone Book Town Initiative
Bring forward further key Brownfield sites for appropriate re-use
Continue to advise people in need with regard to personal finance issues

Further information can be obtained from:

North Warwickshire Framework for Sustainable Rural Action 2006
Tourism Action Plan
Local Economy Action Plan

Partnerships and organisations responsible for this priority include:

Local Economy Theme Group
Chamber of Commerce (Northern Warwickshire branch)
Citizens Advice Bureau
Connexions
Jobcentre Plus
Local Business Action Groups
Market Town partnerships
New Way Credit Union
North Warwickshire Borough Council
North Warwickshire and Hinckley College
People into Employment Project
Warwickshire County Council

Update

The Market Towns Initiative for Atherstone and Polesworth has supported 31 economic, social and community projects to date, with over half a million pounds of investment in the area since 2003. The programme runs until April 2006. Contact the Market Towns manager on 01827 719325 or email rachelfeavyour@northwarks.gov.uk
Coleshill has its own Market Town programme, with £250,000 capital allocated from Advantage West Midlands. Contact Hilary Goodreid on 01827719287 or email hilarygoodreid@northwarks.gov.uk
The Recruitment Now project links local people to local jobs and helps deal with barriers to finding local employment such as training, transport, CV writing etc. Contact Nigel Bond on Freephone 0800 3894118
New Way Credit Union has benefited from funding to support marketing activities to attract more members; the project has assisted over 100 people living in financially excluded areas. Contact the Credit Union on 01827 718851
Various Business Action Groups operate throughout the Borough: contact Clare Eggington for further information on 01827 719456 or email clareeggington@northwarks.gov.uk
Advice for village shops ,post offices,and other rural business is available though the Rural Forum and the Warwickshire Vital Villages Partnership: contact Judith Edwards Sturley for more information on 01827 719251 or email judithedwardssturley@northwarks.gov.uk
Tourism information and development advice can be obtained from Rachel Samways on 01827 719301, email rachelsamways@northwarks.gov.uk
The Citizens Advice Bureau can help with a number of queries eg benefits advice, and currently operates a project to help people claim the benefits to which they are entitled. Contact them on 08701 202464.

Date of next meeting: 1.00pm - 3.00pm, Committee Room at NWBC

Wednesday 8th February 2006
Wednesday 24th May 2006
Wednesday 9th August 2006
Wednesday 8th November 2006

Policy: documents and information

We welcome all feedback and ideas on the Draft Rural Strategy and community issues in general.

>> The following documents will open in a new window in Word Please click here to download Word Viewer.

Draft Rural Strategy (Size: 117.5 KB)

Contact
Lead Officer: Clare Eggington 01827 719287
Email: clareeggington@northwarks.gov.uk

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