Performance Network for Local Economic Development
The Performance Network for Local Economic Development is a tool for measuring and comparing local authority performance with regard to local economic development. The added value of the tool is that the network provides opportunity for local economic development officers to discuss performance and also wider service delivery through regular network meetings. It will enable lessons to be learnt from elsewhere and seek to enable more effective local economic understanding and performance and better strategy and delivery.
About CLES and APSE
The Performance Network for Local Economic Development has been developed jointly by the Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES) and the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE). CLES and APSE are working in partnership on this network, sharing CLES's expertise in local economic development and APSE's 10 years experience of running Performance Networks across a range of service areas.
Rationale
The Performance Network for Local Economic Development is rooted in contemporary government policy which has significantly increased the importance and recognition of the role of economic development. The Sub-National Review of Economic Development and Regeneration and its associated legislative elements such as the Economic Assessment Duty is the driving policy framework for the formulation of this network. Increased emphasis upon policy is not the only rationale for this network. First, we as practitioners need to be sharper and smarter as to how we do local economic development particularly in a period of economic recession. Second, the way in which we do local economic development is in a paradigm shift with activity increasingly rooted in tackling environmental limits and utilising localised approaches.
How does the network work?
Initial discussions with a group of local authority economic development officers in November 2008 sought to assess the need for such a network. The meeting also discussed the types of data officers would like to see collected through the network and the format of future network meetings. The network basically involves the following stages:
- Data and template design – CLES and APSE have designed a template for local authorities to fill in data against a set of local economic development indicators. The template is available for interested authorities at this event on a CD, together with guidance.
- Data completion – Authorities will need to fill in their template with the requested data and return to APSE.
- Data inputting – APSE will input the collected data into their Performance Network Software;
- Data Analysis and performance indicators – CLES and APSE will arrange a meeting with the Network to discuss the collected data and to design performance indicators based upon the data which will enable authorities to be compared and contrasted.
- Network policy meetings – the collected data will be utilised to shape a number of network meeting to discuss local economic development issues such as worklessness with an emphasis placed upon sharing learning and developing better local economic development strategy.
What type of data are we collecting at this stage?
At this stage the Performance Network for Local Economic Development will collect three types of data:
- Profile data – this is standard data about your local authority relating primarily to population, size, and type of authority. This will need to be filled in by you;
- National data – this is data related primarily to the local economy indicators in the National Indicator Set. This data will be collected directly by CLES from national data sources such as NOMIS;
- Local data - this is data related to local economic development activity in your authority area. This will need to be filled in by you and includes data around spending, planning, jobs creation and inward investment.
Each set of required data is accompanied on the template by a succinct definition.
How does my authority get involved?
6 local authorities have already signed up to be members of the Performance Network for Local Economic Development. They have received a CD with a data template on with the national data already filled in. They have also received a password to the APSE Performance Networks website which will enable them to fill in their local and profile data. We are looking for further local authorities to be involved in the network. If you would like to be involved in the network please speak to Matthew Jackson from CLES or Phil Brennan from APSE- see below for contact details.
Remember: this is a pilot
At this stage the Performance Network for Local Economic Development is very much in a developmental and pilot stage. There is significant scope for the data which is being collected to change based upon the experiences of the pilot authorities in data completion.
What happens next?
The pilot authorities will meet in mid April to discuss any problems with data collection and further measures of performance. The deadline for returning completed templates is 29th May 2009. APSE will then analyse the data over the Summer and authorities will be provided with a report in late summer. The network will meet in early September to discuss the results and learning.
Have any further questions?
About the network, indicators and data: Matthew Jackson, Senior Policy Researcher, CLES, 0161 236 7036, matthewjackson@cles.org.uk
About the data templates and filling them in: Phil Brennan, Principal Advisor, APSE, 0161 772 1810, pbrennan@apse.org.uk
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