Members of the public can apply via the LEP secretariat in advance of LEP Board meeting dates, to submit written representations, relating to board meeting agendas and investment programme and/or funding decisions. These will need to be submitted by email one working day in advance of the scheduled meeting date to info@heartofswlep.co.uk with the title in the subject box: LEP Board written representations.
Click on the year you want to view Board meetings and minutes from.
Time: 1.30 – 3.30pm
3. Draft minutes of 13 October 2023 AGM
4. Draft minutes of 19 January 2024 Board meeting & actions arising
7. Accountable Body Report: LEP Integration & Winding Up incs:-
7. Appendix A: Final Integration Plan
7. Appendix B: APR 2023/24 S151 Assurance
7. Appendix B: APR 2023/24 Governance Assurance
7. Appendix B: S151 Compliance Letter
7. Appendix C: Forecast Asset & Novation
4. Draft minutes of 27 November 2023 board meeting & actions arising
6. Chief Executive’s Report to include
7. Build Back Better & Programme update
9. Uncommitted LGF Funding plus
10. Accountable Body Report plus
13.All other papers for noting
4. Draft minutes of 13 Oct 2023 Board meeting & actions arising
6. Chief Executive’s Update – Transition
South West Academic Health Science Network, Vantage Point, Pynes Hill, Exeter, EX2 5FD
4. Draft minutes of 14 July 2023 Board meeting & actions arising
7. Appendix 1 – HotSW Annual CIC accounts
7. Appendix 2 – Response to transition letter from Accountable Body
9. Finance Operations Committee (all commercially confidential)
10, all papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
South West Academic Health Science Network, Vantage Point, Pynes Hill, Exeter, EX2 5FD
4. Draft minutes o21 April 2023 Board meeting & actions arising
6. Presentation on Social Impact Fund Scoping – Jack Scriven & Dom Llewellyn from Achieve Good plus 2 papers
plus
Annex A – LEP Network, Letter to Chancellor (1 paper)
Annex B – Social Mobility Commission, Year on Report (1 paper)
Annex C – Cover paper for HotSW CIC Meeting (1 paper)
Annex C – Extract of Board minutes amendments (1 paper)
Annex D – Link to Business Bulletin
https://heartofswlep.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/230705-HotSW-Business-Bulletin-Spring-Summer-2023.pdf
10. Updates from Chair of Operational Investment Committee (all commercially confidential) David Bird (2 papers)
11. Papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
LEP Consultation Register (nothing so far)
Innovation Board mtg notes (none as now GSW Innovation Board)
4. Draft minutes of 27 January 2023 Board meeting and actions arising
Plus
7. Annex A – Governance Review
7. Annex B – Update for members meeting
7. Annex B – Amendment of the Members articles
7. Annex C – draft LEP Funding Questionnaire questions
plus
8. Annex A – Workplan Dashboard
8. Annex B- Workplan Amber Report
8. Annex C – Workplan not started
Updates from Operational Investment Committee (all commercially confidential)
9. Financial Position
9. Annex A – Finance Dashboard
9. Annex B – Month 11
Papers for noting all 10
10. LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
4. Draft minutes of 14 Oct 2022 Board meeting & actions arising
7. Chief Executive’s Report to include:-
* Appendix A Draft 23/24 Business Plan (commercially confidential)
* Appendix B Proposed Governance Review
8. Digital Funding (all commercially confidential)
8 a) Update on CDS delivery inc verbal update on vouchers
8 b) Additional funding for Mobile Boost – for information
8 c) Funding support for TDIC for decision – (Annex A)
8 d) Shortlisted Expressions of Interest for decision to inc:-
* Annex B
* Annex C
* Annex D
10. Standing Reports
10. a) Updates from Chair of Strategic Investment Panel & Finance and Resources (all commercially confidential) inc. TOR
* Annex A – Financial Position
* Annex B – Finance Dashboard
* Annex C – Core Reserves
11. Papers for noting all
* LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
* Innovation Board meeting 24 October 2022 notes
4. Draft minutes of 15 July Board meeting & actions arising
7. Build Back Better & Performance updates (all commercially confidential)
a) 22/23 Workplan/Performance Report
Annex A – Workplan dashboard
Annex B – Workplan amber items
Annex C – Items not started
Annex D – Risk Register
7. b) Programme Board updates (inc in Performance update, no papers)
7. c) Reports from standing committees
Strategic Investment Panel – verbal update (commercially confidential)
21/22 Finance report (see AGM slides)
(below finance reports all commercially confidential)
Annex A – Financial Position
Annex B – Finance dashboard
Annex C – Core reserves
8. Papers for noting
2. Draft minutes of last AGM 22 October 2021
4. Overview of Financial Statement (published in the Annual Report)
4. Draft minutes of 8 April Board meeting & actions arising
7. Recommendations from SIP (all commercially confidential)
a) Digital Investment Programme
b) Torquay Gateway
8. Build Back Better
a) Build Back Better Progress Report
b) Ocean Futures Business Plan 2022 – 2023
9. Performance updates
a) Reports from Standing Committees (commercially confidential)
9b) Standing item Leadership Updates
10. Papers for noting all number 10
4. Draft minutes of 22 October 2021 Board meeting & actions arising
4. Draft minutes of 22 October 2021 Board AGM meeting & actions arising
6. i) Food & Farming Cover Paper
6. ii) Draft Report Public Sector Food Procurement in the SW Executive Summary
8. Progress Update – Clean Growth & Build Back Better
Finances all commercially confidential
9. iii) Finance Report month 8
9. iii) Annex A Financial Position as of 31 December 2021
9. iii) Annex B Financial Dashboard
10. ESIF report all commercially confidentail
10. a) ESF
10. b) EAFRD
10. c) ERDF
11. Papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes 1 Nov 2021
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes 14 Dec 2021
4. Draft minutes of 28 January Board meeting & actions arising
6. Two Presentations on the day
i) Emerging County Deal update
ii) Observatory Dashboards with accompanying dashboards
8. Innovation – Maritime & Environmental Science Accelerator
9. Performance updates
+ Annex A – Objectives & Key Results Dashboard
+ Annex B – Objectives & Key Results Amber Report
9 iii) Updated Build Back Better Plan
9 v) Finance Reports (all commercially confidential)
10. Papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Innovation Board meeting notes 15 December 2021
Innovation Board meeting notes 14 March 2022
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes 26 January 2022
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes 8 March 2022
4. Draft minutes of 16 July 2021 Board meeting & actions arising
6a) appendix for approval of SIP terms of reference
6b) appendix for noting Productivity Strategy Delivery update
8. Digital Investment Programme (commercially confidential)
9. Performance Reports
9i) annex A – Delivery Activity Report
9i) annex B – Objectives & Key Results Dashboard
9i) annex C – Objectives & Key Results Amber Report
9iii) Strategic Investment Panel verbal update (commercially confidential)
9iii) annex A – North Devon Enterprise Centre Getting Building Fund Cover Paper (commercially confidential)
9iii) annex B – North Devon Enterprise Centre Business Case Appraisal (commercially confidential)
9iv) Finance Report month 5 (all commercially confidential)
9iv) annex A – Financial position as of 31 August 2021
9iv) annex B – Financial dashboard
9iv) annex C – Going Concern
10. ESIF update plus appendices (all commercially confidential)
10 a) ESF
10 b) EAFRD
10 c) ERDF
11. Papers for noting
Watch LEP AGM 2021 video here >
2. Draft minutes of the last AGM 18 September 2020
3. Chair’s Annual Report
Plus
Local Growth Fund End of Programme Report 2021
4. Overview of LEP financial statement
5. Adoption of accounts 2020 – 2021
Minutes of the last AGM 18 September 2020 (approved at the Board meeting 22 October 2021)
4. Draft minutes of 23 April 2021 Board meeting & actions arising
6. Accounts and funding information (all commercially confidential)
a) Annual Financial statement
b) HotSW LEP CIC accounts 2020/2021
c) Funding Streams paper
d) Growth Deal Fund
e) Getting Building Fund
f) Growing Places Fund
Presentation on the CBI Regional Economic Scorecard for info:-
Appendix A Briefing on Agriculture (Summer 2021)
8. Digital Extension Programme
+ project appraisal (commercially confidential)
9. Results of Board Effectiveness Review
10. Standing item – Build Back Better update
11. Standing item reports from LEP Subgroups
b) Skills Advisory Panel (People) update
c) Infrastructure & Place update
d) Business Environment update
e) Strategic Investment Panel update verbal (commercially confidential)
f) Finance & Resources (all commercially confidential)
12. ESIF update plus appendices (all commercially confidential)
a) ESF
b) EAFRD
c) ERDF
13. Papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes from 24 May meeting
3. Draft minutes of 22 January Board meeting & actions arising
Draft minutes of 23 April Board meeting & actions arising (to be approved at 16 July Board meeting)
5.1 Appendix 1 – LEP Network ToR
6a) Blueprint for Clean Growth cover Board paper
6b) Blueprint for Clean Growth
7. Digital Strategy & Activity update (presentation to follow)
9b) Skills Advisory Panel (People) update
9c) Infrastructure & Place update
9d) Business Environment update
9e) Strategic Investment Panel verbal update (commercially confidential)
9f) appendix i – Financial paper for dashboard (commercially confidential)
9f) appendix ii – Financial dashboard (commercially confidential)
9f) appendix iii – Financial position as of 28 February 2021 (commercially confidential)
10. ESIF update (commercially confidential)
10a) ESF (commercially confidential)
10b) EAFRD (commercially confidential)
10c) ERDF (commercially confidential)
11. All papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
LEP Board Endorsement Register
LEP Board Consultation Register
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes from 21 January 2021
3. Draft minutes of 18 September 2020 Board meeting & actions arising
3. Draft minutes of 18 September 2020 HotSW LEP CIC AGM
Presentation papers:-
Commercialising Innovation cover paper
Commercialising Innovation report
5. Appendix 1 – Nominations for recruitment of Board Directors (commercially confidential)
5. Appendix 2 – Covid Response, Recovery Plan & Building Back Better
5. Appendix 3 – HotSW Draft Impact Report (commercially confidential)
6b) Skills Advisory Panel (People) update
6d) Business environment update
6f) appendix i) Financial Dashboard (commercially confidential)
6f) appendix ii) Financial position as at 31 October 2020 (commercially confidential)
7. ESIF update plus appendices below (all commercially confidential)
7a) ESF
7b) EAFRD
7c) ERDF
8. Papers for noting all below
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes from 17 September 2020
3. Draft minutes of 17 July 2020 Board meeting & actions arising
6. Reports from LEP Sub-groups
6b. Skills Advisory Panel update
6b. appendix i) Skills Dashboard
6c. Infrastructure & Place update
6c. appendix i) Place workstream appendix
6d. Business Environment update
6d.appendix i) Current Business Support Landscape
6e. Strategic Investment Panel update – verbal (commercially confidential)
6f. Finance & Resources update (commercially confidential)
6f. appendix i) Financial position as at 31 August 2020 (commercially confidential)
6f. appendix ii) Finance Dashboard (commercially confidential)
7. ESIF update (commercially confidential)
7a) ESF appendix (commercially confidential)
7b) EAFRD appendix (commercially confidential)
7c) ERDF appendix (commercially confidential)
9. Proposal for Board Recruitment
9. appendix i) Draft Director Recruitment pack
10. Papers for noting all agenda item 10
appendix 1) Media performance tracker
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Skills Advisory Panel meeting notes none, meeting 17 Sept 2020
Note due to Corona Virus Pandemic this meeting is taking place via microsoft teams audio/video conferencing
3. Draft minutes of 15 May LEP Board meeting & actions arising
6. Updates from LEP Sub- Groups
6c) appendix (i) Workstream Programme
6c) appendix (ii) Restoring your Railway
6d) Business Leadership Group Restructure
6d) appendix (ii) Membership List
7. ESIF update (commercially confidential)
7a) appendix ESF (commercially confidential)
7b) appendix EAFRD (commercially confidential)
7c) appendix ERDF (commercially confidential)
8. HotSW LEP CIC Annual Accounts 2019/2020
9. Nominations Committee Terms of Reference
10 All papers for noting
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Note due to Corona Virus Pandemic this meeting is taking place via microsoft teams audio/video conferencing
Final minutes of 15 May 2020 Board Telecon & actions arising (agreed at 15 July Board meeting)
7. LEP Board Effectiveness Review & conclusions for decision
Papers for noting all agenda item 9
3. Draft minutes of 22 November 2019 Board meeting & actions arising
Final minutes of 24 January 2020 Board meeting approved at 15 May 2020 Board meeting
5.1 Board Effectiveness Review
7.2 ESIF update (commercially confidential)
7.2 ERDF Dashboard (commercially confidential)
7.2 EAFRD Dashboard (commercially confidential)
7.2 ESF Dashboard (commercially confidential)
Papers for noting all agenda item 8
3. Draft minutes of 13 September 2019 Board meeting and actions arising
6.1 Prospective asks/offers for incoming Government: UK Shared Prosperity Fund (or equivalent) plus others (commercially confidential)
6.2 Cover paper for Annual Impact Report
6.3 ESIF update (commercially confidential)
6.4 Growth Deal reinvestment cover paper (commercially confidential)
6.4 Prospective Pipeline (commercially confidential)
7. Papers for noting (all agenda item 7)
3. Draft Minutes of 23 July 2019 Board meeting & actions arising
6. Other papers
6.1 Growth Hub paper (commercially confidential)
6.2 Business bulletin quarterly pilot paper
6.2 Business bulletin working draft
6.3 ESIF update (commercially confidential)
6.4 HotSW CIC Accounts 2018 – 2019
Papers for noting all agenda item 7
Comms & media monitoring (not available this month)
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
3. Draft minutes of 17 May 2019 LEP Board meeting
3. Final minutes of 23 July 2019 LEP Board meeting agreed at 13 Sept 2019 Board meeting
6.2 Initial project pipeline paper (commercially confidential)
6.2 Annex 1 – draft pipeline projects (commercially confidential)
6.2 Annex 2 – draft pipeline projects transport (commercially confidential)
6.3 ESIF update (commercially confidential)
Papers for noting all agenda item 7
LEP Board Directors & Alternates Register
Draft minutes of 17 May 2019 Board meeting (to be agreed at July meeting)
3. Draft minutes of 22 March 2019 meeting & actions arising (in part commercially confidential)
Annex a) Board recruitment replacement & retirement policy
Annex b) Director/Chair recruitment (specification/candidate pack)
6.2 ESIF update (commercially confidential)
7. Papers for noting all item 7
Draft minutes of 22 March 2019, to be agreed at board meeting on 17 May 2019
Chief Executive’s Report (agenda item 5)
Other Papers
Productivity Strategy Delivery plan (agenda item 6.1)
Productivity Strategy Delivery plan for JC & Board (agenda item 6.1a)
LEP Annual Delivery Plan 19/20 (agenda item 6.2)
LEP Annual Delivery Plan 19/20 template (agenda item 6.2a)
LEP Operating Model (agenda item 6.3) commercially confidential
Clean Energy Paper (agenda item 6.4)
ESIF update (agenda item 6.5) commercially confidential
Developing a HotSW Skills Advisory Group (agenda item 6.6)
Papers for noting
Papers for noting (all agenda item 6)
Papers for noting (all agenda item 6)
Papers for noting (all agenda item 6)
Papers for noting (all agenda item 7)
Papers for noting (all agenda item 6)
Paper for noting (all agenda item 6)
Papers for noting (all Agenda 5)
Final Minutes LEP Board, 23 May 2018 (Agenda item 3)
Chief Executive’s Report (Agenda item 4)
Change Management of Project Pipeline (Agenda item 4.1) not for publication
Productivity plan update (Agenda item 4.2)
LEP Business Plan 17/18 (Agenda item 4.3)
GSW Governance (Agenda item 4.4)
Annual Strategic Review (Agenda item 4.5)
ESIF update (Agenda item 4.6) not for publication
Annual Conference (Agenda item 4.7)
Annual Accounts (Agenda item 4.8) not for publication until agreed at board
Tiverton EUE funding (Agenda item 4.9) not for publication
Papers for noting (all Agenda item 5)
John Osman, Leader of Somerset Council, presented on the progress and opportunities of the Devolution process, and the board confirmed their continued support for beginning negotiations with government on this matter. Devolution is an important issue for our area and the Local Authorities are leading on this work, with support from the LEP, its private sector board members and other partners.
Over the coming months the LEP will be leading on the development of a Productivity Plan for the HotSW area, and this work will contribute and align to the ongoing work around Devolution.
The continued importance of cross-LEP working was reiterated by the board, for example the good work that south west LEPs have been doing around the energy and transport agendas, and in particular the significant progress with our support for industrial clusters across the region, including Nuclear South West; iAero (regional aerospace partnership) and South Coast Marine.
The other major item for discussion was the next round of Growth Deal funding. Government has made available a further £1.8bn of funding for LEPs to bid for. The process will be highly competitive, even more so than in previous rounds, and so the Board discussed how we ought to approach our bid, agreeing to focus on strongly on raising productivity. We will be required to bid for a specific amount of money for our area, and so our three Leadership Groups and the Local Transport Board have been gathering in information about projects requiring funding, to inform our bid. Our long pipeline of projects seeking investment will be used in the bid, to demonstrate Ato Government that we have no shortage of investment opportunities in the Heart of the South West. It is important to remind those who may have a project, but haven’t managed to submit it to the leadership groups over the past few months: Don’t worry, we will be re-opening our pipeline to new projects in the Autumn, when we anticipate we will find out how much funding we have been awarded..
The board welcomed HotSW being selected as one of the first areas in the UK to be part of the Science and Innovation Audit, as part of consortium representing South West England and part of South Wales, alongside our region’s universities. This will help focus the government on HotSW’s needs and opportunities for growth in the research-intensive sectors of our economy.
The complexity of the present situation regarding the ESIF programmes was explained. This programme is not managed by the LEP but by Government Departments (DCLG, DWP and Defra) with whom the LEP works closely to try and get the best outcome it can for the area. In total, over £40m of calls have been announced in HotSW and the LEP is looking forward to the first funding agreements being signed off by Government Departments.
The board noted the importance of the ESIF strategy in the delivery of the Strategic Economic Plan and is committed to maximising awareness, take-up and impact of ESIF funds in the Heart of the South West.
Following recent media speculation around Hinkley Point C, members of the Board were keen that the LEP emphasises the importance of Hinkley to the national energy security of the future and agreed to step up communications with the major influencers.
The board is agreed that the nuclear sector in the HotSW area is a LEP priority and is wider than Hinkley and EDF alone, and these messages are to be conveyed through supply chain activity and the development of the Nuclear South West cluster.
The prospected potential of Hinkley Point C and the plans for the Nuclear South West Cluster legacy were outlined in a presentation to be published soon.
The board also agreed that another key issue to campaign for is the improved connectivity for the Heart of the South West in terms of road, rail, broadband and the capacity of the electricity grid.
The LEP will continue to support the Peninsula Rail Task Force in its activity to achieve investment in transport infrastructure projects and will work with utility and communications providers to improve connectivity in energy and internet speeds.
Issues concerning the timings of opt-in arrangements and revised levels of funding for the European Structural Investment Fund have reached a critical point affecting the LEP’s ability to deliver its ESIF strategy and the wider Strategic Economic Plan. Therefore the board agreed to work closely with the LEP Leadership groups to form an action plan to present to the Department of Work and Pensions to provide solutions to the current situation and improve governance to prevent such issues arising again.
The prospect of a “Growth Deal 3†being announced was discussed, and since the meeting there have been further announcements, outlined in more detail in the March newsletter.
Members of the board expressed the need for truly transformational projects with a “bottom up meets top down†approach combining HotSW wide strategy with local expertise.
A summary of the current Devolution process concluded that detail and justification to underpin the bid was still needed and some expressed the view that further business consultation was still required.
Decisions on what form of governance a HotSW Devolution Deal would take are still up for discussion and it is speculated that a Mayoral system may leverage extra funding as it appears to be the government’s preferred model.
The board was informed that Affordable Housing is included within the themes of Devolution following the report on Housing that was presented to the November Board meeting. The latest on Devolution in the Heart of the South West, including the prospectus, is available here
Declarations of interest:
Serco via Peninsula Enterprise delivering Growth Hub “Service for All” and is providing the Get Up To Speed service for Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS). Serco has an interest in some of the current and future ESIF calls.
Pluss organisation has an interest in Big Lottery Funding and future ESIF funding.
Devon Community Foundation is involved in a number of partnership bids for Big Lottery Funding and future ESIF funding.
Yeovil College has an interest in Growth Deal, HPTA bid and interest in the Career College.
Agusta Westland has an interest in future ERDF funding.
Torbay Council has an interest in ERDF Business support programmes.
Midas is bidding for work at South Yard in Plymouth (which is funded by the LEP) but not personally involved.
A board member’s brother is on the board of the National Infrastructure Commission.
Please note there is no summary of the Board minutes this month.
The LEP Finance and resources committee will report to the board on the potential use of Growing Places Funds to attract new investment, and will consider a proposal from the board to fund further research to support the economic case for the Peninsula Rail Task Force campaigns.
The board discussed the implications on the LEP had the funding for Growth Deal 2 not been confirmed, and agreed in all events to increase the momentum in engaging local MPs to use their influence in government to focus on the Heart of the South West. The LEP is working to align the profiling of expenditure on Growth Deal projects.
The board was briefed on the issue that the Department of Work and Pensions’ inflexibility surrounding the details of ESIF funding and the LEP continues to seek influence.
Patrick Flaherty, Chief Executive of Somerset Council, outlined the current proposal and timelines for a Devolution Deal and the outstanding issues around governance. Feedback from business indicates that they are not very concerned about governance but are in favour of regional decision making, more funding for skills and have a desire to push a vision for growth. Board members believe that the deal needs to ask for something bold, ambitious and innovative, and that LEP and Business involvement needs to be ramped up to ensure the final document portrays a passion for innovation and transformation.
Increased pressure on government is taking place to mitigate the delays, bureaucracy and revised funding allocations and outputs within the ESIF strategy.
Findings of the LEP Annual Review were outlined, which will shape the business plan, measuring performance against the Strategic Economic Plan, resulting in a single improvement plan to be reviewed by the Finance and Resources group
The Place Leadership group chair gave a presentation on the recent report from the Housing Task and Finish Group which aims to address barriers and solutions to the provision of housing. The board discussed the ideas presented in the report and its implications on partner funding and the areas’ Local Plans’.
It was noted that much of this paper is relevant to Devolution in terms of offering a local solution, and it was suggested that rural villages and small towns had a role to play in addressing housing shortages which would also benefit the viability of small communities.
In conclusion the Chair deferred the paper for further work and discussion with Local Authority planning managers and input from local house builders prior to the housing agenda being incorporated into the Devolution Deal.
The roles of the Leadership Groups and their terms of reference are being explored with a view to improving the synergy and lines of communication and decision making throughout the LEP and its partners.
The July Board discussed the government’s plans for devolution and agreed that the LEP would support the local authorities in such capacity that they decide upon to progress this agenda and maximise any increased opportunities for funding that may be presented. Particular emphasis came from the private sector to continue to support the area to attract investment, and the business board members were all keen to continue helping local authorities.
A range of future funding opportunities were discussed and the board members reviewed a number of our strategic priorities. The board also discussed enhancing productivity and access to finance to unlock barriers; Local Innovation Audits and a possible approach to address a projected labour shortage by helping people get off health related benefits.
HotSW Inward Investment manager presented the results of the City Deal funded Investor Growth and Soft Landings packages which, respectively, secured 85 high value jobs and £3m investment; and 13 foreign direct investments creating 340 new jobs and safeguarding 338. The Board supported the proposal to seek extra resources now that City Deal funding has ended, to continue similar projects to attract inward and local investment into the area.. The board offered to enhance their role as ambassadors for the area and asked for increased levels of information and support in doing so.
The Enterprise Zone presentation from the Business and Place Leadership Groups was well received and the board will consider the benefits of potential zones and following advice from BIS will put forward a proposal in addition to our existing zone in Plymouth South Yard.
A letter of support for the extension of Heathrow Airport is to be sent from the Board, with additional asks for related connectivity to the south west.
The Board were updated that now that the new government has been formed, the LEP is stepping up its activity to secure the necessary support for projects in the HotSW area that directly align with the government’s aims to increase the productivity of UK plc. This is the time to deliver transformational growth and it’s the task of the LEP, with our key partners, to ensure the HotSW voice is heard.
Management team and leadership groups were asked to define their achievements to the strategy by showing outputs against the Strategic Priorities in a Nutshell, which is the summary of the aims of the Heart of the South West Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) and can be viewed here. This will help to illustrate the success of the achievements and give confidence to partners that HotSW LEP is on track for delivery.
The Board welcomed the paper tabled by the CBI in its asks to government, which aligns to much of the SEP in its aims to create the right conditions to enable growth.
At the time of the meeting there were two vacancies for non-executive board members, and applications are currently being assessed. Vaughan Lindsey, who has left the Board to take up a position in London, was thanked for his contribution to HotSW LEP since its inception.
For Board members only
Extra Board Meeting (Virtual)
11 March from 1.30 – 3.30pm
The Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership was one of 38 LEPs in England. The LEP was a leader and influencer for economic growth, job creation and prosperity across the Heart of the South West area covering Devon, Plymouth, Somerset and Torbay.
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Chief Executive
David Ralph started as Chief Executive of Heart of South West LEP at the beginning of June 2018. Previously, he had spent 5 years as CEO of the Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire (D2N2) LEP from 2013 where he oversaw the development of the D2N2 Strategic Economic Plan and sector strategies, 3 Growth Deals with HM Government to deliver a £1billion capital investment programme, securing and implementing £200m ESIF programme, the Derby and Nottingham Enterprise Zone, the D2N2 Skills Deal and Time for Innovation programme, community fund and led the executive team to develop the HS2 East Midlands hub. He was also closely involved in the proposed North Midlands Devolution Deal and one of the key architects in establishing the Midlands Engine, chairing the officer steering group. Whilst in this role David was a NED of the Nottingham Enterprise Zone, and Marketing NG, the Outer Estates Foundation and a Governor of Nottingham College and on the advisory Board of Nottingham Business School.
Before the East Midlands, David was CEO of the Have Gateway Partnership working closely with local stakeholders including the ports of Felixstowe, Harwich and Ipswich and BT Adadastral Park across Suffolk and Essex and prior to that was Chief Exec of the Barton Hill New Deal for Communities programme in Bristol and the Nelm Development Trust in Norwich.
David is a keen sailor, walker and trail runner.