Economic Development Sub- Committee

Transcription

1 Economic Development Sub- Committee Present: Minutes of the Meeting held on 19 March 2015 at am at County Hall. Mr B Spratt (Chairman) Mr R Bird Mr T Jermy Mr I Mackie Mr J Timewell Mrs C Walker Mr T White Mr M Wilby 1 Apologies and Substitutions Apologies received from Mr S Clancy (substituted by Mr A White) and Mr S Hebborn. 2 To Agree the Minutes of the Meeting Held on January The minutes of the meeting held on the 19 January were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman. 3 Declaration of Interest 3.1 No declarations were made. 4 Items of Urgent Business 4.1 The Sub-Committee discussed and decided it would be more appropriate for Mr B Spratt as Chairman of this committee to be the representative on the Agri-Tech Programme Board rather than Mrs C Walker. 4.2 The Sub-Committee discussed Norfolk County Council s property portfolio. It was felt that this was a large financial responsibility and that it should be under the umbrella of the Economic Development Sub-Committee rather than the Policy and Resources Committee. 4.3 Mr M Wilby proposed, seconded by Mr I Mackie that the Sub-Committee recommend that the property portfolio should be brought under the remit of Economic Development Sub-Committee and that this should be fed into the review of the committee system.

2 The Sub-Committee agreed with 6 votes For and 2 Abstained and the motion carried. 5 Local Member Issues / Questions 5.1 No Local Member questions were received. 6. Update from Outside Bodies. 6.1 The Sub-Committee received verbal updates from members for the following outside bodies:- 6.2 Norfolk Rail Group The new franchise would be decided at the end of May. The single line between Kings Lynn and Ely also needed to be considered. Network Rail are listening to concerns raised about level crossing closures and taking them into consideration. 6.3 Scottow Enterprise Park Working Group The working group had met twice since formed. Phase 1 of the solar farm was completed. Discussions were in hand with a local landowner regarding the creation of a new entrance which would take traffic straight out to the B1150 towards North Walsham without passing any dwelling. 6.4 County Farms There had recently been a tenants meeting which had been very successful. The key areas being looked out were income generation and agricultural sustainable industry. A new shadowing programme at Easton and Otley College was being introduced. The creation of a farmers shop on the estates was being looked into and it was felt this would be popular. 6.5 Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex China Partnership The main report was provided at the last Economic Development meeting. A presentation on progress to date is planned for the Policy and Resources Committee on 23 March. 6.6 The Chairman also informed the Sub-Committee that the trip to Great Yarmouth to visit the windfarm had been very successful. The trip also included a visit to Yarmouth College which was very informative and members learned a lot and felt that the college was attuned to future energy needs.

3 The Sub-Committee agreed that more trips should be arranged, possibly to Kings Lynn and Hunstanton. 7. Visit Norfolk tourism contract 7.1 The Sub-Committee received a report from the Executive Director, Community and Environmental Services and a presentation from Mr Pete Waters from Visit Norfolk. (Appendix A) The report provided background to the current Visit Norfolk contract, which comes to an end on 11 May The presentation that accompanied the paper, from the Norfolk Brand Manager, outlined some of the achievements of the Partnership during the contract period. 7.2 The Sub-Committee discussed the following points:- 80k in funds had been received and a small percentage of this goes to Visit East Anglia. Any additional funds would be fed into the marketing campaign. The dualling of the A11 would increase the number of day trippers but the road network within Norfolk for example the Acle straight and the A149 between Kings Lynn and Hunstanton still discourages tourists due to heavy congestion at peak times. Investment and marketing work needed to be done in Great Yarmouth. 800m of the 2bn income came from Great Yarmouth however, when asked, people s perception of Norfolk decreased from 54% to 48% when Great Yarmouth was included. Breckland was seen as the gateway to Norfolk with the dualling of the A11 and Breckland District Council were now interested in joining Visit Norfolk. Tourists also come in from the north and the midlands so the west of the county should not be forgotten. Visit Norfolk was currently generating 50k and is aiming to be self-sustaining by the end of the next year. Visit Norfolk was working with the Broads Authority and other local organisation, as working collaboratively was seen as the key factor for success. 7.3 The Sub-Committee RESOLVED to endorse the allocation of Economic Development funds, in the form of an annual grant, over the period Apprenticeships moving forward 8.1 The Sub-Committee received a report from the Executive Director, Community and Environmental Services and the Interim Executive Director of Children s Services which informed members of the need to further stimulate the market for apprenticeships, working with communities, schools and employers. The Council

4 had facilitated the Apprenticeships Norfolk Network to ensure sustainability and impact. 8.2 The Sub-Committee discussed the following points:- There were ten key local employers who are willing to be mentors to new employers joining the network. Apprentices were being recruited by Norfolk County Council to act as ambassadors for the network. Significant changes were coming from central government which meant that no apprentice would earn less than 100 per week. There was a longstanding issue getting schools to promote apprenticeships, however the hope was that by getting employers into speak at schools this would challenge and create a change. The skills pool was getting less and apprenticeships were the key to solving this problem. The apprenticeship team had been moved into Economic Development & Strategy group to create a bridge between the two departments. 8.3 The Sub-Committee AGREED that there should be a members champion for apprenticeships and this should be put on the agenda for the next Economic Development Sub-Committee meeting. 8.4 The Sub-Committee RESOLVED to:- To endorse the approach outlined in the paper. To promote apprenticeships to the communities with whom members work schools, employers, parents and carers. To ensure access to relevant data in order that a looked after child, care leaver or vulnerable young person who has the aspiration to, and capability of, successfully completing an apprenticeship, can receive appropriate support. 9. Annual report on the Norfolk Infrastructure Fund 9.1 The Sub-Committee received a report from the Executive Director, Community and Environmental Services which gave a progress update on activity and spend in 2014/15, outlined the commitments already scheduled beyond this financial year and invited suggestions from members for broad priorities for the 0.451m that was available for new commitments. 9.2 The Sub-Committee discussed the need to get Norfolk connected with mobile phone signals. It was agreed that this fitted the remit of the Norfolk Infrastructure Fund.

5 9.3 Mr J Timewell proposed, seconded by Mr I Mackie that a scoping report into mobile phone signal in Norfolk be produced and brought back to the Sub-Committee. The motion carried unanimously. 9.4 The Sub-Committee noted the report and agreed that a scoping paper be produced and brought to the sub-committee for consideration around mobile phone signal and connectivity as a possible priority for the Norfolk Infrastructure Fund. 10. Finance and Performance Monitoring report 10.1 The Sub-Committee received the report from the Executive Director, Community and Environmental Services which provided the Sub-Committee with the financial position for the service to the end of February, including the planned use of reserves. It also gave an overview of some of Economic Developments key areas of service delivery The Sub-Committee discussed the under spend of 119k and noted that this would be used to offset the overall overspend for Community and Environmental Services The Sub-Committee noted the report. 11. Forward Plan 11.1 The Sub-Committee received the report from the Executive Director, Community and Environmental Services which set out the items/decisions programmed to be brought to the Sub-Committee for consideration in relation to economic development issues in Norfolk The Sub-Committee noted and agreed the Forward Plan. The meeting closed at 12.05pm. Chairman If you need this document in large print, audio, Braille, alternative format or in a different language please contact the Customer Services Team on or (textphone) and we will do our best to help.

6 Appendix A 16/04/2015 Visit Norfolk progress from November 2012 Pete Waters The Tourism Opportunity 2.8bn economic contribution 15% employment 54,000 jobs Rapid job creation is possible currently 5.4% A lesser known destination with an incredible offer to visitors Dry, safe and accessible And now even easier to get to! Day trippers to stay visitors Develop the year-round economy ban The Season Infrastructure and offering are in place What have we done? Re-brand & photography Website made more dynamic, image-led, modern, customer-friendly, collaborative with local DMOs, revenue-generating Continually improving and updating website with new revenue streams First campaign all about awareness There s Nowhere Like Norfolk 520,000 impressions on ITV Player, rail station posters 1

7 16/04/2015 What are we doing? Trade e-newsletters, consumer e-newsletters Four conferences at John Innes Centre Volume & Value, Business Confidence Monitors PR & press trips Consumer research look for the unique 2

8 16/04/ promo films with Visit Britain TV 750,000 worldwide views and growing 3

9 16/04/2015 A11 campaign What next? The biggest investment in a single Norfolk tourism promotion launched Monday Deep History Coast The opportunity The objective Convert day trippers to stay visitors Develop the year-round visitor economy & jobs Visit Norfolk to be self-sustaining within 2 years Surplus money to be put back into marketing 4