Innovacion

Outer London Commission: Geography matters

So the long awaited final report from the Outer London Commission (OLC) has now been published (25 May 2010). We produced a range of economic policy papers which formed the LDA's input into the ruminations of the OLC. Overall the report generally takes a fairly realistic view of the economic potential of Outer London across a wide range of issues - some of which sit uneasily together. With this wide remit it is inevitable that some areas are covered more convincingly than others. The consideration of the scale and nature of office development in Outer London sensibly concludes that aspirational super hubs are exactly that. Increasing development through public sector investment in higher and further education, hospitals and civil servant relocations by expanding the existing 'star and cluster' spatial structures is a realistic way to try to drive change.  

In other areas the ideas are more debatable. It is not clear why a high value service firm would want to use a local suburban library for meetings, even if it is renamed as an ICT hub. Today's launch of Apple's iPad is likely to be another uptick in what mobile working actually, rather than theoretically, means. Our hunch is that a greater freedom in where you work means that the importance of the other factors that make up desirable places actually increases. The result isn't a levelling the playing field effect but a concentrating effect. Desirable places become even more sought after: less desirable places even less so. While the report also suggests that putting firms together in an innovation park means they will work together these sort of developments have a pretty chequered history in the Capital.  In many sectors service firms will work the firms they need to rather than they are near to. Our survey partner is in Yorkshire. Our IT services come from San Francisco and Lancashire. Our accountant is in Cambridge.  

One overriding feeling remains.  While the OLC chose to look at the different rings around London the bigger and more meaningful economic difference is still that between east and west London extending out from central London and into the Greater South East mega-region.  So while the Crossrail benefits concentrate along an east-west axis they also spill out along radial links into Outer London. You can't change hundreds of years of geography that easily...

Outer London Commission Final Report (Pre-publication, May 2010)

Making sense of community engagement: best practice from CAA Green Flags Local Authorities

Following an increasing policy focus on community engagement and empowerment over the last 5 to 10 years, a new Duty to Involve came into force for all local councils in April 2009. As well as the policy thrust, effective community engagement and empowerment makes sense for councils as it helps to build trust and to improve community relations. Three CAA Green Flag authorities (Lewisham, Wiltshire and East Riding) have been undertaking a range of innovative approaches to develop active citizens, strengthen community groups and improve their partnership working. These have included Area Boards and Local Assemblies, a Resource Advisory Group, long term relationships with the third sector and a Young Mayor programme. As a result increasing numbers of local people and partners have been involved in more devolved budget setting, service planning and agenda setting.

Download the case study produced by Innovacion for IDeA from the Work Together site 

Making sense of housing - best practice from CAA green flag local authorities

With 2.5 million council tenants currently and an additional three million homes planned by 2020 local authorities play a major role in the management and development of housing locally. Local Authorities are having to respond to future challenges including how to provide more (affordable) housing in better designed places, how to reduce homelessness levels and how to respond to demographic trends. The CAA Green Flag authorities of Blackpool, Corby and North Yorkshire County Council have undertaken a range of innovative and successful housing activities. Blackpool Council has substantially reduced its levels of homelessness through a range of initiatives. Corby Borough Council has 16,000 new homes planned or built and has secured £2 billion of investment. Working in partnership with seven district councils, housing associations and other partners North Yorkshire County Council has developed 11 new Extra Care schemes which provide a new independent living option for its ageing population.

Download the case study produced by Innovacion for IDeA from the Work Together site 

Hung, drawn and quartered - what does a hung parliament mean in reality?

What is a hung parliament and why is it feared? How might a hung parliament work in reality? And who will form the next government? Amid all the interest in the emergence of the Liberal Democrats as a third party in what is likely to be an extremely close General Election the spectre of a hung parliament arouses strong feelings. While the UK has not had a hung parliament for 36 years they are common in 27 other European countries, many producing stable governments and enjoying the backing of their citizens. Read Bircham Dyson Bell's nice summary of what a hung parliament would actually involve. We work closely with BDB to develop the case and secure planning consent for light rail extensions in East London.

Download Hung, Drawn or Quartered April 2010

Lichfield leads the way with Open Data Election Project

In central, regional and local government there is an increasing desire to share data more widely to improve transparency and accountability and to reduce duplication.  As an early adopter Lichfield District Council has been actively sharing a range of local data for some time.  In March 2010 the Council was the first authority to make its local election results openly available as part of the Open Election Data Project.  By making small changes in how their local election results are displayed local authorities can jointly work towards creating a free national database of local election results and undertake a low risk, low cost pilot in implementing the open data agenda. Read more about the Open Data Election Project in Innovacion's case study at:

Lichfield District Council - Open Data Election Project

IDeA - Open Data

Local by Social - Local Authority Use of Social Media

Innovacion completed three social media case studies which have recently been published on IDeA's knowledge hub.

Kent County Council is opening up data to help citizens make use of it through the 'Pic and Mix' project and is using social media tools to enable better internal communications.

Kent County Council Social Media Case Study

Devon County Council has been developing its Social Media strategy and is using social media to reach young pregnant teens, promote cultural events and libraries and save money in internal communications.

Devon County Council Social Media Case Study

Brent Council is using social media over a range of services and is continuing to develop its approach.

London Borough of Brent Social Media Case Study

Best Pratice in Local Government: Social Media, Housing and Community Engagement

IDeA have commissioned Innovacion to produce three case studies looking at leading edge use of social media in three Local Authorities (Brent Council, Devon County Council and Kent County Council) to assist IDeA in their development of a new Knowledge Hub application. Innovacion are also developing two Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) Green Flag case studies examining best practice in housing (Blackpool Council, Corby Council, North Yorkshire County Council, Hambleton Council) and community engagement (Lewisham Council, Wiltshire Council and East Riding Council).

Innovacion develop economic options for London's Royal Docks

As part of a Regeneris team Innovacion have been commissioned by Newham Council, Design for London and the London Development Agency to develop and appraise the strategic economic options for investment priorities in the Royal Docks over the next 25 years. The economic study will explore development scenarios and options based around the current array of economic assets and identify the supporting infrastructure required to bring forward sustainable development. This commission forms the initial stage in the production of the Royals Development Framework which runs through to March 2011.

Coulsdon's Economic Future reviewed by Innovacion

Innovacion and EDP Associates have been commissioned by Croydon Council to review the economic, demographic, property and commercial conditions of Coulsdon which is a district centre in the south of the Borough. The study aims to set a baseline for any future local regeneration and development strategy and, in particular, guide any discussions with strategic partners around the redevelopment options for the nearby Cane Hill site.

Outer London - handle with care

While the diverse nature of Outer London has been rightly highlighted in the new consultation draft of the London Plan, strategies for accelerating its economic growth in tough times will have to be carefully handled with care.

Rumfitt A; "Outer London - handle with care"; Town & Country Planning (December 2009)

Download Outer London - handle with care (TCPA December 2009)

Andy Rumfitt appointed to Yorkshire Design Review Service

Andy Rumfitt has been appointed as a panel member of the new Yorkshire and Humberside Design Review Service being established under the Integreat Yorkshire programme which is run by Yorkshire Forward.  

The Design Review Service panel will discuss projects in the context of criteria of good design and provide views of how well or otherwise that the project addresses those criteria. The aim is to assist the project team by providing useful feedback to enable improvements in their design proposals.

The Design Review Service will provide advice on a wide range of built environment issues including new buildings, masterplans, green spaces, urban frameworks and other planning and spatial strategies.

Innovacion advise on potential Crossrail regeneration benefits

Adding 40% to London’s rail transport capacity and opening in 2017, the £16 billion Crossrail scheme will be the largest transport project in the Greater South East for 50 years. With Regeneris and Cyril Sweett, Innovacion have been commissioned to help the LDA to identify and secure the wider regeneration benefits that Crossrail could provide around the location of the 29 London stations and their hinterlands and to identify where there are market failures that could benefit from public sector investment. The end product will be an investment plan outlining key milestones and timescales for specific interventions by the LDA.

Croydon and Gatwick: Competitive Opportunities and Risk

For Croydon Council Innovacion is considering the strategic options and issues in developing the functional relationship between Croydon and Gatwick including its economic hinterland. Risks to Croydon’s attraction and retention of firms were considered along with its sectoral strengths and the required supporting infrastructure.

Innovacion investigate business impacts of congestion at Blackwall Tunnel

Innovacion is helping to assess and review the business impacts of traffic congestion at the Blackwall Tunnel as part of Transport for London’s short listing appraisal of proposed river crossings in east London. Evidence was brought together from a range of literature and secondary sources as well as through a roadside survey and selected business case studies.

TCPA Sustainable Communities and Planning Conference: 1 Dec 2009

This conference celebrates the Centenary of the Housing and Town Planning Act 1909 and addresses the planning challenges of today. As John Burns, President of the Local Government Board, said, the 1909 Act would ‘provide a domestic condition for the people in which their physical health, their morals, their character, and their whole social condition can be improved’. While ‘morals’ are now left to those outside the planning system, it is still through planning that housing and social conditions can be improved, and the new, big challenge is, of course, climate change.

Download TCPA Annual Conference 1 Dec 2009 Brochure

People or Proximity: Where does growth come from in outer London?

As a successful retail centre in a great location on the Thames, Kingston is the desirable home for highly skilled workers. Access to high quality environments (parks, river) and the transport network (Heathrow, Gatwick, roads) also add to the attractive locational mix. And Kingston has the high house prices and waiting lists for good state and private schools to prove it.  

Retail aside Kingston’s relative specialisation in business services aligns with a key international strength of London. Parts of this specialisation will be in providing local business services. In Kingston, the usual range of local accountants and solicitors will service the needs of the local business community and a burgeoning army of freelancers, many home based, as well as benefitting from a high level of passing trade. Other parts will be linked to London’s globally competitive strength in business and professional services. These are built on an extensive and deep labour market across the 21 million residents in the Greater South East.

Two thirds (64%) of the residential workforce in Kingston are managers and professionals compared to just 42% in Croydon. This is a non-trivial difference. Being able to source highly skilled local labour is a key comparative advantage for the firms in Kingston. And goes some way to explain the relatively low level of out commuting for such a residential part of outer London. The make-up of a local area’s population including its occupational profile has a big impact on long term economic development.

Over the other side of outer London different drivers are at work. Despite its relatively poor river crossing options, north Bexley has developed as a relatively (in a London context) cost effective location for a range of near market functions. As time really is money Michael Porter and others identified this proximity advantage many years ago. These locations offer potential as the profitable base for time sensitive activities. So in Belvedere we have a concentration of food logistics operations such as ASDA, Londis and Lidl, office support services such as Viking Direct, Iron Mountain and Office Depot plus construction and printing. Here the most important competitive advantage is proximity to a very large consumer market plus the central London concentration of office functions. Without this near market logic other economic activities which are exposed to international cost pressures such as the manufacture of cables are very much history.

Understanding the underlying drivers explains how a local economy got to where it is today. But it also sets parameters on where it can go tomorrow.

Innovacion advise on the strategic future of the Greater South East

The LDA, SEEDA and EEDA have commissioned Innovacion to draft a prospectus for the Greater South East mega-region which is home to 21 million people and a £523 billion economy - 43% of the national economy.  Drawing from wide range of internal research across the three RDAs, including new low carbon initiatives and New Industry New Jobs sectoral priorities, Innovacion will develop a top level narrative for the UK's only mega city-region that outlines what the Greater South East needs to secure its future economic competitiveness and respond to the UK's current economic challenges.

Andy Rumfitt appointed as a Delivering Design Quality Enabler for Transform South Yorkshire

Andy Rumfitt has been appointed as a Delivering Design Quality Enabler for Transform South Yorkshire. Andy will bring his 18 years of economic development experience from many different areas and geographies to help the largest Housing Market Renewal area to champion design, build capacity, develop projects and disseminate best practice.  Including Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham Transform South Yorkshire covers 130,000 dwellings and almost 300,000 residents.

Innovacion advise on the future economic development of Merton and Wimbledon

As part of a Regeneris team Innovacion have been appointed by Merton Council to provide advice on the future economic development of Merton, the home borough for the world renown Wimbledon tennis championships.  To help design the economic development strategy Innovacion's specialist inputs will cover town centre development within London's hierarchy of places, the role and functioning of the outer London economy, sectoral development options and the identification of endogenous sources of growth in the local economy.

Innovacion study for Outer London Commission published

Innovacion's analysis of eight key locations in outer London produced for the LDA has been published by the Mayor of London's Outer London Commission. Using a range of information sources the study considered various economic characteristics of Croydon, Stratford, the Heathrow Area, Brent Cross, Wembley, Kingston, Woolwich and the Upper Lee Valley. These included economic scale, economic profile and performance, business and skills base, property (current supply), planning (future supply) and economic catchments.

View the study on the Outer London Commission website

Download Key Locations in Outer London Published Version