Agenda item

To approve the amended Economic Development and Tourism Strategy and amendments to the Business Grants Scheme as set out within the report.

1.      That the Economic Development and Tourism Strategy be ADOPTED.

2.      That the amendments to the Business Grants Scheme, as outlined in Paragraphs 3.3 to 3.5 of the report, be APPROVED.

10.1           The report of the Community and Economic Development Manager, circulated at Pages No. 55-73, outlined the progress of the Economic Development and Tourism Strategy Working Group in developing the new Strategy. Members were asked to adopt the Strategy and approve the proposed amendments to the Business Grant Scheme as outlined within the report. 

10.2           The Chair of the Economic Development and Tourism Strategy Review Working Group explained that economic development was one of the key priorities in the Council Plan and was essential to the support of business growth within the Borough. It did, however, also need to be understood that the Council’s resources in that area were limited and he felt the Council achieved far more than should be expected with the resources it had. The Working Group, along with Officers, had put in a lot of hard work to create the new Strategy which he felt was something to be proud of and he thanked everyone who had been involved. The Head of Development Services explained that the report before Members highlighted the progress made and asked the Executive Committee to adopt the new Strategy.

10.3           It was explained that the previous Strategy had reached the end of its life so a Working Group had been initiated to review it. The work had included the Council’s key partners and the employment land review, economic assessment and business survey had been the basis for the Strategy. The document before the Executive Committee had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and subsequently recommended to the Executive Committee for approval. Particular attention was drawn to the fact that one of the meetings of the Working Group had focused on business grants and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had been keen to ensure this was detailed within the report to Committee and included in the resolution made by the Executive Committee as appropriate. Members were then provided with a brief presentation which showed that, in terms of the economy in Tewkesbury Borough, there were 43,000 jobs; unemployment was at 1%; the value of goods and services produced £2.23 billion per year; and there were 3,915 enterprises, including 3,445 micro-businesses. The Borough had a strong business survival rate and an annual tourism related spend of £125 million with 1.8 million day visits. The Borough was in a good location with excellent transport links and a high demand for employment land. There was also a diverse economy and an established centre for high quality manufacturing and world class high-tech aero engineering. It was felt that there was still an opportunity for more growth as there were a number of business which were known to want to locate themselves in the Borough which was great news. There were also a number of major tourism attractions including Tewkesbury Abbey, Sudeley Castle, the Great Western Railway, FlyUp417 and the Jet Age Museum. In terms of the new Strategy, it aimed to provide practical support for businesses in the Borough; promote the area to attract investment and visitors; deliver effective strategic planning to facilitate economic growth; and be proactive in seeking external funding for the area. The Strategy would be a four year document to 2021 with five priorities each of which had a number of objectives within the annual delivery plan.

10.4           Members were advised that there were a number of objectives contained with the Strategy including delivering sufficient employment land to meet the needs of the strategic plan; supporting Gloucestershire Airport business expansion and highway access improvements; stimulating business start-ups and enterprise growth rates incorporating the development of a growth hub; promoting Tewkesbury Borough to visitors, working with Cotswold Tourism and other partners; and promoting initiatives to improve education and training relevant to local employment. Members were shown a video which would be used as a marketing tool for the Tewkesbury/J9 area and were advised that Officers were considering making another one which looked Borough-wide. Members would be circulated the weblink to the video following the meeting.

10.5           A Member expressed a hope that the Council would work closely with the Cotswold AONB Board as it offered a really good resource in the area. In response, the Community and Economic Development Manager advised that the Council was a member of a partnership called Cotswold Tourism and this provided an excellent link to a number of such organisations within the Gloucestershire/Cotswolds area. Another Member questioned how the Strategy would be monitored and the Community and Economic Development Manager explained that the Council’s Performance Tracker would monitor progress as well as an additional annual review by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee; in addition, the action plan would be refreshed as and when necessary. In terms of the marketing video this could be sent out to local agents and through campaign work both on a local and national scale. For the purposes of social media, the video could be split into six smaller videos which meant it could be circulated through ‘tweets’ etc. The official launch of the video would be in July but the specific date was still to be confirmed. A Member felt it was a shame that the Council was trying to promote education yet the ‘Launchpad’ in Tewkesbury was due to close soon. The Chief Executive shared the frustration in that regard; as he understood it the Launchpad was owned by Gloucestershire College and the college was raising capital through the sale. He had expressed the view that the loss of the educational facility was a real shame and he knew Tewkesbury School had made similar comments.

10.6           Having considered the Strategy and comments made, it was