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Economic Development Update. Policy and Resources Panel 14 July 2009. State of the Hertfordshire Economy Hertfordshire Works Emerging Vision. National Context – mixed message. Bank of England Purchasing Managers Index British Chamber of Commerce Lending Housing
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Economic Development Update Policy and Resources Panel 14 July 2009
State of the Hertfordshire Economy • Hertfordshire Works • Emerging Vision
National Context – mixed message • Bank of England • Purchasing Managers Index • British Chamber of Commerce • Lending • Housing • Commercial Property • Construction Output
Hertfordshire • Unemployment ILO Definition • 5% (estimate May 2009) • 3.7% (June 2008) • 10% (early 1990s) • East of England 6% • UK 7.2%
Claimant Count May 2009 19657 3% May 2008 8234 1.2% • Stevenage 4.3% • Sales & Customer Service
Vacancies May 2009 2992 April 2009 2868 March 2009 3013 May 2008 5625
Young People NEETs • May 2009 5.5% • May 2008 4.5% • Particularly 18 year olds • Stevenage 40% higher than County average • Learning rate up to 82.7% from 80.5% last year
Redundancies • 700 Jan – May 2009 • 900 expected over the next 9 months • All sectors, all locations • 2/3 of redundancies are in companies employing less than 100 staff • Job levels unlikely to be regained until 2015
Housing • Average house price in Hertfordshire £276,300 • Nationally £197,000 • House prices fallen 14.8% from April 2008-09 • Housing completions 2008/09 3563 2007/08 4271 2006/07 4345
Hertfordshire Works £4m PRG through ‘Recession to Recovery Programme’ - £480k already allocated to additional funding to CABX for 5 specialist debt advisers • £800k for Apprenticeships • £300k for skills training for SME’s and social enterprise • £500k capital for local shopping centres improvement fund • £200k for Business Retention and Inward Investment • £1.5m capital for Incubation Centre
Inward Investment Manager appointed • Future Jobs Fund bid to Central Government for 200 apprenticeships for young people who are long term unemployed • Business Advisory Groups in place • SME Procurement and Supply Chain Initiative • Olympics Legacy / Waltham Cross Renaissance Group
A fresh economic vision for Hertfordshire • Visioning Workshop 6 July 2009 • Draft Strategy by Hertfordshire Forward Conference November 2009
STRENGTHS Varied Economy Skilled Workforce Proximity to London Quality of life WEAKNESSES Weak brand/mixed messages Infrastructure High cost of Housing Pockets of economic disadvantage
OPPORTUNITIES Build on Clusters Nurture SMEs Green Jobs Olympics THREATS Slow recovery Loss of competitive advantage Poor quality jobs Congestion
Emerging Vision • VARIED & RESILIENT ECONOMY • Diverse, not over reliant on few sectors or multinationals • Building on our strengths – pharmaceuticals, hi-tech engineering, communications & media • Retaining existing firms & encouraging them to grow • Supporting SMEs • Promoting entrepreneurs
QUALITY JOBS • High Wages, skilled jobs • Knowledge intensive • Personal Services
QUALITY LOCATIONS • Key sites • Flexible development briefs • Sustainable development • Unlocking Infrastructure
WELL SKILLED WORKFORCE - Skills for the future • Linked to what employers want • Apprenticeships from work experience to graduates • Key to addressing inequalities
INNOVATIVE AND NETWORKED • Optimising our clusters • Strong supply chains and networks • Strong business engagement
STRONG OFFER & IDENTITY • Clear Brand • Culture of ‘Yes’ • Inward Investment Portal and Support
‘SMART’ GOVERNMENT • Advocacy • Clear standards • Appropriate interventions