Communities and Local Government

• Cities and regions
• Regional
• Regional Development Agencies

Cities and regions

Regional Development Agencies

Overview and background

The eight Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) were established under the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998, and were formally launched in eight English regions on 1 April 1999. The ninth, in London, was established in July 2000 following the establishment of the Greater London Authority (GLA).The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) sponsor the RDAs and is responsible for the Regional Economic Performance (REP) PSA.

The primary role of RDAs is to act as strategic drivers of regional economic development in their region. The RDAs aim to co-ordinate regional economic development and economic regeneration, enable the regions to improve their relative competitiveness and reduce the imbalance that exists within and between regions.

Communities and Local Government retains policy responsibility for the regeneration initiatives delivered by the RDAs. The RDA Policy and Finance team (in the Cities and Regions Division) leads on co-ordinating Departmental responses to the Corporate Plans and reviews of Regional Economic Strategies and supporting the implementation of the Review of sub-national economic development and regeneration. The team also leads on taking forward responses to the Communities and Local Government Capability review to engage more effectively with the RDAs when developing policy. More information about the RDAs can be found at: http://www.berr.gov.uk/regional/regional-dev-agencies/index.html (external link).

Review of Sub-National Economic Development and Regeneration

The Review of sub-national economic development and regeneration, also known as the Sub-National Review (SNR), was published in July 2007 and set out a number of reforms at local, sub-regional and regional levels. The SNR announced that the regional tier will be streamlined leading to an increased strategic role for RDAs. The Government's final response to the March 2008 Sub National Review consultation was published on 25 November. It announced that RDAs and Local Authority Leaders' Boards would be given joint responsibility for developing a new regional strategy to enable spatial and economic decisions to be taken together. Communities and Local Government will continue to play an important role in supporting the development of Regional Strategies and working with RDAs as key partners for delivering our priorities with local government, city and sub-regions.

Further information can be on the Government's final response to the March 2008 Sub National Review consultation.

RDA Performance Management

The capacity of the RDAs has been considered as part of the National Audit Office (NAO)'s Independent Performance Assessments which measured the performance across five broad themes (ambition, prioritisation, capacity, performance management and achievement). Independent Performance Assessments rated the 8 RDAs outside of London to be 'Performing Strongly' or 'Performing Well'. The performance of the London Development Agency was assessed as 'Good' by the Audit Commission. More information can be found at: http://www.berr.gov.uk/regional/regional-dev-agencies/rda-performance/page24206.html (external link).

Following the SNR, the Government is significantly reforming and simplifying the RDAs sponsorship framework in order to produce a significantly simplified outcomes framework, defined by a single overarching objective focused on regional economic performance, and supported by five outcome indicators and a limited ste of underlying principles.

RDA Corporate Plans

The RDAs priorities set out in the Regional Economic Strategies (RES) are implemented through the Corporate Plans, which is an operational document detailing the activities and initiatives to be undertaken and move forward regional and national priorities, including pan-region and growth area strategies. Corporate Plans are drawn up to cover three year periods corresponding to the Spending Reviews. Further details can be found at:
www.berr.gov.uk/regional/regional-dev-agencies/tasking-framework/page12978.html (external link).

Regional Economic Strategies (RES) statutory and non-statutory guidance

Until the SNR proposal for a single regional strategy is enabled, RDAs will draw up Regional Economic Strategies for their region, aligning them closely with Regional Spatial Strategies and keep them under review. They should draw on the support and resources of regional, sub-regional and local partners to address the particular needs of its region, while supporting, enhancing and delivering national policies.

Six RESs were reviewed in 2006 with West Midlands and East of England starting their review processes in 2007 and London in 2008. Communities and Local Government has actively contributed to the recent review of the RES statutory and non-statutory guidance. These has now been published on BERR's website at: www.berr.gov.uk/regional/regional-dev-agencies/regional-economic-strategies/page19347.html (external link).

RDAs and the new Homes and Communities Agency's Role in Regeneration

Place shaping requires a range of bodies to bring together different expertise and funding. RDAs and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), will work to support the priorities of local authorities and sub-regions, within the frameworks set out in the single Regional Strategy.

The HCA will work to support the regeneration priorities of local authorities and sub-regions, within the frameworks set out in the single regional strategy. This regional strategy will set out the framework for economic development, housing and related regeneration priorities for each region. The Government expects the HCA to take over a range of housing and regeneration functions from the Housing Corporation, English Partnerships and Communities and Local Government and will provide valuable advisory input into the development of the regional strategy.

RDAs will continue to lead on regeneration linked to economic development within each region. The HCA will play an important role in helping to deliver elements of the regional strategy, focusing on housing, housing-related interventions and the transformation of deprived communities. The RDA and the HCA will work together to coordinate their involvement in any projects covering both economic development and measures to support deprived areas or housing delivery.