Andrew Hodgson Archives - Page 2 of 4 - North East Local Enterprise Partnership

As the Education Secretary today, (8 October 2018), launches a £24 million programme to increase opportunity for communities in the North East of England, Andrew Hodgson, Chair, North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), said:

‘The North East LEP is committed to reducing the gap between our best and lowest performing secondary schools and to improving social mobility for our young people.

“While we have the second highest proportion of outstanding schools, we also have the second highest number of schools rated less than good after Yorkshire and the Humber. It’s this disparity that we are tackling by supporting teachers, governors, schools and leaders. Ensuring the next generation has a clear pathway to achieving their full potential is a fundamental part of our Strategic Economic Plan.

“I am delighted with today’s investment announcement and recognition by the government of our ambition to drive up student attainment levels. This funding will allow us to accelerate and build on our existing activity in this area and make a real difference to the lives of each and every young person in the North East.”

Read the full details of the funding announcement.

To learn more about Education Challenge, the North East LEP’s goal to reduce the gap between our best and lowest performing schools and to reach a target of all schools achieving a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ OFSTED rating, email: [email protected]

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Nexus is currently seeking to procure three contracts worth around £500m as part of the Nexus Fleet Replacement Programme on the Tyne and Wear Metro.

They are holding an event on Monday 8 October at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland. This event will give businesses the opportunity to meet bidders, listen to briefings from the Nexus team and potentially have an opportunity to pitch to the potential suppliers. The different contract opportunities, which are in construction, manufacture and maintenance, are described in detail below.

1. Manufacture and supply of a fleet of 42 new trains with opportunities for suppliers in the following areas:

Design, supply and assembly of systems, sub-systems, components and system software / firmware
Vehicle body design, manufacture, fabrication and assembly
Testing and commissioning services for vehicle systems
Transportation of new and existing fleet

2. Maintenance of the outgoing and the new fleet with opportunities for suppliers in the following areas:

Supply of systems, subsystems, components and consumables associated with the maintenance of existing and new fleet
Supply of plant, equipment and tools to serve fleet maintenance requirements
Disposal of current fleet

3. Construction of a new maintenance facility for the new fleet, with opportunities for suppliers in the following areas:

Demolition of an existing depot building
Decommissioning and removal of railway assets
Design, construction, testing and commissioning of new railway assets
Design and construction of a new depot building
Provision of plant and equipment to serve fleet maintenance activities
Provision of building maintenance services
The move brings huge opportunities for businesses to be part of a new supply chain working with the bidders

Register for the Nexus event here.

Brexit and the uncertainty of its impact remains the dominant issue for regional business, with talks between the UK government and EU leaders about to enter their most crucial phase.

Brexit will bring disruption, but any disruption creates opportunities for new winners as well as risks to established businesses.

The North East LEP is determined to help companies capture the new opportunities as well as protect themselves from the inevitable changes they will face.

It is launching a comprehensive package of support to help businesses be as prepared as best they can for Brexit through access to expertise, resources and initiatives.

Worryingly, we know many companies are not readying themselves for Britain leaving the EU.

This represents a risk not just to their viability but to the North East economy as a whole.

The North East LEP is taking action now to help firms prepare, working with partners expert in guiding companies through the process of change.

Later this month we are launching ‘Supply Chain North East’. Its aims are simple – to help build more resilience into regional supply chains and the regional economy as a whole.

Businesses will be linked to sector experts able to help them better prepare for life outside the European Union.

The North East LEP has appointed two Growth Hub Connectors to go into firms, get under their skin and assess their Brexit readiness.

Ken Arnold and Karl McCracken both have experience of running companies and will use their professional knowledge to connect firms to the sector experts best placed to help.

RTC North, the North East Automotive Alliance, NEPIC and Generator are delivering the programme, offering a wealth of industry experience and a proven track record of transforming business growth and productivity.

This could be by diversifying income through different revenue opportunities domestically and internationally or by generating greater productivity through digitisation.

Resilience is key, and ‘Supply Chain North East’ has the knowledge and expertise to get companies ready and able to make the most of the change Brexit will bring.

Quite often supply chain companies are reliant on few customers for the vast majority of their work which doesn’t make good business sense.

Our team will be working with firms to examine their core competencies and look at ways to build greater resilience into their business – which could be as simple as continuing to do what they are doing but with new customers.

Sectors such as rail, the nuclear industry and offshore wind present new and exciting opportunities for businesses looking to diversify into different markets.Complementing ‘Supply Chain North East’ will be a new Brexit Preparation Fund being finalised now with NBSL, via their North East Business Support Fund, which will support companies to buy in professional expertise to look at exposure to risk and build greater resilience.

We are also unveiling a Brexit Tool Kit through the North East Growth Hub – the region’s online business support platform – bringing together in one place all the available business advice and support to prepare firms for leaving the EU.

The North East Growth Hub www.northeastgrowthhub.co.uk will be the access point for all the LEP’s latest package of Brexit support.

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The North East economy is front and centre of Government investment this week aimed at capitalising on our industrial strengths and building our infrastructure.

A series of announcements to coincide with the Government’s Cabinet meeting at the Sage Gateshead brings the prospect of new high quality jobs in the energy sector, faster more frequent journeys on the East Coast Main Line and extra funding and responsibilities for Local Enterprise Partnerships to help drive regional economic growth.

It represents a real vote of confidence in the North East and the course of action it is pursuing to create 100,000 more and better jobs by 2024 through investment into sectors of high business growth opportunity.

The Government announcements recognise the pioneering work being carried out in the North East to embed innovation into our economy.

The Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult at Blyth will benefit from part of a £180m funding package over the next five years to bolster its cutting edge research and development activity.

The energy sector is a real North East success story and the North East LEP has just appointed Andrew Clark to lead work in this sector to help maximise its potential.

His knowledge and expertise as sector programme lead will be invaluable in bringing together public and private sector organisations to create a far reaching energy strategy.

A commitment by Government to invest £780m into major upgrades on the East Coast Main Line – to be completed by the early 2020s – is a great first step in giving passengers faster, more frequent journeys, which is in turn great news for new and existing businesses through improved connectivity to markets.

Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, also announced that the North East is among six areas around the country being asked to develop local industrial strategies to create more opportunities and growth.

The national LEP Review was also published on Tuesday which is a welcome move by Government. It provides clarity on the role of LEPs going forward and reinforces the benefits of a strong business voice in leading strategic economic policy and investments. Government are making available an extra £20m to LEPs to help deliver these roles including the new local industrial strategies.

The fact that these strategies will be developed across LEP areas is extremely positive and will support the on-going delivery of the Strategic Economic Plan.

The North East LEP is recognised by ministers as a strong LEP and we are well positioned to meet the roles and opportunities set out in the review.

The Government also confirmed it has laid legislation in Parliament to make the £600m North of Tyne Devolution Deal a reality and the LEP is fully supportive of devolution in the North East in order to bring more local powers and decision making to the region.

However, it is also very important to note that the North East LEP remains committed to working with all seven local authorities to deliver the Strategic Economic Plan with the goal of creating more and better jobs across the region, and to develop the new local industry strategy together for the region.

The North East LEP is recognised as a national leader in careers education policy, pioneering the delivery of the Gatsby Benchmarks for good careers guidance we’ve helped embed in regional schools.

We don’t believe in resting on our laurels and are looking to go one step further to ensure every child in the North East has access to the very best in careers engagement.

As part of this commitment, we’ve looked over the Atlantic to the United States to draw upon the best of their work bringing the classroom and the boardroom closer together.

So it’s especially pleasing to see the impact being made in one regional school in particular by the North East LEP’s Education Challenge.

Pupils aged seven and eight at Newcastle’s Excelsior Academy are spearheading an industry alignment pilot project uniting big business with cutting edge teaching.

The project – piloted by our partner The Edge Foundation education charity – builds on the best of the highly successful Ford Next Generation Learning programme embedded in schools across Nashville, Tennessee, and other US cities.

The US programme run with car manufacturing giant Ford registered great success in both the classroom and the boardroom.

In Newcastle, experts from Virgin Trains East Coast worked with Excelsior Academy primary pupils to teach them about the essential workings of their business and the different skills of its employees needed to run the company.

Project manager Hannah Cummins helped capture the creative spark of youngsters in the classroom, drawing up business plans to underpin the building of solar-powered models.

The final step in the project was to present their plans and models in the main school hall to the project partners, family and friends.

No small task, but one they delivered with great aplomb!

The impact of the project is many fold. Children have been introduced to the professional and personal skills needed to fulfil roles such as in finance, engineering and marketing.

As well as the professional skills, youngsters now know the importance to employers of personal qualities like a positive attitude, resilience, teamwork and self confidence.

Excelsior headteacher Craig Taylor plans to roll out the project to Year 7 and Year 8 pupils from next September.

The project also worked with Future Me – a collaboration between the five North East universities to help raise children’s aspirations further.

The main aim of the Education Challenge is to reduce the gap between the region’s best and lowest performing secondary schools and improve the social mobility of young people.

It’s helping teachers and governors at Excelsior, Norham High in North Shields and Churchill Community College in Wallsend to integrate careers learning into the curriculum.

The US model is informing our Education Challenge which we hope will be introduced into schools across the country.

A bold ambition, but one that is built on firm foundations with outstanding partner support.

It’s off to a flying start at Excelsior Academy where youngsters are the standard bearers for its success.

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The UK must ensure that it retains access to the Single Market, has an open trading regime and maintains a stable regulatory framework with the European Union to minimise the impact of Brexit on the North East economy. This is the key conclusion of ‘Leaving the European Union’, a report by a powerful regional economic group says today.

The North East Brexit Group was formed to provide a collective voice for the region in order to contribute to the ongoing national dialogue around the UK leaving the European Union. It includes networks representing businesses, education, trade unions, local authorities and voluntary organisations.

The group has compiled evidence from a wide range of government, academic and business sources to develop a clearer understanding of issues, challenges and opportunities which businesses and other economic partners believe need to be addressed to support the regional economy as the UK’s exit draws closer.

The ‘Leaving the European Union’ report looks at economic forecasts as well as specific issues of concern, and opportunities identified, for each of the key North East business sectors.

The common finding throughout the range of economic studies collated is that lower levels of economic activity are forecast in the region over different timescales as a result of the decision to leave the EU.

Drawing together the findings, a series of recommendations are made in the report to Government about measures to protect the North East economy, as it concludes negotiations and develops new national policy. They are:

Continued access to the European Single Market
An open trade and investment environment with frictionless and tariff free flow of goods across the EU/UK border to create a level playing field for competition and ensure the stability of established supply chains
Continued access to skilled individuals from the EU to tackle projected North East future skills shortages due to an ageing workforce and lack of skilled workers
New policies to replace EU funding streams to the North East and to ensure that financial regulation can boost growth and skills
A national Government communications campaign with clear and consistent advice and messages about Brexit, encouraging firms to prepare for legislative changes well in advance of leaving the EU.

In addition to the need to deliver a positive outcome to the discussion about the single market, trading regime and regulatory framework, another key finding is that more advice and support is needed for businesses to help them to prepare for the range of changes which could lie ahead.

Andrew Hodgson, North East LEP Chair, said: “This is a helpful report by the North East Brexit group, which identifies the economic opportunities and challenges of Brexit for the North East’s economy and businesses. The North East LEP will continue to deliver the ambitions of the Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) and adapt activities to maximise the economic opportunities, but also address the challenges, of Brexit in the North East.”

Jonathan Walker, head of policy and campaigns, North East England Chamber of Commerce said: “We communicate daily with our members on Brexit, hold regular consultations on trade policy and facilitate the shipment of millions of pounds’ worth of goods overseas every month.

“We do not believe Government should pursue a Brexit strategy that could cause any harm to our status as a strong exporting region and we’re delighted to contribute to any work which makes this point.”

Alistair Westwood, Deputy Regional Director at the CBI spokesperson said: “Businesses in the North East welcome the progress that’s been made so far, but this is no time to sit back and rest on our laurels. There is so much more to do.

“We leave the EU in less than one year and this must concentrate the minds of those on both sides. The global economy is growing, but the UK is already lagging behind.

“This means putting the big, unresolved issues under the microscope to find the right answers on Ireland, customs, regulation and access to people – for starters.

“Evidence is our best guide to good decisions about what comes next.”

Beth Farhat, TUC Northern Regional Secretary, said: “We welcome the report and are pleased to be able to work with others to highlight this evidence. 140,000 North East jobs depend on EU trade, and paid holidays, fairness for part-time workers and parental leave are guaranteed by the EU. The best way to keep the good jobs and rights at work that the single market provides is to be part of it.”

The report also identifies opportunities from Brexit. Businesses could build on sterling devaluation to boost exports, and there may be opportunities to secure more local supply chain activity given relatively cheaper capital costs.

The group’s report adds that some North East exporters, such as medicines manufacturers, have seen uplift in trade volume with businesses benefitting from the devaluation of sterling.

However, the overall balance of trade value has reversed to put the North East in a net importing position for the first time in many years.

Business confidence in digital and transport sectors has been affected with some decisions made to locate investment in Europe rather than in the North East.

Alongside manufacturing, a particular UK wide impact of Brexit is expected in places hosting knowledge intensive services. In the North East these are concentrated in Newcastle, Gateshead and North Tyneside.

Some businesses are planning ahead, in the absence of clarity and some are planning for a perceived worst case scenario of reverting to World Trade Organisation (WTO) trade arrangements. The majority of North East businesses have yet to start to plan as the implications of Brexit for them are not yet clear.

The full report can be read here

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Notes to Editors:

The North East Brexit Group is an informal group of participants from the following organisations: CBI North East, North East Chamber of Commerce, North East Federation of Small Businesses, Entrepreneurs Forum, North East EEF, Northern TUC, North East Local Enterprise Partnership, North East Combined Authority, representatives from Northumbria, Sunderland, Newcastle and Durham universities and Voluntary Organisations Network North East (VONNE).

Andrew Hodgson, Chair of the North East LEP, said: “I welcome today’s decision by the North East Combined Authority Leadership Board to allow the three authorities North of Tyne to progress their devolution plans.

“Taking local control over finance and powers for areas such as housing, skills and transport is positive and can only help our growth.

“The North East LEP remains committed to continuing to deliver for all our stakeholders and will continue to work with all seven local authorities in our region to deliver the bold agenda set out in the Strategic Economic Plan (SEP).

“We will work with the three councils North of Tyne to ensure this devolution deal has business-focused outcomes, as well as seeking to ensure that businesses in the south of the region are not disadvantaged.”

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The North East Local Enterprise Partnership and North East Combined Authority have joined forces to launch a brand new website that provides live data on the performance of the North East economy and transport infrastructure.

The North East Data Hub – www.northeastdatahub.co.uk – is a one-stop-shop for the latest statistics on the regional economy and North East transport trends.

Launched to coincide with the publication of the North East LEP’s first, annual, ‘Our Economy’ report, The North East Data Hub uses live data from the North East transport and economic authorities to give a real-time picture of how the region is performing.

Victoria Sutherland, Senior Economist at the North East LEP said: “We, along with many of our partners, collect a lot of data about the North East region. By sharing this detailed information we can support residents, businesses, policy makers and other regional bodies to use the data to help grow our economy.

“The North East Combined Authority, Traffic and Accident Data Unit (TADU), Urban Traffic Management and Control (UTMC) and Nexus are all partners of the project and have helped create the most comprehensive data resource in the North East; one that’s open to all and free to use.”

In addition to providing live data about regional transport and the economy, The North East Data Hub also has a comparison tool, allowing users to analyse data further against a range of different metrics.

Cllr Iain Malcolm, Leader of South Tyneside Council and North East Combined Authority Thematic Lead for Economic Development and Regeneration, said: “It’s important we track our progress as a region and the The North East Data Hub allows us to do that.

“We collect a host of data, everything from bus and metro usage to traffic flow and average vehicle speed. This helps us paint a picture of the regional transport system and how it must adapt over time. Combining that with economic data from the North East LEP, we have created a valuable resource for the region.”

The North East Data Hub has been designed to make all regional data available for public view and analysis. It launches on the same day the North East LEP publishes its ‘Our Economy’ report, which tells the story of the North East economy.

As new data becomes available it will be uploaded to the website providing an up-to-date picture of the North East economy and transport activity.

For more information, visit www.northeastdatahub.co.uk.

The North East Local Enterprise Partnership (North East LEP) will unveil its first annual ‘Our Economy’ report at Sage Gateshead on Tuesday 6 March 2018.

Presenting an overview of the North East economy and how it is changing over time, the new report will become an important resource for government, policymakers and businesses operating in the region.

Andrew Hodgson, Chair of the North East LEP said: “It’s important we track our progress and monitor our economic performance so we position the North East to take advantage of future developments, including those arising from the Government’s recently published Industrial Strategy.

“Our annual review of the North East economy will ensure we remain on track to deliver the refreshed Strategic Economic Plan and reach our aim of creating 100,000 more and better jobs by 2024.”

As well as providing a comprehensive look at the regional economy, ‘Our Economy’ will also look, in-depth, at a topical issue affecting the North East. In 2018 that topic will be ‘the North East in the global economy’.

Victoria Sutherland, Senior Economist at the North East LEP said: “We’re bringing an expert panel of speakers together from business, education and government to discuss the importance of international relations and what the North East needs to do to build stronger international links going forward.

“Our keynote speaker will be a North East business already trading internationally, and they will share how other regional businesses can follow in their footsteps.”

Our Economy 2018 – with insights into global connections, takes place at Sage Gateshead on Tuesday 6 March from 08:30-11:00. Places are free but must be booked in advance using the Eventbrite form

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Tag: Andrew Hodgson

Education Secretary Damian Hinds challenges employers and universities to seek out all the talent in the North East.

Nexus seeks suppliers for Metro Futures project

In conversation with Andrew Hodgson: Brexit and the uncertainty of its impact.

In conversation with North East LEP chair, Andrew Hodgson

In conversation with… North East LEP chair, Andrew Hodgson, who discusses our Industry Alignment pilot project

Single Market access essential to protect North East economy after Brexit

Statement from Andrew Hodgson, Chair of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP)

North East region launches its own data hub

North East LEP to publish first, annual ‘Our Economy’ report