Regional Development Agencies
General
Information
RDAs are non-department
public bodies (NDPBs) with a primary role as strategic drivers
of regional economic development. RDAs aim to co-ordinate regional
economic development and regeneration, enable the English regions
to improve their relative competitiveness and reduce the imbalance
that exists within and between regions.
Each RDA has 5 statutory
purposes, which are:
- To further
economic development and regeneration
- To promote
business efficiency, investment and competitiveness
- To promote
employment
- To enhance
development and application of skill relevant to employment
- To contribute
to sustainable development
RDAs agenda include regional regeneration, taking forward regional
competitiveness, taking the lead on regional inward investment
and, working with regional partners, ensuring the development
of a regional skills action plan to ensure that skills training
matches the needs of the labour market.
History
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott announced the new programme
for the regions in December 1997, launching the Regions White
Paper - Building Partnerships for Prosperity. The RDAs were established
under the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998.
Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) 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).
Following the 2000 spending review, the Government announced
increases in RDA funding and an increased emphasis on the RDAs
role as strategic drivers of regional economic development. In
line with this, responsibility for sponsorship of the RDAs moved
from the former DETR to the DTI following the June 2001 election.
Economic
Strategies
The Government asked
RDAs to develop a new strategic vision for each of the English
regions. It issued statutory and non-statutory guidance to the
RDAs on the formulation of these Strategies.
The guidance encouraged RDAs to formulate clear priorities for
seeking to improve regional economic performance, and to identify
strategies for achieving them. The aim was to help to ensure that
regional opportunities are fully exploited, and that those responsible
for economic decision-taking are working effectively together,
with common goals and accepted priorities for regional development.
Following extensive
consultation and working with and through regional partners, the
RDAs (excluding London) presented their Strategies to the Government
on 26 October 1999 (London's Economic Strategy was published in
July 2001). The Government responded on 12 January 2000 giving
a broad welcome to the Strategies. Copies of the Strategies can
be accessed at the RDAs' websites. RDAs are obliged to review
their strategies in full every three years.
Finance
& Governance
Since April 2002, RDAs
are now financed through a Single Programme. This replaced the
funding programmes that existed previously, through which each
contributing Government Department's allocation was made. Monies
from the contributing Departments (DTI, ODPM, DfES, DEFRA and
DCMS) are pooled into one single budget. The funding, once allocated,
is available to the RDAs to spend as they see fit to achieve the
regional priorities identified in their regional economic strategies
and the challenging targets set by them in their Corporate Plans.
The framework in which
this funding is dispersed to the RDAs is set out in the Financial
Memorandum (
411Kb 
247Kb) and the rules of accountability on expenditure are contained
in the Management Statement (
368Kb
179Kb). In line with
HM Treasury guidance and various funding regimes, RDAs are required
to appraise projects using the Single Programme Appraisal Guidance
(
246Kb
358Kb). They also need
need government approval for setting up any special purpose vehicles
to achieve certain objectives.
Local authorities
have a significant stake in the work of the RDA. Four of the thirteen
RDA board members are drawn from local
government - with the choice reflecting a balance between type
and size of authority, as well as geographical and political spread.
Board members reflect regional interests (such as the voluntary
sector, rural areas and tourism).
Framework
for monitoring RDA performance
The RDAs funding is
tied to a framework of challenging targets
at three levels. Tier 1 represents the RDAs' statutory purposes.
Tier 2 sets out eleven regional outcome targets. The RDAs are
expected with others to deliver the achievement of these at regional
level. At Tier 3 there are five output milestones. The RDAs are
required to deliver against these outputs, they are also expected
to set supplementary milestones to reflect the economic circumstances
in their regions. RDA performance is monitored on achievement
of Tier 2 and Tier 3 targets against the forecasts in their Corporate
Plans. Please visit the RDAs'
websites to see their corporate plans.
In the first year of
the Single Programme, the RDAs are being monitored quarterly on
progress towards achieving Tier 3 milestones and annually on their
contribution to achieving the Tier 2 regional outcome targets.
They are also expressed against strategic performance criteria.
Monitoring is conducted
by the Government Offices, who hold quarterly strategic dialogues
with the RDAs. A key factor in these dialogues is the RDA's performance
against criteria that reflect their success as strategic regional
catalysts, this provides the qualitative input to both quarterly
and annual reporting. The level and frequency of reporting will
be reviewed at the end of the first single pot year.
Monitoring
results
First
quarter of 2002-03 results
Second
quarter of 2002-03 results
End
of Financial Year 2002-03 results
RDA Stakeholder
Survey
The Department
of Trade and Industry published the results of regional surveys
of stakeholders' perception of RDAs' performance, on 7 July 2003.
The surveys were conducted by MORI Social Research Institute,
the independent research organisation.
The timing
of the survey (fieldwork took place in March and April 2003) is
significant as it marks one year after the RDAs were given increased
funding and flexibilities to address regional priorities through
their Single Pot funding mechanism.
It provides
a benchmark against which RDAs can review stakeholders' perceptions
of their performance in improving the economic development of
regions.
The results
are positive showing that although RDAs are relatively new organisations
their stakeholders are generally satisfied with RDAs' performance
and feel that they are addressing the right priorities. The majority
of stakeholders thought that RDAs have been successful at developing
coherent Regional Economic Strategies and working effectively
as lead partners to deliver regional initiatives. The surveys
also highlighted the need for RDAs to work harder to communicate
clearly what they are trying to achieve and to better publicise
their activities.
To view the
MORI reports on each region's results, please click on the relevant
link below which will direct you to the Government Office website
where the reports are held.
A report summarising
the findings for the RDA network is also available below, which
is marked as "National Results"
Advantage
West Midlands results
East
of England results
East
Midlands results
London
results
One
North East results
North
West results
South
East results
South
West results
Yorkshire
Forward results
National
Results (335Kb)
Corporate
Plan
The Regional Economic
Strategy for each RDA is implemented through the use of a Corporate
Plan, an operational document detailing the activities and initiatives
to be undertaken in order to meet the Strategy and move forward
Government policy within the Region.
The Plans provide full
details of how the Single Programme and budget will be applied
to meet Strategy objectives for each Agency, and how this activity
will contribute to annual milestone targets (Tier 3) and regional
outcome targets (Tier 2). They will illustrate how each Agency
includes the single programme framework within the wider Regional
Strategy and RDA Evaluation and Performance Monitoring.
Corporate Plans are
drawn up to cover three year periods corresponding to the Spending
Reviews.
Role
of regional Government Offices
Regional Government
Offices (GOs) support and work with the RDAs and other stakeholders
to deliver regional and national policy objectives. The GOs also
have the responsibility of being the eyes and ears of Government
Departments in the regions, in particular reporting on the performance
of the RDAs to parliament through ministers.
Regional
Chambers
RDAs are accountable
to Ministers and Parliament, but there will also be arrangements
in place to ensure that the RDAs are responsive to regional views
and that they give an account of themselves to those with an interest
in their work. To achieve this, regional chambers were formally
designated under powers in the Regional
Development Agencies Act 1998.
From 2001/02 - £5m
a year of new resources will be available to the Chambers to help
them to establish a substantially expanded scrutiny role within
the regions and enhance their capacity to engage constructively
with the RDAs as they progress towards their targets and delivery
of their Regional Strategies. The Chambers will be well placed
to help ensure that the RDAs' strategies and activities mesh in
with the wider framework of strategies for the region.
The Government expects
the relationship between the RDA and its Chamber to be one of
partnership and co-operative working.
RDA
Board Members
RDA
Websites
Associated
Documents
Return to Regions Index
|
