South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership

Last updated
South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership
Agency overview
Formed2011 (2011)
Dissolved5 March 2024
JurisdictionSouth East Midlands

The South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP) was established in 2011, and was one of 39 Local Enterprise Partnerships [1] set up by the UK Government to drive economic development in England. The SEMLEP geographical region includes 36 enterprise and innovation centres, and five universities. Its board was made up of representatives from the public and private sectors, in addition to skills providers.

Contents

History

In March 2012, the UK Prime Minister David Cameron asked former Deputy Prime Minister, Michael Heseltine, to report to the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne and the Secretary of State for Business Vince Cable as to how wealth might be more effectively created in the UK. The Chancellor announced the terms of the review on 21 March 2012. The result was 'No Stone Unturned', [2] which was largely accepted by government, and included 89 recommendations to help industry. One of its key aims was to move £49bn from central government to the English regions to help local leaders and businesses, according to a BBC report [3] which added the aim was to "devolve power from Whitehall and re-invigorate the big cities that had fuelled the growth and wealth that the country had enjoyed in past decades". [3] The report led to the coalition government establishing Local Enterprise Partnerships, replacing the Regional Development Agencies.

On 15 August 2016 the government approved a merger between SEMLEP and Northamptonshire LEP. [4]

The South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership was disbanded in March 2024 following withdrawal of funding by the Rishi Sunak Conservative government. [5] Its functions were transferred to the individual unitary authorities who collectively formed the South Midlands Growth Hub. [6]

Geography & economic data

SEMLEP comprised the six unitary authorities of the Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Luton Borough Council, Borough of Milton Keynes, North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire.

In total the LEP area had a £39 billion economy, 67,000 businesses and 1.8 million population.

The area has an established regional infrastructure, which includes access to major road networks, dedicated terminals for air freight (Luton), and rail freight located at Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT) and the Eurohub in Corby. The LEP has sought extra funds to invest in transport infrastructure. [7] SEMLEP has "prioritised more than 20 transport and infrastructure projects, including the bypass and a dual carriageway for the section of the A421 linking Milton Keynes with Junction 13 of the M1", according to a report in Bedford Today. [8] "The Strategic Economic Plan details how SEMLEP will by 2020 grow the economy by £10.2billion, create an additional 94,700 jobs and build an extra 70,600 homes across its patch in Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Milton Keynes, Cherwell District and Aylesbury Vale District," reports MK Web [9] and Bedford Today. [8]

SEMLEP Enterprise Zone

In August 2011 the Government announced that the SEMLEP Waterside Enterprise Zone had been selected as one of 21 new Enterprise Zones [10] across the country.

Northampton's Waterside [11] [12] will become a national centre for excellence for advanced technologies, precision engineering, low carbon technology, sustainable construction and high performance engineering. [13] Cosworth,the world-renowned UK performance engineering and manufacturing group, has begun construction on its new £12 million Advanced Manufacturing Centre at its Northampton site, according to one report from freshbusinessthinking.com. [14] The facility, the first of its kind in the UK, will manufacture components and assemble some of the world's most advanced engines to global automotive manufacturers, the report said.

In June 2014, the University of Northampton [15] [16] announced it would relocate its campuses to the Zone's eastern section. In a BBC online report it said: "The university is planning to relocate from its current sites in St George's Avenue and Boughton Green Road, to a 55-acre site at Nunn Mills Road in the town's new Waterside Enterprise Zone." Vice-chancellor Prof Nick Petford was reported by the BBC [15] as saying "the development would 'secure the future' of the university". In the BBC report Councillor David Mackintosh, leader of Northampton Borough Council, said the plans were "tremendous news" for the development of Northampton as a university town. He added: "Bringing the university into the Waterside area is a key part of the Northampton Alive regeneration programme and would be a massive boost to the local economy, as well as creating vital links with business in the Waterside Enterprise Zone. [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton</span> Town in Northamptonshire, England

Northampton is a town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is situated on the River Nene, 60 miles (97 km) north-west of London and 50 miles (80 km) south-east of Birmingham. Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; the population of its overall urban area was recorded as 249,093 in the 2021 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northamptonshire</span> County of England

Northamptonshire is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire to the south and Warwickshire to the west. Northampton is the largest settlement and the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedfordshire</span> County of England

Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckinghamshire to the west. The largest settlement is Luton (225,262), and Bedford is the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellingborough</span> Market town in Northamptonshire, England

Wellingborough is a market town and civil parish in the North Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. It is 65 miles (105 km) from London and 11 miles (18 km) from Northampton, and is on the north side of the River Nene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olney, Buckinghamshire</span> Market town and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England

Olney is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 6,477.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Wellingborough</span> Former borough in England

The Borough of Wellingborough was a non-metropolitan district and borough in Northamptonshire, England, from 1974 to 2021. It was named after Wellingborough, its main town, but also included surrounding rural areas.

The South Midlands is an area of England which includes Northamptonshire, the northern parts of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire and the western part of Bedfordshire. Unlike the East Midlands or West Midlands, the South Midlands is not one of the NUTS statistical regions of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bletchley railway station</span> Railway station in Milton Keynes, England

Bletchleyrailway station serves the southern parts of Milton Keynes, England, and the north-eastern parts of Aylesbury Vale. It is 47 miles (76 km) northwest of Euston, about 32 miles (51 km) east of Oxford and 17 miles (27 km) west of Bedford, and is one of the seven railway stations serving the Milton Keynes urban area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton railway station</span> Railway station in Northamptonshire, England

Northampton railway station serves the county town of Northampton in England. It is on the Northampton Loop of the West Coast Main Line and is located 65 miles 68 chains from London Euston. The station is served by West Midlands Trains services between London Euston and Birmingham New Street; there is also a limited direct service to Crewe. A handful of Avanti West Coast services also serve the station, but these have been greatly reduced due to the longer-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. It is the busiest station in Northamptonshire, and the fourth busiest station in the East Midlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A421 road</span> East-west road in southern England

The A421 is an important road for east/west journeys across south central England. Together with the A428, the A43 and A34, it forms the route from Cambridge through Milton Keynes to Oxford. The section between the A1 and the A5 is a national primary route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Northampton</span> Public university in Northampton, England

The University of Northampton is a public university based in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England. It was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of a number of training colleges, and gained full university status as the University of Northampton in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Northamptonshire (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 2010 onwards

South Northamptonshire is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Sarah Bool. As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.

The Bedford–Northampton line was a branch of the Midland Railway which served stations in three counties: Northampton and Horton in Northamptonshire, Olney in Buckinghamshire and Turvey and Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. Opened in 1872, the intermediate stations closed to passengers in 1962, leaving a small section between Northampton and Piddington station to remain open until 1981 for the purposes of the Ministry of Defence establishment. The track remains down on another small section of the line between Northampton and Brackmills. The reopening of the line has been proposed by the Bedfordshire Railway & Transport Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton Power Station</span> Former electricity generating station

Northampton power station was an electricity generating station in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England, which began operation for the Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited (NELPC) in 1919 and generated power until closure in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Local enterprise partnership</span> Former economic development board in England

In England, local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) were voluntary partnerships between local authorities and businesses, set up in 2011 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to help determine local economic priorities and lead economic growth and job creation within the local area. They carried out some of the functions previously carried out by the regional development agencies which were abolished in March 2012. In certain areas, funding was received from the UK government via growth deals. Funding for LEPs was withdrawn by the Rishi Sunak Conservative government in April 2024 and their functions were assumed by local authorities, some of whom have formed Business Boards as replacements.

Milton Keynes City Council is the local authority for the City of Milton Keynes, a unitary authority in Buckinghamshire, England. Until 1 April 1997 it was a non-metropolitan district.

The Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) was one the Local Enterprise Partnerships set up by UK Government to drive economic development in England.

David James Mackintosh is a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament for Northampton South from the May 2015 general election to the 2017 general election. Prior to his election to Parliament, he worked as a political consultant in the European Parliament and the Conservatives before being elected to the County and Borough councils, rising to become Leader of Northampton Borough Council in 2011.

England's Economic Heartland Strategic Alliance is one of seven sub-national transport bodies in England. EEH is a partnership of councils and local enterprise partnerships, stretching from Swindon and Oxfordshire in the west to Cambridgeshire in the east, and from Northamptonshire down to Hertfordshire. The area includes the Oxford-Cambridge Arc, as defined by Government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East West Rail</span> Plan for an Oxford–Cambridge railway line

East West Rail is a strategic aim to establish a new main line railway between East Anglia and South Wales. The immediate plan is to build a line linking Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Milton Keynes and Bedford, largely using the trackbed of the former Varsity Line. Thus it provides a potential route between any or all of the Great Western, Cotswold, Chiltern, West Coast, Midland, East Coast, West Anglia and Great Eastern main lines, avoiding London. The new line will provide a route for future services between Southampton Central or Swansea and Ipswich or Norwich, using existing onward lines. The government approved the western section in November 2011, with completion of the section to Bletchley expected by 2025, and services to Bedford to run by 2030.

References

  1. ↑ "Supporting economic growth through local enterprise partnerships and enterprise zones - Policy". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  2. ↑ Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (18 March 2013). "No stone unturned: in pursuit of growth - Lord Heseltine review - Publications". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2014-05-19.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  3. 1 2 Nick Robinson (2012-10-31). "BBC News - Heseltine report calls for action to stimulate growth". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  4. ↑ "LEP Network News". The LEP Network. Retrieved 2019-01-17.
  5. ↑ https://semlep.com/news/2024/semlep-post-agm-announcement/
  6. ↑ https://growthhub.southmidlands.org.uk/
  7. ↑ "Corby Northern Orbital road to go ahead after £3.85m award - Northamptonshire Telegraph". Northantstelegraph.co.uk. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  8. 1 2 "Bypass cash bid sent to government". Bedford Today. 2014-04-07. Retrieved 2015-03-03.
  9. ↑ "Milton Keynes among cities that could benefit from slice of £2billion cash | MK News Headlines | World News | Traffic & Travel News | Milton Keynes News". Mkweb.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  10. ↑ "Benefits - Northampton Enterprise Zone". Northamptonez.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  11. ↑ "Development Projects". WNDC. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  12. ↑ "Dramatic aerial photographs of the regeneration of St Peter's Waterside development in Northampton | Northampton News | Breaking Northampton Headlines | Traffic & Travel | Herald and Post". Northampton-news-hp.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  13. ↑ Joseph Wilkes (2014-01-16). "UK to fill 285,000 logistics jobs & transform industry image". Supply Chain Digital. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  14. ↑ "Cosworth Starts £12m Advanced Manufacturing Centre Construction in Northampton". Freshbusinessthinking.com. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  15. 1 2 "BBC News - University of Northampton: Waterside campus plans on show". BBC News. 2013-06-15. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  16. ↑ "Waterside Campus Northampton". Archived from the original on November 8, 2013. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  17. ↑ "BBC News - University of Northampton: Waterside campus plans on show". BBC News. 2013-06-15. Retrieved 2015-03-03.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.