Agenda item

The committee considered a draft report from Councillor Ahmad Bostan outlining the findings of the scrutiny review undertaken to understand whether the region’s economic recovery proposals, which the WMCA were supporting and enabling, were meeting the needs that had been identified within the Black Country sub-region. The review also considered whether the specific sub-regional needs were being adequately considered during the development of wider regional policies.

The review considered a number of themes relating to funding, resources, learning, skills, governance, responsibility, structures, and interdependencies. The group proposed four recommendations falling under a number of key areas of activity: coherence of the funding landscape, scaling-up immediate support for businesses and people whose jobs were at risk, working towards a long-term whole-life approach, and co-ordination, governance and accountability across the Black Country.

It was recognised that the report had been amended and re-circulated to correct a number of drafting inaccuracies which had not been brought to the review group’s attention as it was gathering evidence. The Chair commented that they had been contacted by the Black Country LEP to address some factual elements what were not reflected within the report and required amendments. Councillor Angus Lees indicated that he did not support these changes, which he felt had watered down the clear views of the review panel, and could therefore not support the recommendations. The Head of Governance and Monitoring Officer apologised for the lateness of the changes required but stressed the importance of the report being factually correct.

Councillor Stephen Simkins noted that the review had highlighted that the level of deprivation within the Black Country and the need for the WMCA to address issues such as health, education, quality of life and upskilling in a coherent way. Councillor Cathy Bayton also highlighted that the review identified the role of the Association of Black Country Authorities as being unclear, and she supported an overarching strategy to closely align the work of the Black Country authorities, whilst still allowing for local solutions to local problems.

Recommended:

(1)      The observations and conclusions of the scrutiny review group be endorsed for further consideration by the WMCA, Black Country local authorities and the Black Country LEP, specifically:

(a)      Coherence of the Funding Landscape

Complex funding streams and processes can hinder delivery of impactful projects. Future devolution agreements need to simplify funding to the region and ensure funding is available where it is needed. The importance of the speed and urgency in rectifying this could not be overstated by the review panel.

(b)      Scaling-up immediate support for businesses and people whose jobs were at risk

·       The need to urgently review regional skills plan that provided a clear strategy for career pathways.

·       The WMCA needed to review and understand the updated publication from the New Policy Institute that identified key information regarding the state of ‘economic justice’ in Birmingham and the Black Country local authority areas and assess whether its policies addressed the challenges identified in the report. This updated version of the report was published on 1st February 2021 and an Executive Summary is attached as an appendix.  The full report is available from the Barrow Cadbury Trust website.

·       The need for an employment taskforce to address the economic needs of the Black Country.

·       The WMCA should consider brokering a region-wide common understanding and vision for the skills, training and employment needs of the Black Country.

(c)      Working towards a long-term, whole-life approach

Recognising that many residents in the Black Country were born, work and then retire in the Black Country, a more joined-up whole-life approach to targeted support needs to be implemented throughout public authorities and other stakeholders in recognition of the inter-dependency between education, skills, employment and health.

(d)      Co-ordination, governance and accountability across the Black Country

·       The Black Country’s economic, social and wellbeing outcomes were interlinked and co-dependent. It was therefore vital that decisions made by the region’s public bodies were joined up, and best practice shared widely.

·       Local authorities were most likely best placed to understand the needs of localities.  It was important therefore that the structural architecture existed that enabled this knowledge of place to shape wider regional economic strategy.  The review group were unpersuaded that this architecture currently existed in a robust enough state, and this might therefore be something that required a more in-depth scrutiny review to be undertaken during the coming year.

(2)      It be noted that the conclusions of the scrutiny review would be reported to the WMCA Board on 19 March 2021.