Agenda item

The Chair shared the following news about the Combined Authority’s recent activities:

1. Joint Local Transport Plan 4:  Taking on board comments received from the public consultation, the Joint Local Transport Plan 4 (JLTP4) had been published. This set out the region’s vision for transport up to 2036. It also showed how the West of England authorities aimed to achieve a well-connected, sustainable transport network that worked for residents across the region; the objective was to deliver a network that offered greater, realistic travel choices and encouraged walking, cycling and the use of public transport.?  

2. MetroWest phase 1:  The plans for MetroWest phase 1 had reached a key milestone with the submission and formal acceptance of the Development Consent Order application by the Government’s Planning Inspectorate. This represented a big leap forward for the re-opening of the Portishead to Bristol line and for the new MetroWest railway network as a whole. Major investments were being made in the public transport network that would improve rail services right across the region.

3. Maximising opportunities in creative industries:  Two new programmes had been launched to help the region’s creative businesses to grow and offer more career opportunities to people who were currently under-represented in the industry -

a. The Creative Scale-Up scheme gave creative businesses bespoke support to help them grow their business and become ready to take on investment. 

b. The Creative Workforce for the Future programme was working with the University of the West of England and Watershed to give more young people the opportunity to work in the creative sector.  The authority was working to support small to medium-sized companies to develop a more inclusive workforce throughout the region’s cultural and creative industries. Bristol was one of the BBC’s key sites and the BBC Natural History Unit was soon to be expanded as a core part of the region’s production activity. Bristol was also the home of Channel 4’s new Creative Hub, which the Invest Bristol & Bath team continued to support. These businesses needed skilled employees now, and this demand was expected to increase, hence the significance of the authority helping to enable this creative growth. 

4. Mentoring for Growth programme:  Together with Be the Business, the Combined Authority had launched a new Mentoring for Growth programme in the region. This new collaboration would help small and medium-sized businesses in the region to grow by connecting them with business leaders from large, multinational companies. Through sharing ideas, knowledge, expertise and experience, it would support businesses to boost their productivity, which was one of the key priorities set out in the Local Industrial Strategy. 

5. Green Business Grant scheme:  The Combined Authority had received a great response to the Green Business Grants scheme.  This had seen lots of applications from businesses keen to benefit from the £1m fund to help them make their buildings and activities more energy efficient, and help to protect the climate and environment.  The Combined Authority was also supporting renewable energy generation in local communities through the £500,000 West of England Local Energy Scheme, which was currently seeking applications before the end of February. Grants of up to £100,000 were also available through the South West Rural Community Energy Fund from the South West Energy Hub, which was led by the Combined Authority.