The West Midlands’ Regional Funding Advice (RFA) is a response to Government’s request that the region provides advice on investment priorities for transport, housing and regeneration, and economic development. We are also asked for a view on how skills priorities will support such investment. The West Midlands Regional Funding Advice 2009-2019 was submitted to government in early March 2009. It covers public investment on economic development, housing and regeneration and transport in the region of over £800 million per year.
The Joint Strategy and Investment Board (JS&IB) now established to take forward the Sub- National Review agenda in the West Midlands has operated in ‘shadow’ form to provide strategic oversight of the development of the RFA submission to Government. The Board comprises members of AWM’s Board and the Regional Forum of Leaders. It has worked closely with funding agencies and the Regional Minister.
In developing the RFA the shadow JS&IB has agreed that deliverability is key so as to ensure that regional projects contribute to strategy implementation and give confidence to Government that the regional partners can deliver. The shadow JS&IB has taken a clear stance on two other issues: that all programmes, projects and schemes included in RFA will need to demonstrate how they benefit the economy; and that the RFA will support the agreed regional position in the Examination in Public of the Regional Spatial Strategy in April.
Work to develop the RFA and ensure integration between economic, housing and transport themes and funding has been focused not only at the strategic level but has also reflected a commitment to demonstrate real, local-level integration between the themes of the RFA. Testing of projects in 20 ‘Impact Investment Locations’ has been used in the RFA to demonstrate such integration between the themes of the RFA and to ensure the ‘deliverability’ of these key regional projects.
Following the submission of the RFA, the shadow JS&IB is now overseeing and is to implement RFA programme management arrangements with regional and local partners to ensure the delivery of 70+ projects in the 20 Impact Investment locations.