New European Programmes Open for Business
The first phase of the new Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Growth Programme is now open for business.
It is expected that the Growth Programme will build on the previous investments made during the Convergence Programme. Vital infrastructure such as Superfast Cornwall, the development of the Penryn Campus and the trio of Innovation Centres were complemented with a suite of skills and business support packages which helped develop local people and businesses.
It is hoped that the €600m Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have received from Europe will be match funded by both the public and private sector to make an approximate €1 billion investment package over the life of the Programme.
Through the European investment there is the ambition to accelerate the productivity of high growth and growth potential businesses, ensure there is an appropriately skilled workforce, look to the commercial opportunities of the future and support those most disadvantaged in the region to progress into work or education.
These new contracts will be announced through a series of ‘calls’, the first of which have been published today (27/03/15) with more expected over the coming weeks.
Amongst the early calls are those seeking the delivery of high quality workspace and the development of a single point of access for enterprises to access business support. Further calls to support skills and career progression are also expected over the next few weeks.
Julian German, member of the Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI) Board which is responsible for overseeing the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Growth Programme, said: ‘Achieving the launch of the new European Programmes has been a long and difficult process but it is great that we are finally here. We will work hard with partners and applicants to ensure this round of European Union funding achieves all that it can.’
The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Growth Programme will deliver the local European Structural and Investment Funds strategy which was developed by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership. Key challenges identified by the LEP are those of low pay and low productivity.
Chris Pomfret, Chair of the LEP and the ITI Board said ‘This is a really exciting time for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. We have made sure that these calls reflect the needs and aspirations of our businesses and communities, and we will continue to do so as the programme gathers pace. What’s important now is that decision-making is as swift as it can be so that this investment can start to flow.’
Editor’s notes
The new Programmes will run from 2014-2020. Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is the only area in England to qualify as a ‘Less Developed’ region. The Programme will be €603.7 million.
The new Programmes will be part of an ‘EU Growth Programme’ to be financed by European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and European Social Fund (ESF) with a contribution from European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). The Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) will have a key role in implementing and delivering the new Programmes.
ERDF €458 million
ESF €196 million
Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have also benefited from the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) and the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) during the Convergence Period.
RDPE £42 million[1]
EFF £9 million
Call us on: 01872241379
Email us at: growthprogramme@cornwall.gov.uk
Visit us at: Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Growth Programme
Follow us: @GrowthProgramme
For more information on the following:
EAFRD
Cornwall & Isles of Scilly LEP
[1] £42 million has been committed on RDPE projects in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly; additional funds could still be available, but values are, as yet, undetermined