Economic Development Strategy 1999-2006

Overview

Fareham Economic Development Strategy

What will the Council do:

Focus on Fareham:

• Focus on Fareham People
• Focus on Fareham Business
• Focus on Sustainable Fareham Infrastructure

How will the Council do it:

By Working Together:

• Within FBC - we will pursue a co-ordinated Council strategy
• Within Fareham - we will foster local partnerships
• Beyond Fareham - we will contribute to wider economic partnerships

Introduction

The Council needs to address the issues facing modern local government and apply them to Fareham's local circumstances:

• The challenges of Community Leadership - achieving sustainable development, tackling social exclusion and crime and providing education and training;
• The promotion of Community Well-being - creating a framework within which to perform existing functions, weighing all decisions against Economic, Social and Environmental objectives taking account of the views of the community
• Developing a Sustainable Approach - pursuing Local Agenda 21, meeting Fareham's needs and exploiting our advantages in a regional - i.e. job creation to match job losses, brownfield vs. greenfield sites, peninsulas vs. M27 locations (Portsmouth University Study);
• Achieving a Common Purpose - business as part of the local community.

A Fareham Focus

What - Fareham People First

The Council will focus its policy on the need to

Create the right circumstances for growth and good quality jobs

Help to provide jobs that utilise the skills of local unemployed people:

• full time employment
• matching jobs to redundant skills
• favouring urban regeneration;
• minimising journeys to work.

Tackle long term unemployment:

• embracing the New Deal programme;
• encouraging training provision to meet skill gaps.

Provide opportunities for school leavers and young people:

• matching skills to needs in the local economy;
• working with schools, colleges and employers
• ensuring that training is provided to meet skills' needs.

Assist those returning to work:

• retraining and core skills;
• family support (crèches, post child rearing and post sickness)
• support the activities of the voluntary sector and housing associations

Improve job prospects for those in employment:

• lifelong learning
• training to meet skills needs
• Over 50s Club

Support the contribution of "volunteers":

• harnessing the energies and experience of skilled people with time to support local businesses;
• 'phasing in' retirement

A Fareham Focus

What - Fareham Business First

The Council will target the needs of Fareham firms by: -

Assisting business development in Fareham by

• Direct actions (purchasing, land and property).
• Encouraging innovation and the adoption of new technology
• Encouraging technology transfer.
• Helping business start-ups and step-ups.
• Acting as information source.
• Working with business support agencies.

Adopting policies to

• sustain business
• Generate local inter-trade.
• Encourage local purchasing
• Minimise waste
• Promote energy conservation.

Facilitating business growth by

• Encouraging a culture of innovation
• Ensuring a range of premises types and sizes.
• Maintaining enterprise and innovation centres
• Providing serviced small units.

Nurturing Fareham's businesses by

• Providing opportunities for business networking
• Maintaining contact and liaising with Fareham businesses
• Providing information to assist business operations
• Maintaining the PROP Register of land and premises
• Acting as technology and communications conduit

Facilitating inward investment by

• providing a focus for business contact (communications hub)
• participating in representative groups
• Exploiting local specialists and expertise.

A Fareham Focus

What - Developing Sustainable Fareham Infrastructure

The Council will invest in a sustainable future for Fareham people and firms by: -

Tackling transportation issues:

• Optimising use of existing network;
• Focusing on targeted investment;
• Involving businesses in self-help measures;
• Supporting public transport and especially SHRT;
• Facilitating interchange between transport modes.

Improving communications:

• Exploiting emerging technologies;
• Providing community based access to information
• Promoting Fareham as the 'high tech' Heart of South Hampshire.

Assisting Schools and Colleges

• Focusing on skills needs by facilitating links with business
• Encouraging community interaction/involvement;

Investing in Fareham's town and village centres:

• Securing good access, transport interchange and car parking
• Enabling shopping and leisure development
• Supporting the provision health and community services
• Encouraging community interaction.
• Pursuing safety and security (crime prevention and CCTV)

Managing the use of resources :

• Minimising waste
• Promoting recycling and pollution control
• Promoting energy conservation

Housing:

• Ensuring a balance between housing and local jobs, minimising journeys to work
• Providing for a range of housing needs

Working Together

How - Within Fareham Borough Council - Co-ordinated Strategy

Putting Fareham People First

Policy -Council policies to create the environment for success

• Planning - ensure a range of development opportunities for business needs
• Economic Development - promote the growth of technology and innovation within Fareham firms
• Health and Community - provide a healthy and supportive environment
• Personnel - ensure a learning culture & well trained workforce
• Estates - facilitate the formation and growth of Fareham businesses
• Communications - maximise community information and access
• Focused partnerships development to take advantage of opportunities in the area
• Supporting business development

Action - The Council will provide opportunities for the unemployed, the young and returners

• Supporting New Deal
• Providing opportunities for school leavers
• Supporting area partnerships tackling social exclusion, deprivation and crime
• Health and Community support mechanisms
• Housing initiatives for those in need
• Supporting partnership activity to inform training regimes
• Managing leisure and community facilities to provide community support
• Facilitating the contribution of "volunteers" willing to devote their time and experience to assist the development of the local economy
• Pursuing training initiatives to improving job prospects for those in employment

Putting Fareham Business First

Providing Opportunities for Local Business

The Council will maximise business opportunities for Fareham firms by

• Pursuing local and sustainable purchasing policies
• Promoting local inter-trading
• Providing information for and about Fareham firms
• Hosting business forums, e.g. the Fareham Technology Forum
• Exploiting its civic status and developing twinning to support Fareham business

Enabling Business Development

The Council will nurture the formation and growth of business in Fareham by:

• Joining partnerships to provide business support services
• Responding quickly and positively to business needs and inward investment inquiries
• Managing its property portfolio to facilitate business formation and growth
• Investing in the success of Fareham's town centre and local centres
• Encouraging the dissemination of information and communications technology
• Providing the opportunity for the development of land to meet the needs of growing Fareham firms
• Supporting development which exploits innovation and the digital economy
• Facilitating business growth through local development policies
• Ensuring a range of premises types and sizes.
• Encouraging a culture of innovation
• Maintaining enterprise and innovation centres
• Providing serviced small units.

Developing Sustainable Fareham Infrastructure

Focusing on the Possible

The Council will adopt a pragmatic approach to maximise the benefits of investment

• Exploiting the potential of town centre and local centres
• Addressing critical transportation issues
• Managing traffic and congestion
• Supporting the improvement of public transport
• Embracing the development of information and communications technology
• Focusing on meeting local needs

Investing in Community Potential

The Council will invest in facilities accessible to the community

• Supporting facilities Fareham's town and village centres
• Exploiting the potential of community and leisure facilities
• Assisting partnerships between business and Schools and Colleges

Striving for sustainability

The Council will pursue policies and actions which are sustainable

• Land use in terms of the relationship between jobs, housing and services
• Transportation
• Waste management
• Energy conservation

Working Together

In Fareham - Developing Local Partnerships

To improve the prospects of Fareham town centre and local centres by: -

• Supporting the Fareham Town Centre Management initiative
• Supporting Traders' Groups
• Supporting Focus Groups

To improve support for business activity and growth by working with: -

• Chambers of Commerce
• Traders' Groups
• Sector Groups (Fareham Technology Forum, Solent Maritime, Segensworth Transport Group)
• South East Hampshire Enterprise Agencies:

To improve the employability of Fareham residents by working with: -

• Schools & Colleges
• Hampshire Training and Enterprise Council
• Business Link
• The Employment Service

To ensure optimum community support by working with

• Housing agencies and associations
• Social Services
• Statutory organisations

Working Together

Beyond Fareham - Developing Wider Economic Partnerships

The Council will identify common issues and focus upon tackling shared priorities with: -

Neighbouring Local Authorities

• Portsmouth, Gosport and Havant - The East
• Southampton, Eastleigh and Winchester - The West

The Local Economic Area

• The Harbour Economic Development Forum
• Urban South Hampshire (Solent Gateway 'Vision')

Hampshire

• Hampshire County Council
• Hampshire Economic Partnership

The Wider Economic Area

• South Coast (South Coast Marketing Company, South Coast Metropole and Central South Coast Economic Partnership)

The South East Region

• The South East of England Development Agency (SEEDA)
• The Government Office for the South East (GOSE)
• The South East Regional Planning Organisation (SERPLAN)

Further Afield

• National Government
• The European Union