IED Annual awards - keep the entries coming in!

We've been delighted with the entries we've received so far, demonstrating inspiring work across economic development. Following feedback around summer leave, we've extended the deadline to 30th August to take account of this. 

Follow the link below for all the details.

Conference shaping up nicely!

Our annual conference and awards is taking place this year on the 6th November. The timing could not be more perfect for colleagues to meet, debate and discuss the new government's plans for economic growth.

IED features in Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal

IED Director, and past Chair, Bev Hurley CBE has had a paper published in the latest issue of the Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal.

The paper, headlined, Time for change: How we can address deep, structural inequalities in our society through locally led economic development, explores what needs to be done to better address the growing and substantial inequalities in the UK and how the ‘Levelling Up’ policy that seeks to address them could be improved.

IED in the News

Do take a look at our IED in the news section of our website, where we are appearing in national and regional press. This includes recent coverage of our response to the outcome of the General Election.

Calling all IED Members who are consultants!

We are embarking on a re-launch of our Consultants Directory and are aware that several entries need an update. This is something for the lead member to complete in the member's area of the website and we urge you to take a look and update! It is a useful and proven way for your services to be advertised. Any questions, just get in touch and we can advise!

How evidence-based is your economic growth policy?

Our friends at What Works Growth has a new tool to assess the use of evidence in economic development policymaking. Recognising that access to data is only part of the problem, their maturity matrix helps teams look at culture, leadership, skills, training, and other factors that affect the use of evidence.

This complements the IED self-assessment tool which is a Standard for organisations aspiring to excellence in the profession and enables organisations such as Local Authorities and consultancies to develop the competence of their people, projects and processes, facilitate the exchange of best practice and enable benchmarking over time.

Put the Pizzazz into your Place with thinkingplace!

Organisational member's thinkingplace are holding another ‘Helping you put the pizzazz into your place’ free event, in Chesterfield on 12th November. More details via the red button below. 

IED Jobs Board

Don't forget to take a look at the IED Job Board. Current vacancies include openings at Stevenage Borough Council, Bolton Council and Folkestone and Hythe District Council.

Policy Update

The IED has responded to the outcome of the General Election, and our on-the-day statement can be viewed here.

We have now written to a number of Ministers and senior officials in the new Government to pick up our discussion on Grow Local, Grow National and request continued dialogue with the Government on establishing the economic development duty during the next Parliament.

These include:

• The Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government
• Jim McMahon OBE MP, Minister of State, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government
• The Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer
• Darren Jones MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury
• Jonathan Reynolds MP, Secretary of State for Business & Trade

We also look forward to a stimulating national debate on these opportunities at our Annual Conference, ‘Economic Transition – How do we deliver long-lasting change in our towns, cities and regions?’, on 6^th November. This will be one of the first opportunities for UK economic development practitioners to come together to deepen their understanding of the Government’s direction of travel, and to demonstrate the real value our work adds to local growth.

IED CPD 2024 Update

Following a successful Subsidy Control training course and the completion of the first 2024 Certificate of Economic Development, upcoming courses include on economic interventions in left behind places, bid appraisals, evaluations, writing funding bids and R&D led growth. 

We are assessing interest in running another Certificate of Economic Development programme in the 2nd half of this year - get in touch if you want to hear more!

Inclusive Economy Strategy for the Royal Borough of Greenwich 

We are sharing this to readers as something of wider interest to colleagues. Many of you will be embedded in the increasing emphasis on inclusivity that we see through the economic strategies now being developed.

IED Early Career Network Updates

The Early Career Network continues to grow, now reaching 72 members in our LinkedIn channel, where we have also started a weekly member spotlight series that show an overview of the different ECN members career profiles.

In our second ‘Talks with Experts’ session, we welcomed Mike Denby, Director of Inward Investment and Place Marketing at Leicester Council. Chaired by one of our members, Mike Rayyan, Mike Denby told us about his career journey so far, discussed key skills for future economic development specialists, explained and gave some examples on what good inward investment looks like and how to attract it, and gave us his view on the challenges and constraints currently faced by the sector. Finally, the conversation opened up to everyone on the call, so all members directly conversed and discussed with Mike following some though-provoking questions. The next meeting will see our third ‘Member Spotlight’, so please do keep an eye out for the session link.

Please note that the LinkedIn group is open to any economic development professional in the early stages of their career. Feel free to join the LinkedIn group (here) if you are in the early stages of your career in economic development and are interested in connecting with others, learning and sharing your knowledge.

Economic Impact of Indian Labour Migration in Nepal

New overseas IED member Narayan Kumar has recently written this article, which we are sharing should it be of broader interest to our UK based members.