Agenda item

To consider the report of the Chief Executive which sets out the Council’s vision for a strong economy and compassionate city. The aim is to sustain and accelerate the economic progress the city is making whilst ensuring that all people and communities in Leeds contribute and benefit from economic success.

The Chief Executive submitted a report which presented the Council’s vision for a strong economy and compassionate city and highlighted the actions being taken to sustain and accelerate the economic progress that the city has achieved, whilst also ensuring that all people and communities in Leeds contributed towards and benefitted from such economic success.

Responding to Members’ enquiries, it was noted that the update report, scheduled to be submitted to the Board in Spring 2016 would provide further information on the actions being taken in the areas of social enterprise and also inward investment.

Members highlighted the linkages between the Council’s breakthrough projects and the vision to have a strong economy and be a compassionate city.  Also, the Board considered the role played by the Government in the development of the city’s economy. Furthermore, emphasis was placed upon the important contribution made by Leeds’ cultural offer towards the Council’s overarching vision.  

RESOLVED –

That the following be approved:-

Tackling Low Pay

i)  Living wage city – Leeds City Council will work with partners to develop a Living Wage City campaign to encourage employers to pay the Living Wage as accredited by the National Living Wage Foundation. The aim should be to significantly increase the number of Living Wage businesses in Leeds over the next year.

ii)  Supporting people to get better jobs – Leeds City Council will work with the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership, the Chamber of Commerce and education and training providers in order to develop proposals to create a careers advice and in-work progression service, and support for employers, aimed at helping people move out of low paid work into better jobs.

Regenerating places

iii)  A new approach to regeneration – the Council will identify a rolling programme of prioritised schemes in deprived areas, with an emphasis upon bringing together the approach to supporting people and communities with interventions to deliver positive physical development and change, with a particular focus on early intervention to tackle the causes of poverty. A report recommending the details of the approach be submitted to Executive Board by early 2016.

A life ready for learning – putting children at the heart of the growth strategy

iv)  Strengthening business engagement in schools – The Council will work with business leaders, head teachers, universities and colleges and leading experts and enterprises in the third sector to look at how to build on existing work to strengthen business engagement in Leeds schools, with the aim of ensuring that all secondary schools, particularly those with a high proportion of pupils from deprived areas, have strong partnerships with business.

v)   Enhancing careers advice and guidance for young people – The Council will work with business leaders, head teachers, universities and colleges, leading experts in the third sector, and the national Careers and Enterprise Company to look at how to strengthen independent careers advice in schools, with the aim of ensuring that all secondary schools are offering good quality careers advice.

Supporting business to invest in growth and communities

vi)  Key Account Management – the Key Account Management approach to working with businesses should be extended across the Council and a wider range of businesses in order to strengthen the approach to promoting business growth and community investment, with the aim of ensuring regular contact with 150 businesses that are significant strategically.

vii)  Promoting community investment – the Council works with other organisations and business leaders in order to develop an initiative to encourage more businesses in Leeds to commit to investing in their workforce and their local communities, with the aim being for 50 businesses to strengthen their community investment work.

Creating quality places and spaces

viii)   Creating quality places and spaces – we will continue to seek to improve the quality of design of new development, including through refreshing the ‘Neighbourhoods for Living’ design guidance document.

ix)   Securing good jobs and skills outcomes from major development and infrastructure projects – we will set out how we will build on the achievements and learning over recent years to set out how we can strengthen our approach to using major developments and infrastructure projects to support training and jobs for local people. A report setting out the details of this approach be submitted to Executive Board by early 2016.

Backing innovators and entrepreneurs

x)   Keeping graduates in Leeds – we will develop an initiative to improve levels of graduate retention in Leeds, including interventions to help tackle skills shortages and fill vacancies at graduate level in the digital sector, and a Leeds graduate careers fair and clearing system to connect students to future job opportunities in Leeds. A report setting out the details of this approach be submitted to Executive Board by early 2016.

xi)  Backing innovators – we will develop an initiative to support the future growth of innovative businesses that have been incubated by Universities and other bodies, and are now looking to grow and move on to new business space and employ more people. A paper setting out the details of this approach should be submitted to Executive Board by early 2016.

xii)   Backing entrepreneurs – we will develop a new enterprise programme using European Funds to provide support for people starting new businesses. We will also provide support for small business accelerators in the city, including the proposed digital business accelerator.

Next Steps

xiii)   That it be noted that the Chief Executive, supported by the Chief Officer Economy and Regeneration, is responsible for the implementation of such matters, and will update Executive Board on progress in spring 2016.