Levelling Up - White Paper

3 Feb 2022 04:33 PM

The much anticipated Levelling Up White Paper has finally been published this week as the Government sets out its plans to level-up the UK including defining the concept, setting out what this will mean for communities, people and businesses across the UK.

The Prime Minister introduced the concept of “levelling up” in the Conservatives 2019 manifesto, saying it would be “levelling up every part of the UK”. Understandably Covid19 and the implications of the pandemic have caused delays in finalising the White Paper, however as we consider the UK’s post-Covid recovery, economically as well as societally, levelling up is more important than ever.

So, what’s in the White Paper that we should take note of:

The White Paper also includes 55 new Education Investment Areas (EIAs) - the 12 former Opportunity Areas will be designated EIAs – to ensure the worst-off schools receive the most support. Local Skills Improvement Plans with funding and giving employers and boards a statutory role. Nine new Institutes of Technology. 20 Town & City centres supported with Kings Cross style regeneration projects to transform derelict areas starting with Wolverhampton and Sheffield. Brownfield funding to the North and Midlands, an increase in culture spending outside London, 68 more local authorities supported with High Street Taskforce.  £44m from Dormant Asset Scheme to support charities and social enterprises across the UK. A new White Paper is planned for later this year on health disparities to tackle health inequality. Alongside Government reporting back on progress, there will be a new Levelling Up Advisory Council to oversee the missions and their impact.

Commentary:

The White Papers lists “six capitals” for levelling up, all of which are included in techUK’s Local Digital Capital Index demonstrating that the tech sector has and will play a vital role in levelling up.

The White Paper lists 12 missions as markers to judge the success of levelling up, covering productivity, health, education, crime, local pride and digital connectivity. The inclusion of digitally connectivity related to gigabit coverage and 5G is welcome, but perhaps there’s a missed opportunity to acknowledge the wider tech sectors role in levelling up.

The emphasis on skills was expected and shows the pivotal role techskills and engagement with highly credible training and accreditation will have in the national and regional plans for skills.

There’s a lot of ambition set out in the White Paper and no great pot of new funding. That said orientating existing spending better, more regional R&D and innovation, targeted skills support and access to finance can all aid people, place and business across the UK.