‘LEPs could fail without real funding’

DAVID Frost, chairman of the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) network, has pushed his case for LEP funding with MPs.

The LEP network has suggested that each partnership should receive around £250,000 a year.

Addressing the Commons Business and Skills Committee Mr Frost told MPs: “There’s a strong view that for the LEPs to continue they need some core funding to operate.

“Clearly there has been a kick back against the scale involved with the RDAs but there is a view pretty strongly held across many boards they need some free resources to do some basic research and marketing and to have some of their own staff accountable to the board and chair to do that.

“There are many LEPs that believe they need two or three executives that are there to work for the board to deal with the repeated requests from Government and other partners. There is an almost universal view that the workload that the chairman and board members is far more than they thought it would be. They expected it would die off but it is increasing.”

There was also a stark warning from Mr Frost on the potential future for some LEPs if they do not receive extra funding.

He said: “I think there may be some with smaller geographies in area where there has not been history of large scale public money where frankly if there is no money forthcoming the senior members of the LEP board may say they ‘we have done our strategy, we done our mission statement, we haven’t got an enterprise zone, we have got limited resources, I’ve got a business to run, I’ve done my public duty and I will go’.

“I think there’s a possibility of a limited number not continuing.”