Boost for Businesses as Rutland Joins Greater Lincolnshire LEP
Businesses in Rutland have received a boost with the news that Rutland County Council has opted to join the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership with immediate effect.
The Greater Lincolnshire LEP is a private sector-led partnership of businesses and councils set up in 2010 which until now has covered Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire.
The move means that businesses in Rutland can now tap into a wide range of services and resources offered by the Greater Lincolnshire LEP.
These include the Business Lincolnshire Growth Hub and its Building Business Resilience programme designed to help companies withstand a range of economic shocks such as Brexit and COVID-19.
A collaboration between D2N2 Growth Hub, the Greater Lincolnshire LEP and the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership, the programme ensures that businesses are aware of any issues that could affect their business during periods of uncertainty and offers them support in the form of workshops, webinars, and one-to-one advice from business experts.
The LEP also runs an Enterprise Adviser Network to bridge the gap between education and business, enabling volunteers from business to work directly with careers leads and senior leadership teams in secondary schools in Lincolnshire and Rutland.
Subject to final agreement on governance matters, the Leader of Rutland County Council, Councillor Oliver Hemsley, will join the Greater Lincolnshire LEP’s Board of Directors as a public sector representative.
Councillor Hemsley commented: “We are delighted to become part of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP.
“There are significant parallels between Greater Lincolnshire and Rutland’s economies. Rutland boasts a resilient and passionate business community that bring a wealth of knowledge and talent to further enhance the LEP’s skills and expertise.
“I believe this will be a strong union that will help us to support our and the region’s businesses and economy to re-establish and thrive following lockdown.”
Pat Doody, Chair of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP, welcomed Rutland’s membership.
“I know I speak for the board in welcoming Rutland to the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership,” he said.
“Its addition brings greater diversity and opportunity to the region and we look forward to working with the Leader Councillor Hemsley, the Chief Executive Helen Briggs, and local business across the SME segments in further developing economic prosperity in what are challenging times.
“Now more than ever, the collaborative efforts of the public and private sectors are vital both to plot a course through the current issues and to prepare the economy’s route forward at a local level.”
Rutland was a founder member of the Greater Peterborough Greater Cambridgeshire Local Enterprise Partnership, which morphed into a Business Board run by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.
Now Rutland has decided to join the Greater Lincolnshire LEP, with which it has a close alignment in terms of its rural economy, its market towns and the importance of sectors such as agriculture, tourism and food and drink.
Notes for editors:
- The Greater Lincolnshire LEP was set up in 2010 and works with businesses and local authorities to develop and grow Greater Lincolnshire’s diverse economy.
- It is a public / private partnership led by the private sector.
- It works with central Government and the private sector to invest in infrastructure, skills, innovation and productivity.
- More than 100 businesses are involved in its strategies, and 80 business people sit on its boards.
- The LEP has an ambitious and balanced strategic economic growth plan for Greater Lincolnshire.
- The LEP’s six priority sectors are agri-food, the visitor economy, manufacturing, logistics, health and care and low-carbon energy.
- The LEP has invested £307 million in local economic growth schemes in Greater Lincolnshire since 2014.
- The Greater Lincolnshire LEP covers an area including North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire and the administrative county of Lincolnshire and is led by a LEP board made up of leading figures in the public and private sector.
- To find out more visit www.greaterlincolnshirelep.co…. or follow the LEP on Twitter @greaterlincslep, Facebook or Linkedin.
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