Business Sector Representative on the City Region Board, Glyn Pitchford, says business must not be sidelined in the efforts to regenerate the Midlands.

The global credit crunch is sending shockwaves around the world, yet here in the West Midlands we appear to be holding our own.

Amidst the familiar burdens and barriers encountered by business on a daily basis, significant growth and success around the region is still in evidence.

The levels of poverty and despair in too many areas of the Midlands therefore cannot be pinned solely on the global markets or on claims that our commercial base is weak.

We need to get new thinking to turn this around.

Just a few miles from the success of central Birmingham 6% are unemployed, with similar rates elsewhere across the conurbation increasing more dramatically when we include the number of “workless” people – people not classed as unemployed but on other benefits or who have simply disappeared from the sight of the statisticians.

I believe it is time to have a new push on regenerating the West Midlands to end these pockets of despair that harm the lives of too many people and hold back the growth of our economy.

The public sector, through Advantage West Midlands, has set up “Regeneration Zones” where public money is being used to turn around areas in Birmingham, Black Country, Coventry and Solihull.

Now, the Learning and Skills Councils, via the City Region, are focusing on helping young people, who have been sidelined, to get the skills to find good jobs.

But I don’t think that this, on its own, is enough.

We need to be more creative in our thinking and examine whether the City Region should set up a Multi Area Agreement as a vehicle to lift up the most deprived areas.  Low quality housing needs replacing with a mix of affordable, social and private housing.

Infrastructure in its widest sense must be delivered at the right time including schools, community and health facilities, local shops and land for business use to encourage industry and jobs training.

But real regeneration even goes beyond this – it requires real partnership with business.

And it is business, hand in hand with officials and politicians, which can turn sporadic injections of tax payers’ money into sustained long term investment which then becomes self-perpetuating.

Then we would see the gap closing between the economic performance of this region compared with the UK average.

Public money alone is not the answer.

It is innovative thinking, real partnership with business, and political will, that will make the difference.

Our Minister for the West Midlands, Liam Byrne MP, public regional bodies and the City Region all have to play their part.

With a direct line into Whitehall, the Minister has already shown how taking strong political action can deliver the regeneration of a major rail terminus.

He must now do the same to deliver the regeneration of the West Midlands.

When the Treasury mandarins encourage closer partnership with business it is then that we can redouble our efforts to banish poverty from the Midlands and produce sustainable modern communities. 

Glyn Pitchford FRICS
City Regions representative
glyn.pitchford@blueyonder.co.uk