New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership Board

Wednesday 27th July 2022

Agenda Item xxx

Clean Growth Taskforce Update

Author: Ellen Goodwin Presenter: Pete Joyner, Ellen Goodwin

Summary

This paper provides an update on the Clean Growth Taskforce, a sub-group of New Anglia

LEP and considers next steps with respect the delivery now that the Taskforce has an

established action plan.

Recommendations

The Board is invited to:

 note the contents of the report

 offer strategic direction to the Taskforce

Background

The Clean Growth Taskforce had its inaugural meeting on 22 July 2021 after the LEP Board

agreed its scope at its May 2022 meeting. The main purpose of the Clean Growth Taskforce

was agreed as follows:

“To provide leadership and collaboration on net zero. Promoting Norfolk and Suffolk as the

UK’s Clean Growth Region helping to raise the profile of the major contribution the area

plays in the UK’s transition to a post carbon economy, representing the area national,

regionally and locally.”

Membership includes representatives from each of the LEP’s Advisory Boards and Norfolk

and Suffolk’s key sectors as well as representations from education and each of the

County’s Climate Change Partnership Groups, representing Local Authorities. Members of

the Taskforce are all representatives of their industry sector or community of interests.

This paper sets out what the Taskforce has achieved over the first year of existence and

sets the framework for delivery moving forward.

Delivery and key achievements over the last year

One of the first things the Taskforce did was to reflect of the scale of net zero challenge and

clean growth opportunity and think about developing a shared ambition for Norfolk and

Suffolk. In doing so it looked at the areas where emissions were significant, where progress

had been made and the make-up of the Norfolk and Suffolk economy with respect to not

only emissions but clean growth opportunities too. It looked at the updated data for the work

the LEP commissioned in 2019 and sought to find focus in terms of potential impact moving

forward.

The Taskforce helped shape the definition of clean growth as presented in the Norfolk and

Suffolk Economic Strategy:

Growing an environmentally positive and resilient economy by exploiting the region’s

strengths, driving the adoption of clean technology, enhancing natural capital, and reducing

waste, accelerating sustainable infrastructure, equipping and empowering business and

people to take advantage of the opportunities in moving to a zero-carbon economy

Its initial focus has been determined as:

 Leadership and collaboration – be Ambassadors for the Clean Growth region

 Evidence and impact – oversee the development of Clean Growth evidence and impact

 Decarbonising Transport – influence the development of the Alternative Fuel Strategy and

Action Plan and its subsequent delivery

 Transition Business Support – work with the Business Growth Programme Partnership

Board to oversee the delivery of the Road to Net Zero Business Support Programme and

any wider clean growth programme embedment

 Workforce for the Future – work with the Skills Advisory Panel to shape the

Decarbonisation Academy proposal and the wider clean growth skills agenda

Leadership and collaboration

The Taskforce have been quite clear that they want to develop a succinct key message and

clear call to action. However, given the importance of an evidence-based approach and the

complexity of future modelling alongside the need to focus on reach and influence it has

proved challenging to achieve without engaging a broader spectrum of key stakeholders.

Members of the Taskforce have also made it clear that they need to collectively add value to

the vast array of effort already taking place in the region and as such much time and effort

has been placed on trying to map out activity in this sphere.

Evidence and impact

The main criticality that the Taskforce has determined with respect to this strand of work has

been the importance of a strategic, emissions-led approach to clean growth evidence and

impact. To date this thinking has been quite far reaching and while it has been difficult to

settle on any clear conclusions to date, in that the spectrum of consideration is quite

considerable, the peer challenge the Taskforce has offered has led to a deepening of

intelligence in this space.

One area the Taskforce has identified as a clear area for focus is engaging with the large

point source emitters of which 9 exploratory conversations have been sought to date.

Conversations have begun to determine appetite for best practise sharing and peer-to-peer

learning as well as how we can support in the delivery of their decarbonisation plans. Local

authority engagement occurred ahead of business conversations, the first of which took

place on 13 June at British Sugar’s Wissington site.

Update after meeting with British Sugar

Decarbonising Transport

The key output of this strand of work has been the Alternative Fuels Strategy – see item xxx

Transition Business Support

The Clean Growth Taskforce has overseen the delivery of the UK Government’s Community

Renewal Funded Road to Net Zero Business Support Programme. The Programme (Norfolk

£660K, Suffolk £520k) is a pilot initiative designed to pro-actively pivot business support and

grants on a net zero future, building business advice expertise, and developing a portfolio of

tested interventions. The Programme will now run to the end of the calendar year with a

Programme update report to the LEP Board scheduled for July.

As part of the Programme the Taskforce has contributed to the research piece led by

University of East Anglia and the University of Suffolk looking at sectoral barriers to

decarbonisation.

Workforce for the Future

The Taskforce has started to scope out the clean/green skills element of work by referring to

work already taking place across the FE sector in particular. It has also considered the

impact of BREXIT and covid as well as the challenges around traditional monitoring of jobs

not being conducive to the broad spectrum of ‘clean’. More needs to be done to establish

what good might like for Norfolk and Suffolk and how this compares to other similar areas

across the country.

Norfolk and Suffolk Economic Strategy

The Economic Strategy for Norfolk and Suffolk highlights the urgent need to transition to a

decarbonised future and grow a clean economy that protects and restores natural capital

and provides a more resilient, inclusive future for all.

It also draws attention to Norfolk and Suffolk as an established and growing low carbon

economy at the forefront of tackling the challenges and opportunities of climate change. The

area is a major research and innovation centre and has business strengths in adaptation

which present significant cross-sector opportunities for the UK’s transition to net zero.

Specifically, Norfolk and Suffolk:

 Is the UK’s leading producer of clean energy. It is at the forefront of the Southern

North Sea transition and has further potential for bioenergy, hydrogen and energy

storage industries, and a strong low carbon goods and services offer.

 Has expertise in satellite applications and Artificial Intelligence (AI) which will benefit

offshore wind, nuclear, precision farming, construction, manufacturing, health and

social care, and the visitor economy.

 Is ripe to further test cross-sector innovation in industries such as farming and food

production, transportation and construction where exponential transformation is

needed.

The Strategy notes that there are economic and societal advantages for businesses,

communities and places who emerge as leaders, from new markets to new, higher paid jobs

and improved public health and commits to remaining at the forefront of tackling the

challenges and opportunities of climate change.

Looking Ahead

Leadership and collaboration

We will deliver a Local Leaders event to support the development of an evidence-based

ambition. The preparation of this will include stakeholder mapping and will be designed to

build clean growth momentum in the Norfolk and Suffolk economy and begin to drive the

embedment we need for change.

Evidence and impact

We will develop a deliverable, local evidence-based ambition and further develop point

source emitter engagement/networking, looking at clusters as well as potential future

emitters.

Decarbonising Transport

See item xxx

Transition Business Support

Widen business support offer and consider cluster interventions and potential ESG payback.

Deliver an additional Clean Growth for Business programme of events building on the

successes of 2020’s online events.

Workforce for the Future

Investigate how inward investment and technology/innovation can be brought into the

conversations alongside skills.

Recommendations

The Board is invited to:

 note the contents of the report

 offer strategic direction to the Taskforce

APPENDIX A – sub-board reporting – June 2022

Appendix A - Sub- Board Reporting

Sub

Board:

Clean Growth Taskforce

Representatives:

LEP Board:

Pete Joyner

LEP Team:

Ellen Goodwin

Meeting Frequency:

monthly

Key Objectives

& link to NSES

Update on

actions / activity

Next Steps

Leadership and Collaboration

Be Ambassadors for the Clean Growth

region

 Develop a succinct key message and clear call to action reflecting

on businesses understanding

 Deliver a Local Leaders event to support the development of an

evidence-based ambition

 Determine how to better link with Local Authority ambition at a

regional and local level

xxx

Evidence and Impact

Oversee the development of Clean

Growth evidence and impact

 Develop a strategic, emissions-led approach to clean growth

evidence and impact

 Work with large businesses/point source emitters to establish best

practise and peer-to-peer learning



Develop a deliverable, local evidence

based ambition

xxx

Decarbonising Transport

Influence the development of the

Alternative Fuel Strategy/Action Plan and

its subsequent delivery

 Deliver the Alternative Fuel Strategy for East Anglia and consider

what next moving forward

 Consider how a wider ‘place’ brief might be included – all

infrastructure, unique local features and links to the wider economy

xxx

Transition Business Support

Oversee the delivery of the Road to Net

Zero Business Support Programme and

wider programme embedment

 Deliver the Road to Net Zero Business Support Programme and

order to shape future programmes

 Understand the breadth of green initiatives to provide tailored

business advice, support and signposting

 Work with other business intermediaries to better coordinate clean

growth messaging

xxx

Workforce for the Future

Shape the Decarbonisation Academy

proposal and the wider clean growth

skills agenda

 Develop the Decarbonisation Academy proposal working with key

stakeholders

 Continue to improve the links between the private/education sector

to maximise impact

 Further develop labour market information to embed clean growth

and ensure understand

ing

xxx