Businesses urged to have their say on future economic growth plans for Lancashire

Businesses, colleges, universities and representatives of the health and third sectors attended a workshop at Brockholes Nature Reserve to help design Lancashire’s Industrial Strategy (LIS), for the next 10 to 20 years.

The Lancashire Enterprise Partnership is holding extensive consultations with stakeholders about the strategy, which Government requires all local enterprise areas to draw up.

LEP chairman David Taylor said: “We are working on a long-term strategy for Lancashire which will set out our priorities and describe the activity needed to increase productivity and earning power, as well as ensuring inclusive growth.

“The LEP wants to ensure that a wide range of stakeholders – especially the business community – have the chance to have their say on the development of this crucial document, so we have begun an extensive consultation programme.

“We want to hear where they think Lancashire’s economy is strongest and their thoughts about what is holding businesses back from achieving their full commercial potential.

“We’ve already done a lot of initial work on the LIS and the workshop provided local organisations and businesses a chance to see and discuss that. There will be further opportunities to comment in the coming months.”

The next consultation event will be hosted by the East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce on June 3rd. For details, visit www.chamberelancs.co.uk

The Government is expected to sign off on Lancashire’s strategy by March 2020.

The LIS is the local response to the national Industrial Strategy published by Government in 2017.