Blog: A consultation about a West Midlands Local Growth Plan.
The West Midlands Combined Authority is seeking (May 2025) views from all interested parties before producing a first Local Growth Plan. The Combined Authority has launched the West Midlands Futures Green Paper and wants to hear from as many individuals and organisations as possible about what needs to be in the Growth Plan.
Central Government plans to produce a National Industrial Strategy soon and it wants local authorities like WMCA to produce Local Growth Plans to complement that national strategy but also reflect regional strengths and variations.
The 23-page West Midlands Futures Green Paper seeks to generate a conversation across the West Midlands about our region’s long-term priorities. As is to be expected, growth is the golden thread that runs right through the Green Paper. In this context, “growth” means inclusive growth, what the Mayor calls “Growth for Everyone”.
The West Midlands has what it takes to be an economically prosperous region in terms of scale, youthfulness, diversity, investment and innovation records, and connectivity. The challenge is to convert these advantages into tangible gains in economic growth. How will this be done? The West Midlands Mayor, Richard Parker, says in a Foreword to the Green Paper:
“Our aim is founded upon investment in our high-growth clusters”.
The West Midlands’ economy is not yet at its full potential. A £77bn economy, 3.5% of the national economy, would be boosted by £12bn if productivity were just raised to the UK average. And the Green Paper is very positive that we can do this. As an accompanying paper called The Theory of Growth says, “Economic transformation is possible”.
The Green Paper sets out four big areas of change on the horizon and how regional stakeholders are beginning to respond to them:
- The first West Midlands Growth Plan
- A regional spatial development strategy with key investment sites
- Public service innovation and people and skills
- A new five-year plan for net zero.
In each area, the Green Paper sets out a handful of questions, there are 20 questions in all. Your opinions about the direction of travel and how we seize the many opportunities we have before us could influence the final content of the Combined Authority’s Growth Plan.
But you will have to hurry if you want to take part. The closing date for responses is 8th June.
To have your say, visit the Combined Authority’s website: https://tinyurl.com/7cz6v27e
Any just to confirm, yes, WMHTC has responded, drawing attention to some relevant HealthTech considerations.