Building on your strengths

摘要

Pore over the Tees Valley strategic economic plan and you will find one word crops up more than most: ambition. The targets set out in that document spell out just how ambitious this corner of north-east England wants to be. Between now and 2025 its goal is to generate 25,000 newjobs, add£1bn to the economy, create 3,200 enterprises and transform the skills of its workforce by ensuring more people reach NVQ levels 3 and 4. But this is an area that has more reason than most to look confidendy to the future. Its five local authorities - Darlington, Hardepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton on Tees - were ahead of the game when they set up Tees Valley Unlimited (TVU) in 2011 as a vehicle to attract and guide strategic investment. When it became the area's local enterprise partnership it was able to hit the ground running and in die last three years it has supported more than £lbn of investment and 4,000 jobs. Widi a private sector-led leadership board, TVU has become an exemplar of how local authorities and business leaders can be a powerful combination - even in difficult times.