DD2172 Support for the Economic Development Strategy

1.1 Events Support

1.1.1 Consultancy support is required to plan agendas and consultation questions, facilitate, analyse and write-up eight consultation events for the London skills and adult education strategy. Reports of the events should be provided within three working days of each event and responses formally recorded. Partner organisations listed below will arrange venues and invitations:

• Four sub-regional consultation events with local authorities, employers, providers and community groups in conjunction with the Sub-Regional Partnerships (estimated 80-120 attendees).

• One voluntary and community sector event with London Voluntary Service Council (LVSC) (estimated 60 attendees).

• One event with Employment Related Services Association (ERSA) (estimated 80 attendees)

• Two business engagement events in conjunction with Federation of Small Businesses and London First (estimated 60 and 20 attendees respectively)

1.1.2 Support is also required to organise (date, contact attendees and make venue arrangements at a central London location) and facilitate and write up two further events. Reports of the events should be provided within three working days of each event and responses formally recorded:

• A roundtable with around 15 employers (a list will be provided by the GLA) to consult on the London skills and adult education strategy and its links to the Mayor’s Good Work Standard.

• A consultation event with around 30 attendees from the SfL Taskforce Stakeholder Advisory Group towards the start of public consultation.

1.1.3 Engagement events are not required for the Economic Development Strategy (EDS) as two large events were held in early Summer 2017 and LEAP is organising a further two events in the new year. The EDS is also developed in more detail than the London skills and adult education strategy.

1.2 Written Consultation and Reporting

1.2.1 A written version of both strategies will be made publicly available and published on the GLA’s website for comment in the autumn. Responses are expected from a variety of stakeholder groups, using a coding framework, and will be submitted to a distinct GLA email address.

1.2.2 Support is required to undertake the written consultation process (documenting responses and feedback) and report on this and the events to the Skills for Londoners Taskforce and London Skills Strategy Task & Finish Group, for the London skills and adult education strategy.

1.2.3 Support is also required to undertake the written consultation process for the EDS, including the IIA, (documenting responses and feedback) and report on this to the London Economic Action Partnership (LEAP).

1.2.4 Insights and opinion research with Londoners will be undertaken by the GLA’s Intelligence team on both the EDS and skills strategy (each separately). This insights research, including responses from the public gained through the GLA’s Talk London engagement platform, YouGov polling, additional qualitative research and wider social media activity will be coded and logged by GLA staff during the consultation periods (3 months for the EDS and 1 month for the London skills and adult education strategy) ready for the consultants to analyse in the round alongside the written submissions.

1.2.5 The output will be a single consultation report for each strategy (the EDS and London skills and adult education strategy) comprising max 20 pages, with additional annexes, that presents a summary of the high-level responses from all consultation activity. This includes outcomes of the insights research, roundtables and events, and written stakeholder responses, together with the response (‘you said, we did’ format). This task will involve:

• Managing and formally recording comments from written consultation submissions for both the EDS (including the IIA) and the London skills and adult education strategy. The public responses will be received in a variety of formats from responses submitted online, to letters and emails. A common coding framework will be provided by the GLA, but responses will need to be logged and a tailored coding system applied.

• Incorporating findings from the consultation events, insights research and social media responses with Londoners into the reports (this data will be already coded by the GLA team internally, with a summary report and key points can be transposed).

• Face-to-face meetings with respective policy leads to propose appropriate responses to all comments and agree amendments to the strategies to be incorporated into the report.

2.1 To provide reports of the engagement events for the London skills and adult education strategy (24 November 2017 – 22 December 2017) within three working days.

2.2 To hold the formal record of written responses for the London skills and adult education strategy public consultation (planned for one month from 24 November 2017) and for the EDS (planned for three months, from 13 November 2017).

2.3 To provide a draft report on the London skills and adult education strategy consultation to the GLA in mid-January 2017.

2.4 To summarise key points raised through written and events-based consultation on the London skills and adult education strategy, incorporate relevant points raised to date through the EDS consultation, and present to the London Skills Strategy Task & Finish Group on 29 January 2017 and to the Skills for Londoners taskforce on 30 January 2018.

2.5 To provide a final consultation and engagement report, to summarise all responses and findings from the public consultation and engagement on the London skills and adult education strategy by 28 February 2018.

2.6 To provide a final consultation and engagement report, to summarise all responses and findings from the public consultation of the EDS and the Integrated Impact Assessment as a whole [full notes from the two LEAP run consultation roundtable events will be provided, no event support here is required] by end March 2018 (first draft).

2.7 Report to LEAP on the EDS and London skills and adult education strategy consultation processes and outcomes date tbc

3.1 Likely impacts of the decision on people with protected characteristics (age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, gender, religion or belief, sexual orientation) are that the needs of these people are captured and considered in a more coherent way through consultation on the draft strategies. Representative and specialist organisations that understand the needs of these groups and barriers they face in securing positive economic and social outcomes are likely to respond to written consultation. They are also likely to attend the sub-regional events and London Voluntary Service Council events.

3.2 Support to increase our capacity to capture key issues and suggestions is key to ensuring we can respond to these needs. Some individuals will also respond to written consultation and will provide insights into their direct experience of strategy-related issues. It is worth noting that the process is being supplemented by in-house opinion research with Londoners.

3.3 Additionally, consultation will focus on integration objectives that support the public sector equality duty to foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. Events will include representatives from different communities, coming together to discuss how to deliver provision that supports community integration.

4.1 A key issue is timing to ensure engagement and consultation support is available to facilitate activities in line with strategy development timeframes.

5.1 The estimated cost of this proposal is £90,000 and will be funded from the Skills Strategy (£50,000) and the LEAP Strategies budget for 2017-18 (£40,000).

6.1 Power to undertake the requested decision

i. Section 30 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (“the Act”) entitles the GLA, after appropriate consultation, to do anything which will further the promotion within Greater London of economic development and wealth creation, social development and the improvement of the environment.

ii. Section 34 of the Act allows the GLA, to do anything which will facilitate, or is conducive or incidental to, the exercise of any functions of the GLA.

6.2 In formulating the proposals in respect of which a decision is sought officers have complied with the GLA’s related statutory duties to:

• pay due regard to the principle that there should be equality of opportunity for all people;

• consider how the proposals will promote the improvement of health of persons, health inequalities between persons and to contribute towards the achievement of sustainable development in the United Kingdom; and

• consult with appropriate bodies.

6.3 General requirements

6.3.1 The procurement should be undertaken in accordance with the GLA’s Contracts and Funding Code and in consultation with Transport for London Procurement, who will determine the procurement strategy.

6.3.2 Officers must ensure that appropriate contract documentation be put in place and executed by the successful bidders(s) and the GLA before the commencement of the services.