Business leaders sought to join Local Enterprise Partnership Board

Business leaders from Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire are being sought to help to lead the area’s local enterprise partnership and drive future economic growth.

The Stoke-on-Trent & Staffordshire LEP (SSLEP) is recruiting new directors to its company board which sets the strategy and investment activity to grow the future economy of Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.

The LEP is also looking for leaders to join its new Skills Advisory Panel which will promote skills development through businesses and higher education establishments.

SSLEP is a business-led company limited by guarantee bringing together business, higher education institutions and public sector partners to create the conditions to grow new and better jobs, a higher skilled workforce and increase business productivity across both city and county.

SSLEP’s vision is to transform the area into a connected county with vibrant, competitive urban centres and an inspiring, economic powerhouse in the city of Stoke-on-Trent, enabled by building upon a globally successful business base and ambitious, highly skilled workforce.

Four new company board directors are being sought who will represent Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire’s diverse business community. In addition, six new members of the Skills Advisory Panel are needed who will help to shape the LEP’s skills development programme to ensure the local workforce can take advantage of better paid employment opportunities.

Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire acting chairman Alun Rogers said:

We are seeking business people with a strong tracked record in our key business sectors, who share our passion and ambition for Stoke and Staffordshire. We want our board to be reflective of our business community and are actively seeking more women business leaders to join us.

The LEP also needs well networked business leaders to join our Skills Advisory Panel. Skills development is critical to our area’s economic growth and a skilled workforce helps to attract future investment and employers in our key sectors.”

The application document is available here.

Please note that the application deadline has been extended with new date to be confirmed.

Applicants also need to complete an equality and diversity form which can be found here: Equality Diversity Monitoring Form

Abi Brown, board member and leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council said:

Being a board member brings many benefits.  For me, it means we can represent the voice of Stoke-on-Trent’s business at the heart of the local enterprise partnership while working hard to ensure the right investment and the right economic growth for the city.  One example of this is in the Ceramic Valley Enterprise Zone which is now recognised as one of the most successful zones in the country with the creation of over 2,000 jobs in the city.

This is a great opportunity for individuals at both a personal and professional level. You get an enormous sense of satisfaction when major infrastructure projects which are key to our economy are delivered and you can see you’ve made a real difference and have contributed to the continuing growing confidence in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.  It would also be great to see more women in business apply so that we can make sure we’re truly reflecting the business community that we represent.”

Vice chancellor and chief executive of Staffordshire University Liz Barnes, also a board member, said:

New board members will have the opportunity to contribute to the shaping and delivery of the industrial strategy for Staffordshire and secure our future prosperity providing a great place to live, work and study.”

Board directors and SAP members give their time voluntarily to support the LEP. The initial term of appointment for a Director is three years. This can be extended a further term, to a maximum of six years.

The LEP’s Skills Advisory Panel (SAP) is a sub-group of the LEP Board which is tasked with: understanding our business skills needs & supply; strengthening the relationship between employers and education/training providers to deal with local skills shortages and ensuring that training providers deliver the skills required by employers; and addressing skills priorities to improve business productivity.

Through its Growth Deals, SSLEP is contributing more than £147m of investment over the period up to 2021 in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire. Partner contributions, including from local authorities, universities, FE colleges and the private sector, brings the total invested through the LEP’s Strategic Economic Plan to some £344m to date.