The government announced its plan to negotiate ‘City Deals’ with local leaders in its 2011 paper, Unlocking growth in cities. It aimed to make deals that empowered cities to boost local economic growth. In 2012, the government signed the first 8 City Deals. Known as Wave 1, the deals covered England’s ‘core’ cities—the cities at the centre of the 8 economically largest areas in England, outside London. They are:
- Bristol and West of England City Region Deal
- Greater Birmingham City Deal
- Greater Manchester Combined Authority Deal
- Leeds City Region Deal
- Liverpool City Region Deal
- Newcastle City Deal
- Nottingham City Deal
- Sheffield City Region Deal
The deals were individual to each city and covered a range of policies, such as transport, housing and skills. They are an important catalyst for cities to develop their capacity to manage devolved funding and increased responsibility for economic growth. They are also designed to empower local leaders and businesses to create local growth, and have enabled cities to present their local economic priorities directly to government decision-makers.
Government departments have committed up to £2.3 billion to the deals, spread over 30 years. This inquiry looks at the early impacts from some of the individual programmes agreed in the deals and how impact is being evaluated and shared.