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IWEP Economic Development Organisation of the Year

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

The Isle of Wight Economic Partnership was last night named as the “Economic Development Organisation of the Year” by top industry publication Regeneration and Renewal Magazine, ahead of tough competition from finalists MIDAS (Manchester) and Milton Keynes.

Paul Rudling, Chairman of the IWEP, said “We are really proud to receive this award, it is testament to the work and dedication of the team and shows how, by working closely with business, we can achieve so much with limited resources.”

Brian Friend, IWEP Vice Chair commented, “we should all be really proud, this award reflects the attitude and success of Island business as well as that of the Partnership.”

The awards recognised projects and organisations across the country who have made a real difference to their communities, judged by a panel of private sector and industry experts.

Heather Hancock, Deloitte partner and chair of the judging panel described the partnership as being, “a perfect fit for the scale of the Isle of Wight, and entirely fit for purpose.”

Richard Green, director, Eye, said about IWEP “we were impressed with the breadth of their offer. They seem to be able to convince people it’s worth taking a look at the Isle of Wight …….. I thought they had their act together really well.”

Mike King, Managing Director of the Isle of Wight Economic Partnership said, “this is a fantastic compliment to us and the Island, to beat organisations of the stature of Midas and Milton Keynes shows what a high standard we achieve.”

To put this into perspective MIDAS covers the whole of Greater Manchester, which is one of the largest conurbations outside London with a population of over 2.5million.

The entries are judged on achievements and activity over a twenty month period, as well as the day to day activities of the organisation. In the case of the Isle of Wight Economic Partnership these achievements have been impressive:

• Written the new economic strategy for the Island “Creating More Value” currently in final consultation phase.
• Developed the “Vision” and marketing strategy for The Bay – a new regeneration programme for Sandown & Shanklin Bay
• Attracted 5 new inward investments
• Helped create a further 3 new businesses
• Creating 149 jobs (full time equivalent)
• Inspired more than 1100 young people through Inspire and the Gipsy Moth projects
• Helped generate £4.3 million pounds worth of media coverage for the Island
• Harnessed approximately £4.6 million of private and public sector spend to market the Isle of Wight.
• Developed a Pan European portal for the composites sector bringing together academia and major corporate uses such as Renault.

The work of the Isle of Wight Economic Partnership is partly funded through the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), and also receives some funding from the Isle of Wight Council to undertake economic development on behalf of the authority. The remainder comes from commercial activities such as the Innovation Centre serviced office complex.