Cornwall Development Company

What is the Cornwall Development Company?
Cornwall Development Company (CDC) is the arms length economic development company of Cornwall Council (CC).  It was set up in 2009 with a Board of Directors, led by the private sector, specifically to be business facing and to be both proactive with and responsive to the needs of the business community (see Appendix 1).

Cornwall Council’s Economy White Paper and the Economic Growth Strategy for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, prepared by the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), together set the strategic context under which CDC operates and both CC and the LEP commission activity from the Company.

Mission Statement
Cornwall Development Company is the arms-length economic development arm of Cornwall Council.
On behalf of a range of stakeholders, we deliver a bespoke, business facing service and deliver the economic vision and strategy for Cornwall.

We achieve this through the expertise and professional commitment of our staff who, together, have a wide range of economic development know-how.  We bring together the right team, with the right skills, on the right project at the right time, turning this knowledge into added value for the economy of Cornwall.
Our most precious resource is our people and we aim to maintain an environment where they, and their knowledge, skills and expertise, are nurtured and they are able to be the best that they can be.

We deliver value for money for our shareholder and other stakeholders, a responsive service to business and, ultimately, jobs and prosperity and a low carbon future for Cornwall.

What does CDC do?
Business transformation

• Inward investment from the UK, European and International markets through InvestinCornwall
• Business development & growth
• Management of investment funds to support productivity, job creation and growth – European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Regional Growth Fund (RGF), Growing Places Fund (GPF) through Business Boost.
• Assisting rural business to access Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) funding
• Employment & Skills – working with strategic sectors, companies and projects to help articulate demand for skills and, in turn, stimulating demand led vocational FE & HE provision
• Promoting Cornwall as a year-round visitor destination to support and develop the visit economy through Visit Cornwall
• Specialist project development and managements services for priority and transformational projects

Cornwall connectivity

• Managing the programme to deliver Superfast Broadband to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly through Superfast Cornwall.
• Promoting and developing business investment in:
• Aerohub @ Newquay Cornwall Airport (Enterprise Zone)
• Port of Falmouth

Place shaping

• Facilitating private sector investment for growth in key towns through Convergence Priority 4
• Regeneration and development projects across Cornwall, including driving forward major projects and supporting the rural economy

Low carbon economy

• Promoting resource efficiency within businesses and using low carbon as a driver of economic development, through projects such as Clear About Carbon, Green Deal and Smart Grid

Facts & Figures

• The 134 staff working for CDC are brigaded under four directorates (see Appendix 2).
• Approximately 65% of staff are funded through projects and 35% through the CC contract.  
• The Company’s income is approximately 28% funded by Cornwall Council, although funding for 2012-13 varies across a number of sources (see Appendix 3).  
• CDC levers an additional 12.5m of income funding from the £3.6m CC investment.  

The delivery programme and many delivery objectives stretch beyond March 2013, with an anticipated target delivery budget of c£290m (gross value) over the next 2-3 years (see Appendix 4).

CDC has an annual Business Plan that is set within a three year funding context. The current approved programme of activity begins to reduce in year three.  Historically the trailing off of specific funds has been replaced by income from new contracts won or activity secured. There will be possibilities to bid for funds from the new EU programme but the reducing funding profile has been identified as a risk.

How is CDC held to account?
As a limited company and a publicly funded body, the Company is currently accountable to the Board of Directors and CC as shareholder, to the business community and ultimately to all the residents of Cornwall.  The governance of CDC is formally set out in the Memorandum and Articles agreed with the Council at the inception of the Company.

While CDC is accountable to the Council for its strategic direction and overall performance at project level the Company is accountable to a range of funders for the contracts it delivers.  The Company is presently subject to scrutiny by:

• Department of Business, Innovation and skills (BIS) 
• Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) 
• Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) 
• Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and European Social Fund (ESF) 
• Cornwall Council
• Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership

Meeting - January 2013

Cornwall Development Company (CDC)
Suzanne Bond, Chief Executive of CDC joined the meeting to talk about the work of the organisation.

CDC is funded roughly 25% by Cornwall Council, 25% by Job Line and 50% by leveraged funds. There is a ca£300m delivery programme over 3 years consisting of money from the EU, CC and the private sector. The organisation is divided into four units: Corporate, Tourism – Visit Cornwall, Business and Skills (£43m), Development (£13m). There are about 130-140 staff most of whom are on short-term contracts which is not helpful for continuity or for career and organisational development. Rules on expenditure also mean that cross-discipline working is severely constrained which is not necessarily to the benefit of the projects.

Some 20% of the SIF (Convergence) money has been spent in Falmouth which has demonstrated a degree of get-up and go about the town.

The relationship between CC, CDC and the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is still evolving especially at the border between the development of strategy and delivery.

The next round of EU funding will probably start at the end of 2014/early 2015. This is likely to be a ‘national programme’ rather than a Cornwall-specific one. CC was leading on this and it would be important to maintain continuity with the change of CEO.

Superfast Broadband
Suzanne introduced Dr Ranulf Scarborough, BT’s Director of the Superfast Broadband Programme.
The implementation of Superfast Broadband had started in 2010 and would take until October 2014 to complete. It was expected that about 80/90% of Cornwall would be covered which was a triumph given the challenging geography of the county. BT had been learning a lot and innovating. For instance, they had tested the first overhead fibre lines.

Fibre to the cabinet (FtC) is now routinely delivering 80Mps and Fibre to the Premises (FttP) up to 330 Mps. It is reassuring to see that about 60 service providers are now competing for business on the back of the network. About 50% of all premises are now covered by SFB and this would rise to 70-80% by the end of March.

Falmouth, with 55 cabinets, is one of the best connected towns in the county with 75% complete and about 10,000 lines. Half of this is FtC and half FttP. There are about 1500 exchange-only lines and BT is still working out how to handle these effectively. Nonetheless, take-up in Falmouth has been below expectations. (A straw poll suggested that about half the Forum had access to SFB at home and almost no one at the meeting had access at work).

In discussion, the slowness of installation of SFB for businesses was mentioned. If the intention behind the investment was to give Cornwall a competitive advantage then business should have come first.

Town Framework
CC is still discussing the growth figures which will go into the Local Plan. Until this is resolved, the Town Framework will mark time as an official document although it has recently been used as evidence in a recent planning enquiry.

Dredging
The dredging trial is now complete. The test of the re-laid areas would take place in March and the formal results are expected in May/June.

Future Falmouth CIC
Future Falmouth CIC has been created and has been informally awarded the contract for running events on the Prince of Wales pier. The final details of the Licence are under discussion. Directors for the CIC are required and an announcement will be made soon. Anyone interested should contact David Pollard as soon as possible.

Sainsbury’s planning application
Despite leaks of the draft agreement, the negotiations with Sainsbury’s over their planning application are going well and it is hoped that a significant sum of Section 106 money will be available to help offset the predicted 12% impact that the superstore will have on the economy of the main streets. Some of the money will be shared with Penryn.

A Liaison Group is being convened to help decide on the detailed expenditure given that the Agreement itself sets out certain parameters which must be followed.

Energy Partnership
The Falmouth Energy Partnership felt that a proportion of the S106 money should go on renewable energy sourced locally as part of a project to make Falmouth carbon neutral. They are looking at a solar bulk-buy project and exploring a biodiesel unit at Tremough.

4-10 March is Climate Week and all are encouraged to become involved in projects marking this. www.falenergy.org.uk

A Car Club is being developed for Truro and Falmouth. This will be the equivalent of a local hire car scheme. This will be launched in April.

Shorts

• Falmouth Town Council is looking at a Beach management Plan and would like input from residents as to what should go into this. Contact Mark Williams.
• Caroline Robertson is the new chair of the Federation of Small Business and invited suggestions for issues, involvement and lobbying
• Charlotte Chadwick thanked those involved in the Citizens for Life programme and invited people to sign up as mentors for the next round
• John Pearce described the Rotary project to bring fresh water to people in Masaka, Uganda. They need $5,000 to help 7,000 people. Money raised will be multiplied by 3.5 by Rotary International

Those attending
Cornwall Development Company - Suzanne Bond
BT Superfast Brodaband - Dr Ranulph Scarbrough
John Pearce - Rotary Club of Falmouth

A&P Docks - Mike Reynolds
Breakfast Club – Andy Coote
Civic Society - Dick Stiles
Cornwall Council – Mike Varney
Cornwall Council - Steve Eva
Cornwall Council - Charlotte Chadwick
Cornwall Marine Network - Paul Wickes
Chamber of Commerce – Jeremy Edwards
Churches Together – Neil Tinson
Fal River Links - Tim Light
Falmouth and Penryn Community Plan – Christopher Smith (chair)
Falmuth BID - Richard Wilcox
Falmouth Energy Partnership - Nigel Murray
Falmouth Exeter Plus - Jilly Easterby
Falmouth School - David Yelland
Falmouth Town Council - Mark Williams
Falmouth Town Manager – Richard Gates
Falmouth Watersports – Jackie George
Federation of Small Businesses - Caroline Robinson
National Maritime Museum Cornwall - Jonathan Griffin
Public - Keven Ayres
RCPS - Mike Jenks