The Homes & Communities Agency has reached agreement with England's regional development agencies on how they will work together to deliver policy.
The quangos have committed to joint working to develop economically, socially and environmentally thriving and sustainable places and have agreed joint ways of working in seven areas:-
- regional strategies;
- regional governance;
- regional investment planning;
- sub-regional investment planning;
- capacity and capability;
- best practice and learning networks;
- national level arrangements.
"Housing, transport, economic development and social and environmental policies have to be agreed and tackled collectively by all agencies in order to respond to the current economic challenges and also plan for the future," said Margaret Fay who is both chairman of One North East and an HCA board member.
"The statement of joint working provides a framework within which each RDA and each regional office of the HCA can collaborate for the benefit of communities across England."
The statement says the RDAs and HCA will work with regional leaders' boards to develop the seven policy areas.
It says regional strategies will be developed to provide the context within which to proritize the programmes and investments of the HCA, RDAs, councils and other partners. It also says regional governance will be developed suitable to each region's context.
"The governance arrangements would fully recognise the RDA board and leaders' boards' joint responsibility to develop the regional strategies and the investment accountabilities of both RDA and HCA accounting officers and, in London, the powers of the mayor in relation to setting the LDA's investment strategy alongside his spatial, housing, transport and environmental policies," says the statement.
