Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 11
11
We queried why the Department had required a new tier of governance—Town Deal Boards—to be...
Conclusion
We queried why the Department had required a new tier of governance—Town Deal Boards—to be set up, rather than use existing governance structures to plan and implement the Towns Fund at the local level. The Department explained that existing structures, such as mayoral combined authorities and Local Enterprise Partnerships, were not appropriate for overseeing support and interventions for individual towns. It said that government’s original rationale for the Towns Fund was to recognise and respond to issues at the town level, as place-based policies had previously been too focused on cities and resulted in towns being overlooked.26
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
3.2 As the Committee will know, the department and Ministers engage regularly and widely with local and regional representatives, including Members of Parliament, to understand their priorities for their local areas and communities. 3.3 Specifically in relation to the Towns Fund, the department has already set out, prior to the Committee's recommendations, expectations and plans for Town Deal Boards and for community engagement and local and, where appropriate, regional representation on boards. 3.4 Indeed the model of Towns Deal Boards offers a significantly more open and transparent way of developing and agreeing plans for growth funding in a local area than is traditionally seen. Town Boards give a significant voice to people from the local area and allow a far wider range of stakeholders to inform a town’s plans as a result – an approach government feels is crucial to ensuring that investment can better match the needs of the communities it is destined to support. 3.5 Expectations for Town Deal Board membership were set out in the Towns Fund Prospectus (November 2019) and Further Guidance (June 2020), recommending a mix of representatives from across the public, private and community sectors. Regional teams and our delivery partners then worked with Town Deal Board’s on diversity, best practice and mandatory compliance. 3.6 The department has subsequently assessed Town Deal Board governance for all towns that have submitted their Town Investment Plans. 3.7 The department also specified that Town Investment Plans should include detail of consultation with local residents. The level and quality of engagement with community groups and the alignment and involvement of key bodies are both rigorously assessed. Towns must provide a stakeholder engagement plan in advance of signing Heads of Terms agreements.