Press Release

NORTH’S INNOVATION SKILLS IN THE SPOTLIGHT

23rd November 2007

International experts today (Friday, November 23) completed a visit to the North which will inform a major study into the area's ability to exploit new ideas and technology to benefit the economy.

The world's leading economic policy body, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has spent the week visiting the North with working with  Northern Way to examine current strategies to encourage innovation.

The OECD's findings will inform an in-depth study into what the barriers and opportunities are to innovation in the North and how new ideas can be translated into economic success.

The Northern Way (a unique collaboration led by the three northern Regional Development Agencies to close the North/South divide) hosted the visit which examined the work carried out by the northern science cities in York, Manchester and Newcastle, in particular the boost to innovation from Manchester Knowledge Capital.

The collaborative efforts of the N8 Research Centres - made up of the North's research-intensive universities in Durham, Lancaster, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield and York - were also highlighted as a way of enabling northern businesses to access world-class knowledge to gain competitive advantage.

The panel had the opportunity to hear about the flourishing financial and business services sector in Leeds, and the way in which the BBC move to Salford provides an opportunity for developing a media city of a scale to boost the digital and creative industry throughout the North.

Other highlights of their trip included the examination of the process industry cluster in Tees Valley and the advanced manufacturing capability in Sheffield - both examples of world class technology helping drive structural change in the economy.

Using the information gathered, the panel will now benchmark the North's performance against global standards, look at scope for new collaborations, and make recommendations to national, regional and local institutions in the private and public sectors. It will be particularly relevant to the work of the three Regional Development Agencies, who will be core partners in this work.

Andrew Lewis, Director of the Northern Way, said: "The opportunity to hose the OECD has illustrated clearly the innovation potential of the North's economy.  Our work with the OECD will provide valuable insights to ensure we build on this success." 

Karen Maguire will explain the study to hundreds of regeneration experts attending the Northern Way Summit next Tuesday (November 27) at the Sage, Gateshead, and will describe how similar studies have been carried out to benefit other major regions elsewhere in the world.

The panel will return for further follow up visits in spring 2008 and the final report will be published in the summer.

Bringing together Governments of 30 countries committed to democracy and the market economy, the OECD works to support sustainable economic growth, boost employment and contribute to the growth in world trade.