A strong economy underpins everything we want to achieve. It will increase wealth, create more opportunities for people, improve living standards, and boost funds for public services. We will encourage growth, foster innovation, support businesses and help create new jobs.
The challenge
The Dorset Council area has a significant economy incorporating 20,000 businesses, generating over £8.45 billion of Gross Value Added (GVA - a measure of the value that producers add to goods and services they buy, and is a key indicator of a country's economic performance) and supporting 145,000 jobs.
Dorset’s economy is based on fairly traditional industries such as agriculture, retail, hospitality and leisure, and care services. There are also strengths in advanced manufacturing, maritime, defence, and emerging expertise in renewable energy.
Productivity has stalled over the last 25 years. Our economy grew by only 6% during that period, compared to 31% in the BCP Council area, 35% in the southwest and 43% nationally.
Large numbers of Dorset’s young people leave the county to find employment elsewhere. Meanwhile, employers tell us they often struggle to recruit and retain people with the right skills. This challenge is compounded by high house prices and poor transport connectivity in some areas. Digital and mobile phone connectivity is unreliable, especially in rural areas.
For the past decade strategic economic planning, whether in the form of Industrial Strategies, Strategic Economic Plans, or Growth Deals, has been undertaken on a pan-Dorset geography. These Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership-led initiatives were reflective of the shared economic challenges and sectors Dorset held with the BCP (Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole) Council geography.
In the Dorset Council area, we will develop and implement a strategy which is representative of its unique economic geography and specific business sectors. A strategy that considers an approach to growth regardless of location but also plays on localised strengths and opportunities.
Our approach
We recognise a change is needed to break the cycle of slow economic growth.
We need to support and diversify the economy by embedding digital technology across all sectors, investing in our advanced and often bespoke manufacturing sector, and making more of our natural advantages in clean energy, maritime and defence. There is a need to introduce scale into these sectors.
Bringing productivity up to the UK average would generate an additional £1.6 billion for Dorset, leading to higher paid jobs and greater disposable income.
We will step into the space vacated by the Dorset LEP and move forward into a new direct relationship with both businesses and government, set out in an economic strategy that is specific to Dorset. We will build a new set of strategic relationships with the business community that enables them to feed into the democratic decision-making process.
Target measures
We aim to:
- narrow the Dorset to UK productivity gap by 5% by 2029
- generate over 2000 jobs and over £500m of private sector investment in renewable energy projects by 2029
- increase the number of visitor day or overnight stays in Dorset by 5% (1.5m additional visits) by 2029
- create 1000 business start-up courses for 16 to 34 year-olds to encourage young people into entrepreneurship by 2029
- support community-led masterplans in at least 70% of the coastal and market towns by 2029
- launch a new delivery company for the Dorset Innovation Park in 2025, creating 300 jobs by 2029
Key actions to deliver this priority
We will:
- establish a new business representation group made up of local business leaders and relevant representative bodies and develop a tailored Economic Growth strategy for the Dorset Council area.
- develop a strategic relationship with the Dorset Chamber of Commerce and support the development of local chambers and Business Improvement Districts to generate business engagement and intelligence.
- focus the council’s efforts on delivering a small number of exciting, large-scale opportunities which will make a significant difference to the county’s economic performance:
- Working with the private sector to secure investment in renewable energy projects in Dorset, including off-shore wind generation, manufacturing and support.
- Kick-starting the regeneration of Weymouth by developing underused sites to improve the offer and vibrancy of the town. Create a “growth corridor” with Portland and Dorchester, bringing economic benefits to the wider area.
- encourage increased levels of sustainable tourism and continue to explore ways to extend the visitor season throughout the year.
- continue to implement the council’s Digital Infrastructure and Inclusion strategy, working with government and industry to improve connectivity across the county, tackling those hard-to-reach areas where digital connectivity inhibits economic growth.
- pursue a Devolution Deal with neighbouring authorities to secure devolved powers and funding from government which can support green energy projects, and digital and transport infrastructure.
- develop a Coastal and Market Towns strategy framework to support growth and regeneration, working in partnership with town and parish councils, and seeking funding from government.
- enable private sector investment into the build out of Dorset Innovation Park creating an additional 300 new jobs on the site by 2029.
- address young people’s perception of opportunities and their social mobility by encouraging entrepreneurship and building relationships with local businesses.
Leadership and partnership
We will also:
- reset our relationship with national government: develop a direct relationship with national government identifying and promoting the strategic projects and sectors that can contribute to the national economic position.
- develop a strong inward investment proposition to attract national and international investment into the county.
- build relationships with skills providers, colleges and universities to increase the higher education and skills footprint across Dorset and connect businesses with academic-led research and development.
- play a leading role in regional politics and lobbying of government, coordinating policy positions that benefit the Dorset economy and key sectors with regional partners such as the Great South West, South West Region Defence, Security Cluster, and through a Devolution Deal.
Standing up for Dorset
We are:
- advocating for Dorset’s contribution nationally to economic growth – especially in the green (environment) and blue (marine) economy.
- lobbying and bidding for funding for essential digital and transport infrastructure.