Page 41 - Barrow Town Deal Board Agenda 14/4/2020

Barrow Town Investment Plan - Stakeholder Insight Report

Aspirations for the Town Investment Plan

3.7 Consulted stakeholders explored their priorities for action in the Town Investment Plan and
there was consistent messaging about aspirations for the Town Investment Plan including:

• The TIP needs to provide a statement of ambition for the town, providing an
overarching economic strategy for the town and shining a spotlight on the projects to
be funded by the Towns Deal

• Barrow needs to be an “aspirational town” and a “destination of choice rather than
necessity”

• There needs to be a strong narrative on restructuring in light of COVID19 which
accentuates the need for intervention in the town. COVID19 recovery needs to be a
key component of the deal. Community resilience, community wealth-building and
place-based resilience need to come to the fore.
• BAE investment forms a platform for transformational change in the town. The
Towns Deal can enable these benefits to be spread more equitably.
• Ensuring residents and businesses see the relevance of the Town Investment Plan
and how it will deliver improvement in the town. “Ownership will drive success”
• Developing Barrow’s talent pool – this needs to be undertaken in the context of
understanding the current and future skills gaps in the workforce, an
acknowledgement of the role that migrant labour plays in filling these gaps, and the
opportunity presented to grow our own talent through both upskilling/reskilling
strategies and attracting talent to live and work in the area. An expanded skills offer is
part of this solution.
• Barrow needs to retain spend through focused intervention on the town centre,
modern commercial and housing offer, lifestyle offer linked to leisure and culture, and
high-quality education offer
• Developing Barrow as a University town could be a ‘gamechanger’ which can help
to attract and retain residents, employees and students to the town.
• Business support requires a comprehensive review to ensure the needs of
entrepreneurs and businesses are being met and gaps are being filled.
• The health and well-being of Barrow’s population is critical to improving life chances
and quality of life in the town. The Town Deal needs to provide new connections to
vulnerable communities through health and well-being interventions.

• There needs to be a focus on multi-agency responses to addressing need and
opportunity in Barrow.

• Digital inclusion strategies are required to support the competitiveness of residents
and businesses in a post-COVID19 world

• The green growth potential of Barrow needs to be exploited to support diversification
and resilience

• Financial sustainability and legacy benefits of Towns Deal funded projects should
be a consideration in project prioritisation.

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