Borough Regeneration Strategy Report

- Wed 2nd Mar 2005

Borough Regeneration Strategy Report Raises Questions of Credibility.

In December last, Havant Borough published a report entitled ‘Havant Borough Draft Strategy for Regeneration 2005-2009’. The document aims to ‘to set a vision for a more prosperous Borough and to outline the challenges and opportunities to be addressed’. This begins by identifying 8 bodies with which to negotiate. Lots of meeting opportunities here!

Apart from improving the general environment in which we all live, it sees the future as depending on a ‘knowledge economy’ that Havant used to have in the days of IBM, Plessey, Wyeth etc, the derivatives of some of these still being with us. However, over the years these organisations have often declined, at least in terms of those parts that are now expected to provide the base of a knowledge-based economy. This is usually because such activities have been transferred elsewhere, often abroad. To regenerate some equivalent would now be very difficult, because to re-introduce such capabilities needs a base that no longer exists.

The report is enthusiastic about ‘competitive business’ arising from ‘wealth creating enterprise’ suggesting that by 2012 the South-East will be one of ‘the top 15 regions in the world’.

It will have a ‘skilled motivated workforce’, ‘vibrant inclusive communities’ and an ‘effective infrastructure of transport, communications, housing and health’. ‘Sustainable use of natural resources’ is another aim, clearly under the control of no one in Havant. (Reading University is buying ‘green electricity’, how their meters can tell the difference between electricity produced by the wind, coal or nuclear power is wonderful).

Skills development is one of the key aims of the programme and a local college is credited with offering courses in ‘business, art, catering, music and hairdressing.

The document goes on to state that currently the SE is 16th at present in Europe but will rise to 8th, that we have one of the highest proportion of managers per 1,000 inhabitants but that we are low in R & D. This improvement in performance seems unachievable in a 7 year period.

We lack in ‘GDP, patent applications, productivity and knowledge sustainability’. Our problems also include ‘high cost of housing, shortage of labour, transport congestion and shortage of space to grow. (What about East of Emsworth, good road network, railway with many stations, a perfect place to put some of SE Hampshire’s overspill).

The report presents some figures on Gross Value Added where the figures in the text do not seem to match the diagrams. The report includes other statistics, e.g. that Havant has a high proportion of out-commuting, (not surprising since it is a largely residential area), but still claims we are short of labour.

The report continues with a number of factors, many of which are due to poor leadership, e.g. poor retail opportunities (who has been sitting on the Potash Terrace development for 20 years?), tired town centres, vulnerable economy, old fashioned industrial estates etc. It is hard to see how any or all of these are going to change significantly by 2012, in order to achieve the leap in Havant’s industrial performance predicted in this document.

In the end, all such regeneration activity comes from persuading investors to put their money where the development agencies mouths are. As there are so many mouths, it is hard to see any major change can occur in the short term.

To give a final example of woolly thinking, under the heading ‘basic skills’, it states that ‘25% of 16 to 60 year old have below average basic skills’. In a normal distribution of skills (ignoring the differences between averages, means, modes etc.) one would expect to have about 50% below and 50 % above, so if Havant has 25% below and apparently 75% of people over the average skill level, why is this bad?

Billy Trail Survey

The results of the survey carried out in conjunction with HIRA have recently been published. This shows some 60 people per hour passed the survey points throughout the survey periods, with some 6,600 in total. For most periods, cyclists represented some 60 – 70% of users. Some 90% of people questioned wanted the Trail maintained on its present route and some 80% said that, if a good and safe route existed to Havant, they would use the Trail more.

This supports the view that an improvement to the route to Havant is essential and also raises the question of the conflict between the ‘Langstone Harbour above all’ lobby as against the land users and the land fauna and flora. This last seems to get totally lost in these arguments. I cannot understand why the interests of those elements of the environment on the sea side of the water/land boundary should always take precedence over that on the land side. There are far more interesting features of the landside than those provided by a few more Brent Geese or other seabird. If one goes down West Lane there are often large groups of curlews (>40), many of which would suffer if all the land English Nature would like to flood were so allowed. In addition, there are a number of groups of oaks and other trees along the Billy Trail that would also disappear if EN had its way.

I fully support the letter of John Bennett in last month’s Hayling Islander, calling for a soft approach to the defences. If this were carried out in a well-thought out manner, the material would soon distribute itself and, observing the rate at which the material being dumped at Eastoke is accreting at the Ferry, (will the pub be engulfed in ten years?) the wash up the harbour might be sufficient to keep the Trail permanently refreshed (if it gets past the Kench!)

This approach would solve every one’s problems and save a lot of argument and recrimination.

April Open Meeting

Our April meeting on the 21st will highlight the activities of the Community Board and its input to the Liveability programme. Presentations will be made on the progress made and descriptions of all the projects agreed for Hayling and with some reference to other areas in Havant. Please come and find out how the money allocated to the Island is to be spent.

Tony Higham.

Main contacts:

Chairman: Paul Fisher 92461412

Membership: Shirley Adams 92462881

Notice Board: Lois Neale 92469339

Reporter: Tony Higham 92464723.

By forum user, PaulFisher