Quotation for an External Evaluation of the Pembrokeshire Advance RDP Axis 3 - Business Plan One

Descriptions

The Rural Development Plan for Wales 2007 – 2013 (RDP) is concerned with the development of rural areas under the framework of Council Regulation (EC) 1698/2005, also known as the Rural Development Regulation (RDR). Axis 1 is concerned with improving farm competitiveness and Axis 2 with agri-environmental schemes. Both Axes 1 and 2 are implemented by the Welsh Government (WG). Axis 3 of the RDP is intended to improve the quality of life in rural areas. Axis 4 is a complementary Axis to the other three Axes, providing for innovative action utilising the LEADER approach. Axis 3, the focus for the required evaluation, comprises a number of Measures that provide a typology of eligible projects. These Measures are:•311: Diversification into non-agricultural activities•312: Business creation and development•313: Encouragement of tourism activities•321: Basic services for the economy and rural population•322: Village renewal and development•323: Conservation and upgrading of the rural heritage•331: Training and information•341: Skills acquisition, animation and implementation of local development strategiesIn Wales, Axis 3 and Axis 4 are implemented through partnerships established within each unitary authority area. In Pembrokeshire, this partnership is known as Pembrokeshire Advance. Pembrokeshire Advance has appointed Pembrokeshire County Council as its Lead Body. It has also appointed PLANED as the Axis 4 Local Action Group (LAG) for the county. For the purposes of the RDP, the whole of Pembrokeshire is regarded as rural, and thus Axis 3 activities may be carried out anywhere within the county.Pembrokeshire Advance was required to prepare and submit a Local Development Strategy (LDS) to a format set by WG. The LDS was to document the partnership’s composition and operation, the Lead Body and Axis 4 LAG operations, an assessment of the socio-economic and environmental situation of the area and a strategy for the use of the Axis 3 and 4 funds to address the needs and exploit the opportunities identified.Once the LDS was approved by WG, the partnership was “awarded status” to apply for funding through the submission of projects comprising a Business Plan. These projects were proposed by a range of organisations and identified by an “Open Call“. Projects endorsed by the partnership were submitted to WG by Pembrokeshire County Council acting in its Lead Body role for full appraisal and possible approval.The vision set out in Pembrokeshire Advance’s LDS is “Pembrokeshire and its people will be positive and outward looking, harnessing to the full the county’s rural, coastal and marine characteristics for the sustainable advantage of its residents and visitors”.ObjectivesThe overarching objectives of Axis 3 are to raise Gross Value Added (GVA) and quality of life by:•Providing a broader range of better paid employment opportunities;•Helping to raise economic activity rates;•Enhancing or providing additional mainstream services for the rural economy;•Providing openings for future economic development, including tourism and craft activities;•Improving the physical environment of villages and conserving the rural heritage; and•Addressing social exclusion by providing better links between urban and rural areas.The Pembrokeshire Advance LDS identified a number of Strategic Priorities for the RDP in Pembrokeshire and linked these both to local strategic planning documents (the Pembrokeshire Community Plan) and to the key actions for Axis 3 in the (draft) Rural Development Plan for Wales.An evaluation is required to assess the extent to which the projects selected for funding by Pembrokeshire Advance and approved by WG were appropriate based on the Strategic Priorities of the LDS and so clarify the utility of the LDS as a tool for partnership decision making. Further detail can be found in the Tender Document.