Wales Institute of Social & Economic Research, Data & Methods
Sefydliad Ymchwill Gymdeithasol ac Economaidd, Data a Dulliau Cymru
www.wiserd.ac.uk

Policy Context

Locality is important in the contemporary era of devolution, constitutional change, and post credit-crunch economic restructuring.  During 2009, the localities research programme (LRP) audited key public policy data available for Wales along eight key strands, which map onto public service provision. These were:

  • Health, Wellbeing and Social Care
  • Education and Young People
  • Language, Citizenship and Identity
  • Employment and Training
  • Economic Development and Regeneration
  • Crime, Public Space and Policing
  • Housing and Transport
  • Environment, Tourism and Leisure

Short summaries of each of these areas were prepared, which in turn were used to inform ‘locality experiences’ of public policy and socio-economic change in our chosen localities.

The Wales Spatial Plan (WSP), which was launched in 2004 (and revised in 2008) to provide a regional context for working on public policy, spatial planning, and sustainability concerns across Wales, provides an important context for the locality research programme.  The WSP breaks new ground and seeks to join up government across all policy areas.  Area strategies seek to deliver visions that address key regional issues, and agree the roles and functions of places.  The WSP has six ‘area visions’—North West: Eryi a Mon, North East: Borders and Coast, Central Wales, Pembrokeshire: The Haven, Swansea Bay: Waterfront and Western Valleys, and South East: The Capital Network. These ‘areas’ are not defined by administrative boundaries. This enables partners to work together on common issues in a flexible way, and some may be involved in more than one Spatial Plan Area Group.