The Children and Learners Group is responsible for
delivering the Department for Children Schools and Families agenda as set
out in the Children’s Plan. The group supports and
challenges stakeholders to accelerate progress towards achieving
Every Child Matters outcomes for all children and young people across the
region. Children’s services advisors and other specialist policy
officers are based within the group to enhance our work in localities.
The group manages the Department for Work and Pensions residential training
programme through our Residential Training Unit. The programme, for
long-term unemployed disabled adults, is a vocational rehabilitation
programme that is delivered through nine specialist providers throughout
England.
The Economy and Strategy Group promotes economic
performance in the region and, in partnership with One North East and
others, seeks to enhance enterprise and cultural development, simplify
business support and improve employability in the region. We ensure that
cultural policies are embedded in the strategies of partners. We also
monitor, promote and help put into action the Regional Cultural Strategy.
The group has the policy lead for the response to the recession, regional
select committees and the implementation of the Review of Sub-national
Economic Development and Regeneration. It is also responsible for the
coordination of business and performance management in the office.
The Environment Group promotes the agendas of sustainable
development, climate change and living within environmental limits. Key
transport issues for the group are traffic congestion, transport governance
and accessibility to transport. It influences and challenges regional and
sub-regional actions to improve and increase housing through government
policy, and facilitates development through sound planning.
The group also hosts the national centre of expertise for Department
for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs rights of way casework
and the Department for Transport roads casework.
The Europe Group is responsible for managing a range of
European programmes. This includes:
- closing the North East Objective 2 Programme 2000-06
- managing the ESF Programme 2007-13
- providing strategic support and challenge to One North East, who
deliver the North East Objective 2 Programme 2007-13.
The Local Partnerships and Place Group oversees our
place-shaping role by driving transformation by working with local
councils, local strategic partnerships, the Regional Improvement and
Efficiency Partnership, the Audit Commission on comprehensive area
assessment and other improvement bodies. A key role is to make sure
local area agreements and sustainable community strategies are challenging,
fit for purpose and underpinned by appropriate, sustained partnership
activity. The group also leads on the sub-regional agenda, providing policy
and place-based support to sub-regions and multi area agreements. The group
is responsible for locality management in all 12 local authority areas
covering the North East and for developing their local area agreements.
The Operations and Resilience Group brings
together our strategic functions such as regional resilience,
ministerial business and communications. The group includes our corporate
service teams who are driving forward cultural change and are leading
on our transformation process.
The Safer, Stronger Communities and Tees
Valley Group makes sure that government policies are
translated into sustained progress to further reduce crime, improve
community safety and deliver community empowerment and cohesive communities
in the North East. Its key focus relates to the delivery of Home Office and
Ministry of Justice priorities around making communities safer, reducing
the harm caused by drugs and alcohol, building greater confidence in the
Criminal Justice System and reducing the risk from international
terrorism. The group also has overall responsibility for creating
stronger communities by working to support the third sector, more active
and empowered communities and to promote equality of opportunity.
The group's Deputy Regional Director is also responsible for relationship
management with Tees Valley sub-region, working with colleagues in
Local Partnerships and Place.
The Public Health Group takes forward the Department of
Health agenda. It leads the improvement of health and ensuring the
protection of the population by overseeing arrangements for communicable
disease control, environmental health surveillance and emergency planning.
It also secures the quality of clinical services by supporting the local
NHS.
