Recognising the wealth of the sector

In my role as CEO I attend lots of 'out of hours' events and, as you would expect, these have included a range of interesting speakers.  The most recent of these has been on the topic of local enterprise partnerships. The message that came over loud and clear, and reinforced rumour and press coverage is that we need only knock on the LEP's door if we can help deliver their priorities, contrribute to the creation of local wealth, and bring along resources.

In order for wealth creation initiatives to have a lasting benefit they need to be part of the socio-economic fabric of the West Midlands. In other words, they need to sit along side strong, vibrant and active local communities that are supported by high quality, and well resourced community-based services.

As I consider the implications of this message I'm left with a burning question: where does this leave the sector if it is not recognised as a generator of wealth?

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