Regional Growth Fund Evaluation

This document describes an evaluation of three UK government initiatives aimed at stimulating economic growth and employment: the Regional Growth Fund (RGF), Place-Based Programmes (Scheme 2), and various other support schemes including the Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI). The RGF, with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises, has been found to create jobs with a wage premium and other benefits, although productivity growth was not enhanced. Scheme 2 successfully generated jobs in targeted areas but did not significantly increase turnover and actually saw a decrease in productivity. The broader support schemes, including AMSCI, generally led to higher earnings growth, increased turnover, and job creation, with positive impacts on competitiveness and innovation in the manufacturing sector. The evaluations employed a mix of econometric analysis, surveys, case studies, and interviews, and while they found positive employment effects and business development, they also highlighted challenges in data and methodology, and the need for further investigation into job quality and long-term growth sustainability. **This summary was written by an AI model and therefore should not be considered a definitive summary of the report. If you are aware of inaccuracies, please email evaluation.registry@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.**

Description

• Lead department: Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
• Evaluation stage: A complete evaluation report
• Other departments: No other departments listed
• Evaluation types: Impact evaluation
• Impact methods: Quasi-experimental method
• Quasi-experimental methods: Difference-in-difference
• Grant information: This intervention is not distributing funding via a grant
• Government Major Project information: This intervention is not a major project
• Policies: No policies provided

Event Dates

• Event Name: Publication of final results
• Event date: May 2022

Evaluation Costs

• Cost: Not provided

Evaluation sharing

• Link(s) to published report(s): Yes
• Links to evaluation plans: No link provided
• Findings: Not provided
• Permission to share confirmed: Yes