Tees Valley Combined Authority and its five Local Authorities are working with key partners to develop the Tees Valley Local Growth Plan (LGP). The Plan sets out a ten-year strategic framework to drive economic growth across the Tees Valley. In this blog, we share reflections on the recent consultation period, the LGP and the role of the VCSE sector in driving growth across the Tees Valley.
Understanding the Local Growth Plan
The draft LGP outlines an economic vision focused on creating jobs, strengthening the region’s foundational economy, increasing business density, and improving skills so that more residents can participate in and benefit from growth. With an ambition to secure sustained and inclusive growth, increase productivity, and build a diverse, high-value economy, Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “This Local Growth Plan is about building on our strengths and ensuring that everyone in Tees Valley can share in the opportunities that lie ahead.
At an LGP consultation event participants were asked: ‘How can the LGP add value to your organisation?’
It’s an important question, but there is another equally important one: ‘How can the VCSE sector add value to the LGP?’
This shift in perspective matters. Economic growth in the Tees Valley is not something that happens separately from the VCSE sector. The sector is already part of the region’s economic infrastructure. It creates jobs, delivers services that enable economic participation, generates social value, and strengthens the legitimacy and effectiveness of public services. For more information on the foundational economy, you can read our earlier blog here.
Four areas in particular underline why the sector deserves meaningful recognition and partnership with the Combined Authority:
- scale and size of economic contribution,
- delivery of vital services,
- generation of social value,
- role in improving the quality, accountability and legitimacy of public services.
These themes form the foundation of VONNE’s forthcoming report and make the case for early and sustained engagement with the sector in Local Growth Plan delivery.
Although the consultation on the Plan has now closed, the conversation about delivery and partnership is only just beginning. If the plan is to achieve its ambitions, the VCSE sector must be embedded from the outset, recognised as a core partner with unique insight into the needs and strengths of our communities. Early engagement ensures programmes are better designed, better targeted, and more accountable.
The VCSE Sector’s Economic Contribution
Across the Tees Valley, more than 1,400 VCSE organisations operate in local communities. Together, they generate £427.3 million in direct gross value added (GVA) and provide over 7,400 jobs. This represents a significant and measurable contribution to the regional economy.
Alongside this paid workforce sits a substantial volunteer base. Nearly 29,000 people give their time each year, contributing more than two million hours of activity. If this contribution were delivered by paid employees, it would equate to approximately £25.4 million at National Minimum Wage rates.
Taken together, the scale and contribution of the sector demonstrate just how deeply it supports the region’s economy and communities. At a time when the LGP seeks to increase productivity, improve skills pathways and address economic inactivity, this evidence demonstrates that the VCSE sector is already contributing to these ambitions at scale. Recognising this contribution is essential if growth is to be genuinely inclusive and sustainable.
Delivering Essential Services that Enable Growth
Many of the LGP’s priorities, such as improving employability, increasing business density, and strengthening the foundational economy, are already reflected in the day-to-day work of VCSE organisations.
From charities providing training and volunteering opportunities, to social enterprises strengthening local economic resilience through job creation and reinvestment, to community groups tackling issues like isolation and digital exclusion, VCSE organisations are already driving the kind of inclusive growth the plan seeks to achieve.
In many cases, economic impact is not the primary driver of this work. It is the valuable by-product of socially driven activity. By strengthening individuals and communities, VCSE organisations increase participation in the labour market, build resilience, and contribute to local prosperity.
A New Report: Demonstrating the Sector’s Value
VONNE is preparing a full-length report to present to TVCA and other stakeholders, demonstrating that the VCSE sector is not a peripheral contributor to growth, but a foundational part of the region’s economic and civic life, bringing meaningful community insight to the region’s economic ambitions. The report will include case studies of how VCSE organisations are already contributing to TVCA’s priorities.
We will be hosting an in-person event in Darlington in April to launch the report and continue this conversation with partners, stakeholders, and VCSE organisations across the Tees Valley.
As the Local Growth Plan moves from strategy to delivery, this is an important moment to ensure that the sector is fully recognised and embedded in future work. If the Tees Valley is to achieve sustained and inclusive growth, the VCSE sector must be part of shaping and delivering that ambition.
This work is funded by Waythrough and The National Lottery Community Fund. With thanks to Dr Tony Chapman and Community Foundation North East’s Third Sector Trends for providing the data for this research.
If you have any questions or contributions to this work, please contact VONNE’s Policy and Data team via their email addresses, siobhan.flynn@vonne.org.uk and georgia.morris@vonne.org.uk
