Bristol City Council
United Kingdom

With a population of about 400,000, Bristol is a generally prosperous city containing some very deprived central wards. The City Council, with a range of local partners, previously ran an URBAN I programme via a locally-managed and delivered Action Plan. The City had complete control. A positive independent evaluation of the management and outcomes of this programme led to use of the same model to manage URBAN II, and an element of the South West Objective 2 programme (ERDF and ESF) is now being delivered in the same way. The Local Action Plan is the mechanism for meeting both Lisbon priorities and local needs. The City Council is able to harness match-funding and can offer successful projects advances of funding rather than always paying in arrears. Projects receive considerable technical support and benefit from a simplified application process. The City Council is able to identify capable partners and projects fitting strategic objectives. Local residents are encouraged to take ownership of the programme, and decisions as to which projects to fund are made by well-informed local players. Results include positive outcomes ‘on the ground’ and progress towards helping citizens to feel part of the ‘European project’.

Bristol local economy - The service sector dominates, with the big exceptions aerospace and high tech firms like Hewlett Packard. Bristol is very prosperous but has some very deprived neighbourhoods.

In Bristol Structural Funds are being used to tackle neighbourhood deprivation and improve life chances.

Bristol City Council currently manages an ERDF URBAN II CIP through a Local Action Plan and a devolved ERDF/ESF Objective 2 Programme through a Local Action Plan as an ‘intermediate body’. As explained during the first stage of SRN, the Local Action Plan is a key delivery mechanism, addressing both regional and local priorities and being locally managed by the city (specifically by the Local Strategic Partnership). Bristol City Council is the ‘Accountable Body’ for the devolved parts of the South West Objective 2 programme. The Local Action Plan also enables the complementary use of EU and various domestic regeneration programmes for which disadvantaged wards in central Bristol are eligible.