Economic Assessment, Short Course Programme

This course has been created in response to the growing demands for public and third sector organisations to demonstrate the economic impacts associated with their activity. The course equips delegates with how to source and utilise statistics appropriate for use in the production of economic assessments.

Who is the course for?
It's for local government officers and private and third sector workers who are asked to undertake economic assessments, evaluations and bids for funding.

What is the course about?
The aim of the course is to provide delegates with the background knowledge and confidence to access, interpret and present economic and social data within their day-to-day working environments. We assume that particular requirements will include the need to produce assessments of local areas and / or industry sectors in order to inform policy and to develop bids for Government funding.

What will I get out of the course?

You will improve your ability to:

• Identify key data sources that are appropriate for use in an economic assessment context and demonstrate that you can access the latest available releases from quality assured sites (e.g. NOMIS etc.)
• Apply your understanding of different types of data, including sample surveys and management information, to present descriptive and comparative analysis in a manner appropriate for an economic assessment
• Consistently demonstrate good practice in the sourcing and presentation of data, employing a practical understanding of confidentiality and data protection issues.

This course has been approved by the Institute of Economic Development meaning that IED members can claim CPD points from attending the full-day.

Course Outline

The course is delivered through a mix of theory and real life practical sessions. Delegates work on case studies and are given the opportunity to share their experiences and ideas.

• Nature of Data, Types and Sourcing: identify what can be accessed
• Introduction to key sources:
  • NOMIS
  • ONS
  • Labour Force Survey
  • JSA Claimant County
  • ASHE
  • Business Data (BRES / ABI)
• Business Population (VAT and PAYE Registrations)
• Identifying Gaps and Challenges in Research Questions

In-company short courses

The courses listed within this programme can also be delivered at your organisation. For more information about in-company delivery and bespoke options for your organisation please contact the Commercial Team via email or telephone: +44 (0)115 848 8139.

Course Tutors

Will Rossiter
Reader and Head of the Economic Strategy Research Bureau

A strategic manager with extensive experience of research design, impact evaluation and policy development in the public sector. Latterly the focus of his experience has been on economic development, regeneration and skills policy. His research interests include regional policy, public sector performance metrics and economic impact evaluation. Will also has experience of both bid writing and assessment.

Will has had a wide ranging experience of research design and project / programme management. As Head of Strategy at EMDA he was responsible for the design and delivery of the large scale interdisciplinary research programme required to support the development of a Regional Economic Strategy (RES). He was responsible for designing and developing the first comprehensive economic impact assessment of an English RDA and participated in the preparation of related national evaluation guidance.

He was also responsible for developing a comprehensive suite of outcome measures required in order to measure progress towards RES objectives. In this capacity he led the development of the Regional Index of Sustainable Economic Wellbeing in partnership with the New Economics Foundation.

Christopher Lawton
Senior Research Fellow, Economic Strategy Research Bureau

A highly experienced analyst and project manager specialising in research and policy related to skills, employment and geographical inequalities. Extensive knowledge of official statistics, recently producing a skills analysis guide for Local Authorities on request from the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. Chris has wide experience in the design, management and interpretation of large scale sample surveys, representing sub-national interests on the technical steering group for the National Employer Skills Survey between 2003 and 2008.

Previous posts include Senior Research Advisor at the East Midlands Development Agency (emda), where Chris led on the production of a 'regional skills priority statement' to inform the development of the Government's skills strategy in autumn 2010, and managed a series of major external research projects, including a study with the Met Office on the links between Climate Change and economic development. Prior to this, Chris was seconded to the Sector Skills Development Agency / UK Commission for Employment and Skills to manage a series of research projects supporting the implementation of the 2006 Leitch Review of Skills.

Craig Bickerton
Senior Research Fellow

Craig is a professional economist with both public sector and private sector consultancy experience. Craig was responsible for managing the East Midlands Development Agency's (emda) strategic research programme, which included the delivery of The East Midlands in 2010, the regional economic strategy evidence base.

Craig has an extensive track record of economic appraisal and evaluation. Most recently he provided technical and methodological advice on a major programme of evaluation that assessed the impact of emda's activities and worked to ensure that the results of this project fed into the agency's project appraisal process by developing internal appraisal tools for use by project managers.