Strategic authorities: Resources and case studies

Published 25 March 2025

Over 300 people from a range of organisations, sectors and regions gathered at the Liverpool City Region (LCR) AI Summit on November 21, 2024, organised by the Combined Authority. Building on the LCR’s highly focused place-based innovation approach at the UK forefront, the summit highlighted Mayor Steve Rotheram's vision to establish the region as a national exemplar in the application of “AI for Good”, underlining the twin emphasis on delivering both economic growth and solving local challenges.

The AI Summit delivered on multiple fronts. It strategically positioned the Liverpool City Region as a prime location for technology companies, profiling the area's infrastructure, innovative spirit and thought leadership to key industry figures. The message landed overseas with US digital infrastructure giant Kyndryl later announcing the creation of a major AI-related hub with up to 1,000 jobs in the city region and citing ‘Liverpool’s growing reputation as a hub for digital excellence — reinforced by the success of last year’s International AI Summit as a reason to invest.

Beyond showcasing distinctive competitive strengths, the summit fostered valuable new connections, strengthening partnerships between organisations and solidifying the Combined Authority's convening and advocacy role within and for the region's expanding tech ecosystem.

The event underscored LCR’s openness to business and investment-readiness, building on world-leading assets such as the STFC Hartree Centre, and the University of Liverpool’s Materials Innovation Factory, Digital Innovation Facility, and Civic Health Innovation Labs, working with major industry partners IBM, Unilever, and Microsoft.

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Published 6 September 2024

Prior to the first COVID-19 lockdown, Greater Manchester conducted an internal review of its drug strategy, positioning itself strategically to act upon reviews by Carol Black and the inception of the 10-year drug strategy. An external review led by subject matter experts was also undertaken prior to the strategy’s implementation. This state of organisational preparedness enabled Greater Manchester to strengthen its approach, resulting in a more seamless implementation of the strategy. Additionally, the establishment of the GM Drug and Alcohol Transformation Board prior to the 10-year drug strategy exemplifies the region's historical focus on forward-thinking approaches to addressing drug-related challenges. 

Greater Manchester benefits from its existing framework of integrated system working, given its status as a group of local authorities, with coterminous NHS, probation and police services already being strongly represented. This collaborative approach is ingrained within the city region's strategy, enabling effective coordination and response to drug-related challenges.

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Published 6 September 2024

West Midlands has long adopted a distinctive approach to drug services, characterised by a strong emphasis on public health, a stance largely driven by the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). While many regions typically lean towards a council-centric or operationally-driven response, West Midlands PCC 's strategy stands out for its strategic alignment with public health principles from the outset. This unique approach has not only fostered robust relationships within the system but has also positioned West Midlands PCC favourably in negotiating the delineation of roles and responsibilities among system partners.

In the West Midlands, the combating drug partnerships present a distinct model, with each being led by the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in relation to the drug strategy, rather than being individually led by local councils. This stands in stark contrast to the prevailing trend, where approximately 75 per cent of combating drug partnerships across the UK are led by local authorities.

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Published 3 April 2023

The North of Tyne Combined Authority (NTCA) was established in 2018 with a new, directly elected mayor in May 2019. Set up to support an inclusive economy in the region, the mayor has been keen to engage with all communities and in particular understand the barriers to job participation in the region. As part of his manifesto, the Mayor committed to running an Equalities Assembly to hear from people with different protected characteristics on their difficulties in securing work. Hosting an event which catered to multiple needs was challenging as the Combined Authority needed to establish a range of inclusive measures to enable participation. The event, however, was well attended – and well received – by participants.

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Published 22 March 2023

A monthly cost of living response group brings together more than 50 people from across the city region – including council officers, housing providers, police and the voluntary sector – to share good practice, raise on-the-ground issues and showcase some of the support available. Cost of living is a ‘golden thread’ running through GMCA’s work.

A cost of living dashboard is produced each month using information from the 10 councils, providing real-time data on issues such as food insecurity and council tax arrears. Elaine Morgan, GMCA’s Principal for Strategy Reform, said:

“As well as helping councils to target their support, this helps them to look at future-proofing – what they would do in the event of economic changes such as inflation or interest rates rising. We have just begun using a piece of software that will indicate down to postcode level where this will impact, to help focus our early intervention work.”

This case study highlights some of the work that is being done and how it has approach has also supported Trafford and Stockport councils.

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Published 10 August 2022

Through the Community Renewal Fund (CRF), government identified the four districts of Bolton, Manchester, Oldham, and Rochdale in the top 100 priority places across the country. In total, Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) received 76 applications worth £47 million. After appraising the projects, 27 projects worth a total of £17 million were submitted. From the 27 projects, eight were successful with a total value of £4.3 million.

Seven of the eight projects selected related to investment in skills and supporting people into employment, although a range of projects across all CRF Investment Priorities including investment in communities and place, and investment for local business were also submitted. The Combined Authority made a conscious decision not to submit any of their own applications to allow them to concentrate on developing a robust shortlist to government and working with bidders without any perceived conflict of interest.

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Published 1 July 2022

Caroline Preston from North of Tyne Combined Authority and Holly Shiel-Redfern from Explain Market Research discuss what 'good work' means to them and what can be done to support it at a local level.

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Published 1 May 2022

Greater Manchester Combined Authority aims to create an integrated education, skills and work system, supporting partners to deliver services and programmes that help people progress in life and in work, enabling businesses and the city to thrive. This case study explains the strengths and challenges of the existing skills and employment system, and what is required to improve outcomes for local residents.

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Tees Valley Combined Authority – Routes to Work

Published 1 May 2022

Tees Valley Combined Authority aims to grow the local economy by focusing on transforming education, employment and skills across the area. Their Routes to Work pilot has supported almost 4,000 people and helped nearly 800 back into employment across the Tees Valley.

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Published 18 May 2021

Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) is a partnership of five authorities (Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland, and Stockton-on-Tees) in North East England. TVCA went into the pandemic with a clear strategic approach. This had two main features:

• A coherent and comprehensive local employability service – the expansion of Routes to Work (RTW) – delivered through Employment Hubs in each of the council areas.  RTW has developed a reputation for delivering a service that integrates a range of existing funding to ensure that clients experience support which responds to their specific individual situation, assets and aspirations.
• Developing links between skill development, adult education, employability and business growth, and ensuring that local delivery is strongly connected to local needs and, wherever possible, is delivered by local providers, so enhancing local capacity.

“We have used our powers to relax skills and employment funding rules and funding profiles for both businesses and providers – focused on areas of immediate need."

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Published 3 September 2020

The North of Tyne Combined Authority detail how they helped create opportunities for Mayor Jamie Driscoll to directly engage with his constituents. This case study forms part of our devolution communications toolkit.

The North of Tyne Combined Authority is a partnership of three local authorities, Newcastle, North Tyneside, and Northumberland that was established in November 2018 to drive an inclusive economy through investment and job creation in a key region of the Northern Powerhouse.

In May 2019, Jamie Driscoll was elected as the Mayor for the North of Tyne Combined Authority, working across a very diverse set of areas and constituents. A key function of the Combined Authorities’ small Communications Team has been to raise the profile of the Mayor, and to support him in being visible and accountable to the electorate, across each of the different councils.

Building on an approach that had been seen to work for other combined authorities (notably Greater Manchester), the North of Tyne Combined Authority hosted their first ‘Mayor’s Question Time’ in February 2020 in Hexham (Northumberland), with plans to run a further three over the course of the year. The event was seen as providing the opportunity for members of the public to have a conversation with Mayor Driscoll in a warm and relaxing environment.

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Published 3 September 2020

Tees Valley Combined Authority details how it successfully launched a new destination marketing organisation with a website, tourism service and brand through an innovative and low-cost campaign which won hearts and awards throughout the region. This case study forms part of our devolution communications toolkit.

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Published 3 September 2020

The West of England Combined Authority detail how they embraced digital and social media marketing to raise awareness of their ‘Future Bright’ skills service. This case study forms part of our devolution communications toolkit.

The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) has committed £50m to improving skills over the next 20 years. WECA is improving workforce skills to ensure that everyone, no matter what their background or circumstances, has the opportunity to have a successful and fulfilling career.

As part of this, WECA established Future Bright – a DWP funded pilot - to help improve skills, income and opportunities for adults in paid work and in receipt of work benefits or tax credits. The free career coaching service provides tailored support and funding towards training. The programme is managed by WECA, and delivered in partnership with Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire councils.

When the £4m scheme was launched in 2018, communications and marketing was devolved to the councils. But low awareness and uptake of the service, and variable brand identity, led all the partners to review this approach.

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Published 3 September 2020

Gauging sentiment and implementing ideas suggested by staff at the Combined Authority is proving to be an effective way of driving change and improving how the organisation works. This case study forms part of our devolution communications toolkit.

The West Yorkshire Combined Authority is a partnership of the six local authorities of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds, Wakefield and York, plus the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

The Combined Authority employs over 500 members of staff supporting partners’ shared vision for the region. It was established in 2014, and brought together staff from a number of previous organisations – the transport authority for the region, known as Metro; the team that previously supported the LEP; the region’s former inward investment agency, Marketing Leeds, and the regional research and intelligence unit from Leeds City Council.

After bringing these teams together, an internal change management programme called “One Organisation” was put in place to unite staff behind a single vision, identity and culture. Internal communications was a key element of this change programme.

Understanding staff sentiment and concerns was critical in ensuring change communications were planned and delivered effectively, and the Communications team at the Combined Authority identified the annual staff survey as a priority for measuring staff sentiment and developing insight on key issues. Engagement rates with the survey were low however, at around 34 per cent, and anecdotal evidence suggested cynicism among staff about whether action would be taken in response to their feedback.

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Published 3 September 2020

Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor, Steve Rotheram has been bringing devolution to local residents through direct engagement activities to help inform priorities for the area.

Led by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority brings together six local authorities – Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral. To date, the Combined Authority has invested £ hundreds of millions into schemes to drive inclusive economic growth, creating jobs and apprenticeships, improving travel in and around the city region, renovating and improving schools and colleges, helping long-term unemployed families back into work and supporting major cultural events.

As experienced by many new authorities, the remit and responsibility of the devolved Combined Authority and the elected Mayor is not always immediately understood by stakeholders and the general public and opportunities to participate were under-developed. Communications, marketing and engagement has a key role in raising this awareness – and then active engagement – over time.

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Published 3 September 2020

Combined authorities are local government bodies established to facilitate collaboration and collective decision making across a group of two or more councils, in particular in exercising devolved powers and resources.

The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) was established in 2016, and consists of seven constituent authorities, 13 non-constituent members and four observer organisations working together toward a joint vision for a prosperous West Midlands.

The challenge for WMCA, which is common across combined authorities, is ensuring that members of the public within the constituent authorities are aware of the work being undertaken by the combined authority, specifically in exercising the powers devolved under Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016. As a new organisation, working across council boundaries, there was felt to be the potential for confusion amongst citizens as to the role of the WMCA and which projects and activities fell under their remit (and that of the Mayor, Andy Street) as compared to individual constituent authorities. There was a need to raise the profile of WMCA, balancing the need to be recognised as separate to constituent authorities but working in support of the collective interests.

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East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) was the first mayoral combined county authority in the country and features four constituent councils: Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council, Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council. 

EMCCA was created at speed with a short time window between deal making (August 2022), formal  establishment (February 2024) and the inaugural Mayoral election (May 2024). While developed at pace, the fundamental building blocks of EMCCA have proved to be effective: a shared understanding of roles and responsibilities across the councils and combined authority, a clear constitution, and – most importantly – a culture of collaboration.

These strong foundations have supported EMCCA’s early progress. This includes the development of the Trent Arc opportunity area, creating the potential for 30,000 new homes, 40,000 jobs and a £2.4bn boost to the regional economy. EMCCA, working with the constituent councils, has been able to access brownfield and transport funding that would otherwise not be available, and recent work with Homes England to support redevelopment in Broad Marsh (Nottingham) is a further sign of progress.

Organisations work on the Team East Midlands principle, as an MCA Family and focused on EMCCA as a system. While regular political and officer engagement across the combined authority and councils has been central to their achievements to date, EMCCA is seeking to further strengthen arrangements through the development of an innovative Public Service Leadership Forum. This initiative will provide officer leaders operating within the East Midlands with a common induction and support focused on system and place-based collaboration.

The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority comprises six constituent councils and takes a strategic approach to tackling the big issues facing local residents. Using the convening power of the CA, the city region has improved outcomes for children. This includes the extension of free travel to all young people who have experienced care, allowing them to get to training, job interviews, work and start their adult lives without travel being a barrier to opportunities. Establishing the Cradle to Career programme is another important step. The programme is a collaboration of councils, schools, businesses and community organisations to addresses factors that disadvantage children and young people and it supports them from conception to adulthood. Cradle to Career allows local targeting and flexibility while sharing learning. Building on this approach, the CA is now working on establishing a new Office for Public Sector Innovation (OPSI) to transform how public services support people in the region. OPSI will use a locally led approach that convenes partners and utilises data and AI to deliver benefits for residents and support financial savings that can be redirected into further prevention work.

The West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, with three constituent councils, plays a strategic role in bringing partners together to drive sustainable and inclusive economic growth across the region. In November 2024, it became the first authority in England to launch a Local Nature Recovery Strategy. Developed with the West of England Nature Partnership and unitary councils, the strategy and toolkit empower councils, landowners, and communities to take local, place-based action to restore nature and attract green investment.

To support this ambition, the Combined Authority launched the Green Growth West Fund, a £100 million net-zero investment vehicle. The fund uses £10 million of public capital to unlock £90 million in private sector investment, helping to deliver projects that support the transition to a low-carbon, nature-positive economy.

The Combined Authority is also working with partners including the Forest of Avon Trust, Natural History Consortium, Great Western Community Forest, and councils and organisations across the border in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, North Somerset, and beyond to deliver the Western Forest - the first new National Forest in England in over 30 years. This landmark initiative, supported by £7.5 million in government funding, will restore landscapes, boost biodiversity, and benefit 2.5 million people.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) and West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and are working together to maximise the impact of local powers and resources on population health. There is a focus on subsidiarity – putting power close to the problem – and on the strength of true partnership, with places, provider collaboratives, primary care networks and communities driving change. Councils benefit from the statutory leadership of Directors of Public Health, and the Integrated Care Board is supported by the Improving Population Health Team. WYCA has also strengthened this leadership through the joint appointments of an Inclusivity Champion and an Associate Director for Improving Population Health.

In September 2023, a formal partnership agreement between the ICB and CA committed to action on the determinants of health, fair economic growth, climate and inequality. Governance has also been aligned, with reciprocal ex-officio roles on relevant committees. This work is underpinned by a joint plan, a health in all policies approach and the West Yorkshire Work and Health Partnership Group. This has enabled a swift and coherent response to the Get Britain Working programmes, bringing together Health and Growth Accelerator and Economic Inactivity Trailblazer work under one Work and Health Plan for the region. Joint work has also meant greater influence to join up these agendas on a national level.