The Draft National Planning Statement (NPS) for Ports
April 2010
A recent study by the Centre for Cities looked at city development statistics and found that port cities fair worse than others in terms of entrepreneurship: they can create a lot of jobs but not necessarily business start ups. What concerns the Centre for Cities is that current practice focuses on managing ports’ decline rather than their future growth.If UK ports are to succeed and to bring more economic benefits, planning and economic development policies must ensure that they are allowed to grow and have some spare capacity at all times. This is not only important from an economic point of view, but also for reasons of supporting national transport and energy infrastructure, national security and the social cohesion that can come from improved economic conditions. The Draft NPS calls for an emphasis on this approach to the development of ports, with the planning process facilitating the resilience of the UK’s ports infrastructure.
A port’s masterplan and planning application documents must reflect how the port contributes to local and regional economies and communities. The case for a port expansion requires strong evidence of need and market conditions to ensure sustainable growth. If development requires public financial assistance, the business case must enable justification of investment by the various partners; it can also help gain the support of local communities and businesses by developing their understanding of the port’s wider contribution. Our experience shows that policy may also create situations when a port’s economic case is required to protect its interests and its future.
Ports enable the movement of a manifold of goods and cargo, which create unique patterns in their development due to the prevalence of certain types of goods and businesses, and as a result of supply chain efficiences. Many ports therefore have a degree of specialisation with some standing out as ro-ro ports (Dover), cruise market ports (Southampton), cargo ports (Immingham), ports serving car makers (Bristol), and so on. Smaller ports carve out their business models based on better access to final consumers or unique geographic features. The variety of activity occurring at a port’s site creates a critical mass for local and regional employment through on-site and directly dependent businesses and supply chain linkages. This can be £1bn of GVA and over 30,000 jobs in the case of Liverpool ports, or more than £80m of GVA and up to 2,000 jobs at the Port of Falmouth. Notwithstanding the difference between these numbers, both ports are vital to their local and regional economies. The gross value added per job created is usually much higher than regional averages.
The headline figures mask complex customer and supply chain relationships created by ports. Such relationships are primary building blocks of ports’ economic impact. Many ports also actively build links with education and research and development institutions. This process is on the rise due to new opportunities created by renewable energy development both on-shore and off-shore and the associated demand for new skills. More ports are investing in on-site CHP plants, wind turbines, and other technologies; more of them are capturing the benefits of off-shore wind, tidal and wave energy projects.
RTP can help by assessing the economic impact of a port, related infrastructure and businesses. We can increase the chances of success during the planning application process, in obtaining grant funding, and in improving the image of a port in general. Our economic impact methodology is robust, has been peer reviewed by academic organisations, and is compliant with the latest government regulations. Our skills stand out from the crowd of multi-disciplinary consultants due to the links we have built between our economic assessment, social impact and planning skills.
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