So how does the social infrastructure picture look in these seaside communities?
In common with other seaside towns, the proliferation of houses of multiple occupation (HMOs), sometimes of poor quality, is an issue.
The council introduced a selective licensing scheme several years ago, and are currently undertaking a review to assess how effective this has been in improving housing quality in the private rented sector as well as being able to identify and address specific housing issues.
This review will influence whether they extend the scheme to other areas in the future. One challenge with education is overcoming a disconnect that makes it hard to both discuss the skills agenda, and to improve standards of education across the board.
For the former, marrying the needs of employers with the education being delivered is key: preferably early in the secondary school phase rather than just through colleges.
Construction is one industry that would snatch at the opportunity to sell itself as having better careers than many perceive, with Warren Salmons of Morgan Sindall Construction observing that early engagement is needed.
Addressing the second point, the council is keen on the idea of developing family hubs linked to schools, and getting a greater understanding earlier in pupils’ lives.
The Covid-19 pandemic has only heightened the issues of some pupils falling way behind or drifting away from education.
Regeneration doesn’t just mean buildings, it’s this broader picture, providing new paths in housing and education to those that have been denied them."
With that in mind, a skills task force is one of the possibilities being looked into in Great Yarmouth, but this is one area where different authorities are working on different things, and could do with some joined-up thinking.
A £1m bid was put together for a skills task force with specific management, and someone tasked with linking in with the new university centre – unfortunately the bid was unsuccessful, but the groundwork is in place.
A skills task force could be key
These areas are all under review: partners are currently being drawn together in the council’s new Health and Wellbeing partnership, including the James Paget Hospital, county council children’s’ services, adult social services and the voluntary sector.
Again, the Marina Centre comes into play offering wellbeing benefits. There’s also the aspect of improving health through better understanding of nutrition.
Another area of interest is Community Supermarkets: not just a cheap option, but somewhere that people can learn how to cope with life, or access other wider services. More funding is still required.
One of the challenges causing most excitement at the Chamber of Commerce is the opportunity to create an entrepreneurial climate as opportunities open up around the various projects.
Efforts are being made to bring larger organisations and enablers together to nurture that entrepreneurial space and provide support for start-ups and early-stage SMEs.
The belief is that if the framework is there, in the form of knowledge transfer hubs of some kind most business people will be happy to impart their knowledge; so there’s a resource that acts somewhat like the best of LinkedIn, providing a stream of relevant, interesting, engaging and useful knowledge that isn't overpowering or too narrow.
