LOCOG Nations and Regions Group update

Yorkshire
Yorkshire Forward, the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Development Agency, identified in February this year that their own research estimated potential economic benefits of the Games to Yorkshire in the long-term to be in the region of £600 million.

South West
An executive group has been established, a range of groups and stakeholders have been briefed and adverts placed in the national press to recruit a director to work on Games projects. Consultation on a regional plan will be launched in December.

East of England
Major stakeholder conference took place on December 9th with 100 of the top decision-makers in the region coming together to consider the impact of the Games and the opportunities they bring. A high-level strategic group Nations & Regions East will develop the plan, supported by a broader consultation group.

North West
A conference is planned for early in the New Year at Old Trafford, with Lord Coe speaking. The conference will update groups on structures and planning. This follows the first meeting of the NW Steering Group on Thursday 8th December, involving Northwest Regional Development Agency, Sport England NW, Government Office for the North West, Culture Northwest and England's Northwest Tourism Forum.

West Midlands
Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent has already discussed the impact of the Games on North Staffordshire with the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone. This is one of many such meetings, sharing knowledge and know-how. As a result a conference is being planned for Staffordshire in February.

East Midlands
First meeting of steering group took place on Friday 9th December - discussed the key personnel and organisations that will drive the work forward. This followed a conference on the impact of the Games on Tourism held on 28th November. A consultation event to further engage senior level staff from key stakeholder organisations is planned for February 1st 2006.

Scotland
Steering Group consisting of representatives from sportscotland, Eventscotland, visitscotland, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, local authorities, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla), voluntary sector, BBC Scotland and business, will meet in early January.

London
The Mayor, the London Development Agency and other key Londonwide agencies are working closely together to put in place a package of measures to ensure that these benefits are realized and maximized for London and Londoners. The LDA, for example, is leading on a package of measures both to support local people into Olympic job opportunities and to help local businesses obtain Olympic related contracts.

Northern Ireland
Their early work, through a couple of meetings, has been led by DCAL with NI Events Company and the NI Sports Council has been to draw up a draft Strategy for Northern Ireland, which will draw in the NI Tourist Board, DTI, Invest NI, local authorities, and the Departments for Education and Social Development. On the 3rd March 2006, Lord Coe will visit the province.

North East
The North East regional forum will meet in the New Year, pulling together representatives including the Northern Business Forum, Regional Cultural Consortium, Universities for the North East and the sub-regional partnerships in the region, alongside One North East and Sport England North East. This follows earlier consultation in September 2005 to identify key priorities for the region.

Wales
The Wales group, drawing in leaders from the private sector, sports, arts and culture, education and health and the voluntary sector, will be chaired by Gareth Hall of the Welsh Development Agency, and will meet in January 2006.

South East
The South East regional group met on 29th November to set out plans to draw together all key stakeholders and organisations in the Region. The Group have been working hard with all local authorities and other interested parties in the region to ensure a co-ordinated approach.