Question 1

What is an evidence base for an economic strategy?

Accepted Answer

An evidence base is the structured analysis that underpins a strategy before any priorities are set. It establishes how a place's economy performs, how it compares with similar areas, what is driving or holding back growth, and where the real opportunities and risks lie so the strategy rests on fact rather than untested assumptions.

Question 2

Do you tailor the evidence base to the type of place?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The evidence a fast-growing core city needs differs from that for a coastal or rural economy or a place in transition. There may be common themes (labour market and skills, infrastructure, enterprise, innovation, green economy, regeneration of sites etc) but the issues can be distinct. This should be reflected in both the focus of effort and how stakeholder engagement takes place in practice.

The Evidence Stack Builder adapts the steps, risks and emphasis to the place type, its performance and the document being produced.

Question 3

What makes an economic strategy credible to funders and government?

Accepted Answer

A clear, data-led diagnosis; a realistic view of where the place is heading on current trends; priorities built on genuine local strengths rather than fashionable themes; measurable targets; and a credible plan for delivery. The Evidence Stack Builder is organised around exactly these components.

Question 4

What is the difference between an economic strategy and an investment prospectus?

Accepted Answer

An economic strategy sets a place's overall direction and priorities. An investment prospectus is a focused, investment-ready offer built to give investors, public and private, the confidence to back the place. They draw on overlapping evidence but are written for different audiences and decisions.

Question 5

How long does an evidence base take to produce?

Accepted Answer

In our experience a typical evidence base takes around six to ten weeks to complete, scaled to the scope and complexity of the strategy or prospectus it underpins. The most important driver is the project timescale for the strategy or prospectus itself: the evidence gathering process must align with this. A truncated timescale for plan development will reduce how much primary research can be completed, such as stakeholder interviews and surveys. A longer build opens up possibilities for deeper engagement.

Question 6

Why does the order of the evidence matter?

Accepted Answer

Building the evidence in the wrong order, or skipping steps, is one reason strategies fail to land with stakeholders or convince funders.

At PolicyDepartment we firmly believe that any strategic insight should be tested against multiple sources of evidence: no single dataset gives you everything you need and each has its issues of quality and interpretation. For example, in the UK offical survey-based estimates of labour market variables like employment are subject to large margins of error. But we can interrogate direction of travel by comparing numbers against other sources, such as recruitment activity or benefits data.

Collecting and interpreting a variety of data sources should be done with expert care on a scope-collect-validate-iterate basis in which each step depends on the ones before it. For maximum usefulness stakeholder interviews and surveys should seek to test and better understand the issues identified in desk research.

The economic evidence base behind a credible strategy

The Evidence Stack Builder

The document types we build evidence for

Local Economic Strategies and Visions

Investment Prospectuses

Innovation Prospectuses

Labour Market Strategies and Skills Plans

Sector Deep Dives

Three steps no theatre

Scope

Evidence and engagement, in parallel

Synthesis and sign-off

A labour market evidence base for a Get Britain Working Local Plan

Frequently Asked Questions - our answers