IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/lauspo/v134y2023ics0264837723004040.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The role of UK universities as economic drivers in a localisation agenda: A case study of City Deals

Author

Listed:
  • McCann, Laura
  • Hutchison, Norman
  • Adair, Alastair

Abstract

Universities are important players in city and regional economic growth and prosperity. However, the relationship between ‘town and gown’ has often been criticised as not always being aligned, limiting the potential economic and societal benefits a close relationship might bring to the city and region. As a major policy initiative following the 2008 financial crisis, the UK coalition government introduced City Deals in 2012 to support local economic growth in the city and regions, through a partnership approach between central government and local government working with other major stakeholders to decide on regional priorities with funding from a mix of public and private sources. This paper considers the role of universities as localisation growth enablers through their involvement in City Deals, which is assessed through an initial review of stakeholder analysis and university civic engagement and by a qualitative case study of City Deals in Newcastle, Aberdeen, Belfast, and Stirling. This research concludes that while universities participate in town and gown civic engagement to varying degrees, the ‘third mission’ where universities engage with societal needs and market demands by linking the university’s activity with its own socio-economic context (Pinto et al. 2016) is not a priority for UK universities in comparison with their teaching and research roles. Overall, the evidence points to City Deals providing an opportunity for universities to enhance their town and gown relationships especially through their role in innovation, as a ‘local leader,’ and as an engine for local economic development. However, the degree to which this is being delivered is variable, constrained by the configuration of each deal, the input of the university, and the financial risk/value for money which the university is willing to take.

Suggested Citation

  • McCann, Laura & Hutchison, Norman & Adair, Alastair, 2023. "The role of UK universities as economic drivers in a localisation agenda: A case study of City Deals," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:134:y:2023:i:c:s0264837723004040
    DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2023.106938
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837723004040
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.landusepol.2023.106938?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Valero, Anna & Van Reenen, John, 2019. "The economic impact of universities: Evidence from across the globe," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 53-67.
    2. Graham Haughton & Phil Allmendinger & Stijn Oosterlynck, 2013. "Spaces of Neoliberal Experimentation: Soft Spaces, Postpolitics, and Neoliberal Governmentality," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 45(1), pages 217-234, January.
    3. Jaffe, Adam B, 1989. "Real Effects of Academic Research," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(5), pages 957-970, December.
    4. Ivan Turok, 2004. "Cities, Regions and Competitiveness," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(9), pages 1069-1083.
    5. Harvey Goldstein & Catherine Renault, 2004. "Contributions of Universities to Regional Economic Development: A Quasi-experimental Approach," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(7), pages 733-746.
    6. Laura McCann & Norman Hutchison & Alastair Adair, 2019. "External funding of major capital projects in the UK Higher Education sector: issues of demand, supply and market timing?," Journal of Property Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(1), pages 97-130, January.
    7. Kristinn Hermannsson & Katerina Lisenkova & Peter G. McGregor & J. Kim Swales, 2014. "'Policy Scepticism' and the Impact of Scottish Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) on their Host Region: Accounting for Regional Budget Constraints under Devolution," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(2), pages 400-417, February.
    8. Laura McCann & Norman Hutchison & Alastair Adair, 2020. "Student residences: time for a partnership approach?," Journal of Property Investment & Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 38(2), pages 128-146, March.
    9. Richard A. Wolfe & Daniel S. Putler, 2002. "How Tight Are the Ties that Bind Stakeholder Groups?," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(1), pages 64-80, February.
    10. Ivan Turok, 1999. "Localisation or mainstream bending in urban regeneration?," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 14(1), pages 72-86, May.
    11. DOUGLAS D. Parker & DAVID Zilberman, 1993. "University Technology Transfers: Impacts On Local And U.S. Economies," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 11(2), pages 87-99, April.
    12. Michael Kitson & Ron Martin & Peter Tyler, 2004. "Regional Competitiveness: An Elusive yet Key Concept?," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(9), pages 991-999.
    13. Richard I. D. Harris, 1997. "The Impact of the University of Portsmouth on the Local Economy," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 34(4), pages 605-626, April.
    14. Dianne H. B. Welsh, 2014. "How to Build an Entrepreneurial University," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Creative Cross-Disciplinary Entrepreneurship, chapter 0, pages 13-36, Palgrave Macmillan.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Stoetzer, Matthias-Wolfgang & Pfeil, Silko & Kaps, Katharina & Sauer, Thomas, 2011. "Regional dispersion of cooperation activities as success factor of innovation oriented SME," Jena Contributions to Economic Research 2011,4, Ernst-Abbe-Hochschule Jena – University of Applied Sciences, Department of Business Administration.
    2. Harvey Goldstein & Joshua Drucker, 2006. "The Economic Development Impacts of Universities on Regions: Do Size and Distance Matter?," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 20(1), pages 22-43, February.
    3. Joshua Drucker & Harvey Goldstein, 2007. "Assessing the Regional Economic Development Impacts of Universities: A Review of Current Approaches," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 30(1), pages 20-46, January.
    4. Jun Koo & Tae‐Eun Kim, 2009. "When R&D matters for regional growth: A tripod approach," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 88(4), pages 825-840, November.
    5. Dula Borozan, 2008. "Regional Competitiveness: Some Conceptual Issues and Policy Implications," Interdisciplinary Management Research, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Economics, Croatia, vol. 4, pages 50-63, May.
    6. Tobias Schlegel & Curdin Pfister & Dietmar Harhoff & Uschi Backes-Gellner, 2022. "Innovation effects of universities of applied sciences: an assessment of regional heterogeneity," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(1), pages 63-118, February.
    7. Peter Mayerhofer & Oliver Fritz & Dieter Pennerstorfer, 2010. "Dritter Bericht zur internationalen Wettbewerbsfähigkeit Wiens," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 42430, February.
    8. Argentino Pessoa, 2013. "Competitiveness, Clusters And Policy At The Regional Level: Rhetoric Vs. Practice In Designing Policy For Depressed Regions," Regional Science Inquiry, Hellenic Association of Regional Scientists, vol. 0(1), pages 101-116, June.
    9. Joan Crespo & Jesús Peiró-Palomino & Emili Tortosa-Ausina, 2020. "Does university performance have an economic payoff for their home regions? Evidence for the Spanish provinces," Working Papers 2020/20, Economics Department, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón (Spain).
    10. Emanuela Marrocu & Raffaele Paci & Stefano Usai, 2022. "Direct and indirect effects of universities on European regional productivity," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 101(5), pages 1105-1133, October.
    11. Valero, Anna & Van Reenen, John, 2019. "The economic impact of universities: Evidence from across the globe," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 53-67.
    12. Pfister, Curdin & Koomen, Miriam & Harhoff, Dietmar & Backes-Gellner, Uschi, 2021. "Regional innovation effects of applied research institutions," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(4).
    13. Sauer, Thomas & Stoetzer, Matthias-Wolfgang & Gerlach, Andrea, 2007. "Forms and regional distribution of knowledge transfer by German universities," Jena Contributions to Economic Research 2007,3, Ernst-Abbe-Hochschule Jena – University of Applied Sciences, Department of Business Administration.
    14. Kristinn, Hermannsson & Peter G., McGregor & J. Kim, Swales, 2013. "Consumption Expenditures in Economic Impact Studies: An Application to University Students," SIRE Discussion Papers 2013-62, Scottish Institute for Research in Economics (SIRE).
    15. Maria Mavri & Vasilis Angelis & Katerina Dimaki, 2011. "The Impact of Educational Activities on Regional Development," ERSA conference papers ersa10p1111, European Regional Science Association.
    16. Sivropoulos-Valero, Anna Alexandra, 2021. "Education and economic growth," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114434, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    17. Lisenkova, Katerina & McGregor, Peter G. & Swales, J. Kim, 2010. "Policy Scepticism and the Impact of Welsh Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) on their Host Region: Accounting for Regional Budget Constraints," SIRE Discussion Papers 2010-72, Scottish Institute for Research in Economics (SIRE).
    18. Torben Schubert & Henning Kroll, 2016. "Universities’ effects on regional GDP and unemployment: The case of Germany," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(3), pages 467-489, August.
    19. D. Schartinger & C. Rammer & J. Fröhlich, 2006. "Knowledge Interactions between Universities and Industry in Austria: Sectoral Patterns and Determinants," Springer Books, in: Innovation, Networks, and Knowledge Spillovers, chapter 7, pages 135-166, Springer.
    20. Sujit Bhattacharya & Praveen Arora, 2007. "Industrial linkages in Indian universities: What they reveal and what they imply?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 70(2), pages 277-300, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:134:y:2023:i:c:s0264837723004040. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joice Jiang (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/land-use-policy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.