Innovation Evidence Review

This evidence review synthesises key research and policy questions related to place-based innovation, focusing on strengthening local innovation ecosystems across the UK. It examines national and local innovation policies, the varying capacities of different places for innovation, lessons from existing interventions, and international examples. The review aims to inform the design of effective place-based innovation strategies by identifying key challenges and opportunities.

Policymakers and researchers should prioritise developing robust frameworks for measuring the impact of place-based innovation policies, conducting comprehensive case studies across diverse regions, and fostering cross-disciplinary collaborations to address local innovation challenges holistically.

“Innovation policies are increasingly ‘shifting away from top-down and centralised approaches towards policies that favour cooperative, multi-actor and often more ‘place-based’ approaches”. Dr Chloe Billing, City-REDI Research Fellow II.

Innovation Evidence Review:

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Please reference this paper as:

Billing, C. (2024). Innovation Evidence Review. The Local Policy Innovation Partnership Hub.

Meet the Author

Dr Chloe Billing

Chloe Billing joined the City-REDI team in November 2016 as a Research Fellow, working on the Urban Living Birmingham Project.

Chloe’s current research explores the routes to developing a regional innovation ecosystem, to better support the transfer of university technologies into key sectors and help grow our local regional economies.

Part of this involves understanding both the challenges that universities are facing with their technology-transfer mechanisms, as well as, the barriers to innovation amongst local firms (such as skills and other productivity constraints).

Chloe is the lead for the innovation theme for the Local Innovation Policy Partnership (LPIP) Hub. She is currently on maternity leave

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Publications

Skills Matter in Place-Based Green Industrial Policy: Lessons From the Closure of MG Rover, 2000-2005

Longbridge: Former MG Rover works. Image by harry_nlCC on Flickr (BY-NC-SA 2.0) In this LPIP Hub report, Ed Atkins examines how the experiences of workers following the closure of MG Rover in Longbridge, Birmingham, offer lessons for green industrial policy today. He shows how proactive, place-based and skills-centred interventions helped

Developing Place-Based Green Industrial Policy in the UK

In this report, Ed Atkins argues that green industrial policy in the UK must be rooted in place. Through the review of cases of Vestas in the Isle of Wight, BiFab in Scotland, and Britishvolt in north-east England, he illuminates how gaps between political ambition and political economy have led

What Are Place-Based Business Cases?

This report explains what a place-based business case is and how such cases can support more effective, strategic, and accountable investment decisions across local and national government. Drawing on insights from the Green Book review and City-REDI research, this document outlines three potential purposes for place-based business cases: funding gateways,

Examining the Evidence on Place‑Based Research Partnerships: Towards a Set of Principles for Successful Partnerships

This evidence review brings together academic and practice‑based literature to understand what makes place‑based research partnerships work effectively. It identifies the outcomes these partnerships can deliver, the infrastructure and systems that support success, the skills and expertise required, and the behaviours and values that underpin strong collaboration. The review also