A Yorkshire project to give more power to low-income, marginalised and isolated communities across the region has been awarded £5m in funding.  

It will be delivered by a consortium working together as the Yorkshire and Humber Policy Innovation Partnership (Y-PIP), comprising Yorkshire Universities, local and mayoral combined authority representatives, the Yorkshire and Humber Policy Engagement and Research Network (Y-PERN), Yorkshire & Humber Climate Commission (YHCC), Yorkshire and Humber Applied Research Collaboration, and local community groups. 

The Yorkshire Policy Innovation Partnership will: 

• increase access to, and use of, data to inform local decision-making across the region 

• expand opportunities for businesses and would-be entrepreneurs in the region, with a special focus on small and medium businesses, entrepreneurs from marginalised communities, and those engaged in the creative and cultural sector  

• move towards net zero carbon and introduce measures to adapt to the changing climate in the region. 

At its heart will be the Y-PIP community panel, comprised of 12 members with diverse experiences of disadvantage, marginalisation or isolation.  

Empowering communities

Professor Gary Dymski from Leeds University Business School is leading the project with co-director Kersten England CBE, who is heading up Bradford City of Culture 2025 after stepping down as chief executive of Bradford Council last year.   

Prof Dymski said: “Y-PIP will use innovative approaches to empower low-income, marginalised and isolated communities confronting the challenges posed by climate change, widening inequality and left-behind places in Yorkshire and the Humber.

"It will connect the expertise of the region’s 12 universities with the efforts of its residents, councils, and businesses to create a more inclusive and sustainable society and extend the reach and impact of the collaborative regional infrastructure put in place by the initiative’s partners.” 

Sustainable living

Rosa Foster, Co-Director of Yorkshire & Humber Climate Commission, said: “Yorkshire is the only region in England to have been awarded a Local Policy Innovation Partnership [LPIP] grant. We are delighted to be playing our part in it through Y-PIP's work package on Sustainable Living in a Greener Economy, which is a major climate change study examining the challenges of cutting carbon emissions while reducing inequality and improving wellbeing. 

“Ensuring we have a just and fair transition to a net-zero, climate-resilient future in our region is one of the Commission’s four key pillars, so the work Y-PIP will be doing is going to be vital.” 

YHCC will be working with University of York’s Stockholm Environment Institute, along with community groups and policy makers, to address key regional challenges in the move to Net Zero, including retrofit guidance for the region’s high proportion of older buildings. 

The three other LPIP projects are in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. All the projects are supported by a Birmingham-based LPIPs hub, which will gather and share data, evidence, learning and best practice with the UK government, local authorities and researchers who are focusing on regional inequality. 

The LPIPs programme is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) through the Economic and Social Research Council, the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Innovate UK. 

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